Most Anticipated Movies of Summer 2013

Last year I posted about my most anticipated movies for the whole year and I struggled to make a decent list. This year I looked at just the movies coming out in the summer and I'm having issues keeping it to only 10. I even had to add in a section of honorable mentions! Haha. That basically means I don't want to spend $50 at the movies but the movie definitely has potential to be great. Again, this list is only for spring/summer of 2013! Let's get it started baby!

Already Out

Pain & Gain

The Rock and Mark Wahlberg in an action/comedy movie with Rebel Wilson? Uh, sign me up please. I'm hoping to ignore the fact that Michael Bay is the director, but I have a feeling when I watch this I will be reminded of that. Let's hope Dwayne and Marky Mark can make this film enjoyable.

Anticipation Level: Pretty Excited

---

May

Iron Man 3

Iron Man 2 was a bit of a disappointment, still good because of Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark, but the Avengers hit the screens last summer with a huge pop. The excitement for the comic book movies is back this summer and I think IM3 is going to blow away the first two movies in the trilogy. 

Anticipation Level: SUPER EXCITED!!!

The Great Gatsby

This movie looks nothing like how I pictured it when reading this in high school. It looks ten times better! The "old-school futuristic" look along with Leo makes me very interested in how this movie will turn out. This was on the verge of going into honorable mentions - but it looks so fresh compared to other movies.

Anticipation Level: Pretty Excited

Star Trek Into the Darkness

Ok. J.J. Abrams is just amazing. You should know my man-crush I have on him and any project he touches. He made me a Star Trek fan with the original re-make he did a couple years ago. Now, I can't wait to see this. Brittany and I may be there opening weekend - since we share the same love for J.J.

Anticipation Level: SUPER EXCITED!

Fast & Furious 6

Ok, I will admit, I stopped watching these movies at Tokyo Drift. But the fifth installment have been on my radar since it was released. The Rock and the reunion of every character (even Michelle Rodriguez!) in the movies to date make me very interested in this one. If I'm confused, I'll go back and watch 5, but right now I'm just jumping straight to 6.

Anticipation Level: Excited!

---

June

The Purge

Ok, this is my sleeper pick for the summer. I watched the trailer and instantly fell in love (is that weird?). The overall plot of the movie is very unique - it opens up for some terrible things to happen during the one night that all crimes are allowed. I cannot wait to see this movie, and surprisingly haven't heard about it until I started making this list. Brittany isn't a fan of "break-into-your-house" movies, so I dunno if I'll have to drag Raleigh or Jason with me to see it.

Anticipation Level: Surprisingly Excited!

Man of Steel

I'm not a Superman fan, at all, but I'm really excited about this movie. That should tell you something. Zack Snyder and Christopher Nolan being part of the development definitely helps! It looks the part, no matter what people say about the new costume, I think it looks great. The cast all fits the parts, hopefully the story line holds up. Very very very excited to see Superman this summer. Batman is still better though.

Anticipation Level: Very Excited!

World War Z

Zombies are totally IN right now. Zombie is the new black. Then, add in Brad Pitt...oh man that's a summer movie made in heaven. This is definitely in my top three movies I want to see - I love zombies I love apocalypse movies and I love Fight Club. Boom!

Anticipation Level: SUPER EXCITED!

---

July

Grown Ups 2

Listen, I have a rule about movie theaters - I never see Comedies. Paying $450,857 to see a comedy in the theater is ridiculous. There is no benefit to seeing it there, unlike an action flick. Somehow two summers ago, I saw Grown Ups in the theater with a group of friends. They must have paid for it? Haha. I was REALLY happy that I saw it though - it was one of the best comedies I've seen in a while. Now, the sequel comes out and I'll probably be there, watching it again with my friends in the theater. Good job Adam Sandler and crew.

Anticipation Level: Excited!

---

August

Kick-Ass 2

The original was one of the most unique movies I've seen over the past five years. It made me laugh, cry, jump up and down and say "YEAH!" The sequel looks just as good, but my interest isn't as high as it is to see the other movies. Honestly, this was close to being dumped to honorable mentions - but then I saw that Jim Carrey is in it...definite top 10 now!

