Five Flicks I've Got to See

Grizzled critics rarely get excited about seeing a specific new movie. We're such a jaded lot that most hyped-up blockbusters zip by with all the intrigue of a passing stoplight. Getting amped for a new movie for a critic is like a garbage man rubbing his hands in anticipation of the next row of garbage bins, or a crack whore excited for her next... hit of crack.

Yet these five flicks have managed to penetrate my defenses and get me genuinely hyped up. Of course this means these five also all have the greatest chance of letting me down.

5. Nacho Libre (June 16) - " Napoleon Dynamite" was such a resounding classic that no matter how corny the trailers for Jared Hess' follow-up appear, I'm all in. Jack Black has yet to wow me in a starring role, but a turn as a Mexican priest who moonlights as a wrestler just might do the trick.

4. Click (June 23)- It's been six years since Adam Sandler delivered a brilliant comedy - that would be "Little Nicky" - and he's slumped into a bit of a rut of remakes. But this one, featuring the SandMan as a family guy with a universal remote control that fast-forwards through life, looks like a possible return to "Big Daddy" form.

3. Superman Returns (June 30) - I know, I know. The trailers make this thing look cornier than a Nebraska farm in August, and the camped-out hero looks less like Superman than Superdoofus, but you're reading a man with not one but two Superman keychains in his pocket. I'm hooked for life, and I've got to believe. If Bryan Singer can make two solid "X-Men" flicks, why shouldn't he be able knock a "Superman" out of the park?

2. A Scanner Darkly (July 7) - I believe Richard Linklater is the greatest filmmaker to ever live, and "Waking Life" is the greatest movie ever made. This sci-fi thriller, based on a Philip K. Dick short story and animated in the "Waking Life" style, gives me shivers just thinking about it. The only thing hotter than Winona Ryder is an animated Winona Ryder, and so long as we get "The Matrix" Keanu and not "Johnny Mnemonic" Keanu, this thing should be in good shape.

1. Clerks II (July 21) - You'll never find a film funnier than "Clerks," except - fingers crossed harder than the R-rating the movie should land - in Kevin Smith's long-awaited follow-up. It's nice to see you again, Dante and Randal - the glimpse from "Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back" was but a tease. This venture is Smith's return to his roots. Following the sappy disappointment that was "Jersey Girl" (although the DVD commentaries rocked) Smith promises this is the funniest script he's ever written, and he spurned a megabudget action flick to slap this project together for just a $5 million budget. All parties involved were in on it for the love rather than the encouragement of agents and managers. The Cannes Film Festival committe already gave "Clerks II" the nod, and I'm hoping to be able to do the same.

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