The invasion of the summer sequel

Much to the delight of environmentalists across the nation, Hollywood seems to have finally given in to the idea of digging deep into the recesses of their ancient vaults and recycling their trash. This summer's highly-lauded hits seem to be almost entirely reduxes. Not since the summer of Jaws 2: Revenge of the Guppy has there been such a collection of so highly anticipated sequels.

Then again, never before has the situation been so lucrative for movie makers, with fans renting past films to reacquaint themselves with their favorite movie personas combined with them shelling out money a second time to see the actual sequel. But so what if all the flashy sequels amount to are the studios trying to rip every last penny from our broke, coiled fingers? Let's not get weighed down with silly monetary issues. Rather, let's get in the spirit of creation. Drag out your VCR, hunker down with your DVD, and give a little TLC to your HBO before heading down to the cineplex to catch the part deux of your favorite duplicity.

First up is X-2, the oh-so-creatively titled sequel to X-Men that's already breaking box office records and comic fans' hearts across the nation. The storyline? A bunch of superhuman outcasts with unbelievable powers travel the countryside in a hi-tech jet, battling evil in the form of malicious mutants in hopes of averting another apocalypse. Yes, I too was shocked and surprised upon finding out this shocking and surprising plot.

The Matrix Reloaded, already getting rave reviews as THE most anticipated movie of the summer, came out just a few days ago as the second part of a highly anticipated trilogy. Starring Keanu "Acts like a Wooden Plank" Reeves as Thomas Anderson, better known as the machine gun-toting Neo, Reloaded promises lots of slow-motion stunts, innovative cinematic techniques, as well as the always-lovable bad guys in black suits and shades.

The summer of the sequel will be in full swing by June 13, when Freddy vs. Jason finds its way onto the big screens, following in the footsteps of such classics as Friday the Thirteenth: Part XXVI and Nightmare on Elm Street: Part VI. With luck, fans will be able to recover from the nonstop slashing and manly deep-throated growls in time to make it to the premier of Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd four days later. Unfortunately, Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels are not in this prequel of the character's high school years. But, Eugene Levy is, and any high school comedy he touches always turns to gold.

With the arrival of July, also comes the release of both Legally Blonde 2: Red, White, and Blonde and Terminator 3 on the exact same day. As Reese Witherspoon and Arnold Schwarzenegger go head-to-head, I for one cannot wait to discover whether it is the Harvard-bound airheads or the programmed-to-kill-on-sight automatons who rule the box office.

Meanwhile, Tomb Raider 2: The Cradle of Life, opens July 25. With Angelina Jolie onscreen once more as gun-toting tomb raider Laura Croft, all the underground action viewers will likely long for another leather-clad, whip-toting archeologist: the one and only Professor Indiana Jones.

But even in a summer where most movie titles are followed by "part twos" there are a few originals hiding amidst the recyclables. The sleeper hit of the season appears destined to be Whale Rider, a low-budget New Zealand production about a Maori girl who must struggle with both convention and ingrained traditions once she becomes her tribe's leader by default. The Hulk, with such stars as Jennifer Connelly and Nick Nolte, adapts Jack Kirby's comic books.

Finally, Bruce Almighty features Jim Carrey as a man who stumbles upon powers of biblical proportions. After God, played comically by Morgan Freeman, decides to take a vacation, he hands Bruce the wheel and tells him to take a heavenly ride. Sources say that Bruce at one point finds himself traveling the countryside in an angel-powered jet. And if that isn't cool, I just don't know what is.

So, buck up and strap in as Hollywood takes us back down memory lane for (cue appropriate, well-known theme music now) The Summer of the Sequels, Part Two, Reloaded, etc. That is, unless, you didn't like the first movie to begin with.