Anticipation Level: Pretty Excited

---

Order of Anticipation:

1. Star Trek Into the Darkness

2. Iron Man 3

3. World War Z

4. Man of Steel

5. The Purge

6. Fast & Furious 6

7. Grown Ups 2

8. Pain & Gain

9. Kick-Ass 2

10. The Great Gatsby

---

Honorable Mentions

1. Oblivion - Yes, I know it's out already but this (to me) kicked off the summer blockbusters. Tom Cruise, conspiracies, life after Earth and aliens all combine into great potential.

2. After Earth - Will Smith also is a must-have during the summer. This interested me because his son is acting with him, and M. Night Shyamalan is back. He has made a string of bad movies, hopefully Fresh Prince can save him.

3. Pacific Rim - HUGE ROBOTS FIGHTING! Not going to lie, this almost made my Top 10. The concept is pretty sweet, but will probably be just a popcorn blockbuster this summer. Robot Combat League on steroids.

4. R.I.P.D. - I love Ryan Reynolds so that alone got my attention. But then I read the overview of this movie. Dead cops trying to fight to save the world. INTERESTING!

5. Comedies Galore - Hangover Part 3/The Internship/This is the End - All movies I'd like to see, but don't want to spend $40 going to the theater to see them. I'm not a huge fan of seeing comedies in the theater, Grown Ups 2 is on the list because I LOVED the first one. The Hangover series never won me over, though it does have its moments. Loved Wedding Crashers so hoping that The Internship continues the Wilson/Vaughn magic. Usually not a huge fan of Seth Rogan, but the unique plot of these actors playing themselves interests me.

So what did you think? Do you agree with some of these? Are there other movies that you are shocked I didn't include? Am I nuts?! Comment below. 

Big News: Robert Griffin III

Robert Griffin III, or RG3 as media calls him, has officially signed with the Washington Redskins last week. He has fallen under that same old caption that other new quarterbacks or free agents get tagged with when they come to D.C. Expectations are always high to bring this team back to its glory days.

That's right, there was a time when the Redskins WERE ACTUALLY GOOD! I don't remember it, because I was too young. They've won 3 Super Bowls, the most recent one being in 1991. I was...5. Since that time over 20 years ago, they've barely made it to the playoffs...hell they've barely had a winning record.

Each off season they seemed to have brought in the savior, the one that will bring them back to Super Bowl contenders. Names such as Donovan McNabb, Albert Haynesworth, Deion Sanders, Bruce Smith, Heath Shuler and Patrick Ramsey make me cringe, remembering not only how much they disappointed but how much I gave into the hype of these players.

But there is something different about this kid. This guy is not only a mobile quarterback like McNabb but he tries to throws the ball first...he also has a wonderful arm. He isn't arrogant, cocky and selfish like Albert Haynesworth or Deion Sanders, he knows this is a team sport and he put his Baylor teammates before him many times in his college career. He is also a very likable kid, he has a great personality that has got him on the Jay Leno show twice and commercials with Subway, Adidas and Gatoraid...all before he throws his first NFL pass.

The hype going into this season with a kid like RG3 under center is making fans go crazy. Super Bowl chants have begun, even before preseason. He is the second coming of Jesus to Redskins fans...Listen, I'm not going to buy into the hype this time around. I'm going to let his NFL play get me excited. Or at least, that's what I'm trying to do. It's hard when I see him on three different commercials and he is saying all the right things leading up to camp. I mean, he wears crazy Superman socks (to the right) saying that he is only the cape, leading his team, who are the real Supermen where they need to be. He really puts his team before himself, and that is a big change in most of those names I listed above.

Robert, play as well as you are "playing" this offseason, and I'm going to worship you as most Redskins fans have already started doing. But, I've been burnt so many times by Redskins' "Saviors" that I hope you don't blame me for being a bit cautious to jump on the ship just yet. I'm expecting big things, big things like you did in College last year (below), show me that and I'm all in.

2011 Redskins Season Highlights

How did we end up 5-11 after watching this?! Haha. Hopefully RG3 will bring some highlights for next year.

Christmas 2011 at the Burkey's

2011 Holiday Christmas List for Geeky Dads

Are you wondering what to get me for Christmas or my birthday? Yeah, that’s right, you’ve probably forgotten that my birthday is coming up as well since it is between Xmas and New Years, it’s ok I’m used to it ;). Or are you just wondering what to get your husband, son, boy friend? This is the best gifts to get a man like me on that special day in December.

Get ready to get your mind blown with great ideas.

Amazon’s Kindle Fire - $199.99

Tablets are like the new black aren’t they? Well, this one is the real deal for an amazing price. Especially if your dude uses Amazon services already for music and movies, this will allow him to access all his files already on his Amazon account, plus FREE CLOUD STORAGE. If you don’t know what cloud storage is, just know that it is AWESOME and your man probably knows what it is. For the price (less than half the price of an iPad), this thing will be a REALLY popular gift this year. Especially paired with some Amazon Gift Cards.

Flat Screen HD TV - $300-$4,000

Quite a large price difference here eh? Well, it all depends how big of a TV your man is wanting to watch football on. An acceptable size around 32" could be around $300 while the new 80" can be in your living room for a whooping $4,000. Actually the 80" would be more like your living room is in your TV. Any who, there can never be too many televisions in the house, right guys?

Video Games - $30-$60

You know you hate Video Games, but men love them. There are TONS of games out right now that I’m sure you can find something just right. Games from Modern Warfare 3, Battlefield 3, Elder Scrolls Skyrim, Madden 2012, Legend of Zelda Skyward Sword, Uncharted 3…I can go on and on here. If you aren’t sure what game to get him, just grab a gift card to Gamestop or Best Buy and let him go nuts!

Manly Movies - Die Hard or Rambo - $10-$20 each

What guy doesn't love the classic action flicks where things blow up and guys rule all? The Die Hard series is amazing, the first one being the best and should be in every guy's collection. Sylvester Stallone takes everyone to guy heaven in the Rambo movies. Either one of these series is a given for every guy to own or to have at least seen.


Manly Shows - The Walking Dead or The Game of Thrones - $35-$50 each

The Walking Dead and The Game of Thrones cater to two different types of guys, or the same guy in my case ;). A zombie Apocalypse or a medieval political war drama? Both filled with amazing characters and storylines, both filled with tons of blood, sex and survival. What more could a guy ask for? If your dude owns these the Game of Thrones book series or the Walking Dead graphic novel might be a great addition!

Star Wars Ultimate FX Lightsaber - $30

Ignore the kids in this video. Raleigh and I are buying each other these for Christmas so we can flip around like a Jedi. These have to be the coolest toy lightsabers made and at a wonderful price. Don’t  lie, your dude is a kid at heart and when he picks this up he will feel the force coursing through his veins.

Life Quote #3

"Little Ham 'n Eggs comin' at ya, hold on people hope ya got your griddles..."- Ron Burgundy

Penny's First Laugh

A babies first laugh is one of the most beautiful things a father could hear in his lifetime. It doesn’t matter what kind of mood he is in, that first laugh can take away any pain or irritation and put a huge smile on his face.

I’m not talking about a little squeal or a huge smile. I’m talking about the laugh that comes from the belly, a real laugh. You know what I’m talking about, one of those laughs that you let out when you are watching Will Ferrell shakin’ n’ bakin’ in Talladega Nights or Chris Farley screaming as he is rolling down a hill.

We as adults take those laughs for granted, not really paying attention to when somebody really lets one out. However a parent always notices when a baby does it for the first time or when a young child gets the giggles that make them slap their knees. We take those moments and we bottle them up and cherish them, always remembering them as they happened.

Today was that day for my little Penny Lane, at 3 months 1 week and 5 days she continuously let out a chuckle felt from the gut. As she lay on her changing table after a nice warm bath she watched wide-eyed as Brittany made silly faces and noises. Micah and I were getting ready to play the Wii, and were lightly arguing over what pajamas he should wear when we heard it.

Everyone stopped and listened and she brought all of us to a silence. Then, after a moment we all smiled and watched her as Brittany kept making her laugh, over and over. Micah got those giggles that made him slap his knee, and Brittany and I laughed together.

Penny’s first laugh was wonderful and is only one of the many things I will experience with my family as a new father. Just that thought makes me smile and want to continue to live my life for her, for Micah and for Brittany.

Life is good as we near the holiday stretch.

Just for fun, here is a funny video of Penny from yesterday just having a conversation with Brittany and I.

The Walking Dead Invade My House!

My entertainment of the weekend consisted of a lot of brains getting eaten.

Well, this weekend I watched a new movie and a new TV show, both related to the Halloween holiday. Friday night I got home and wanted to watch a scary movie, so I popped in Netflix and found two choices that I really wanted to see, Zombieland and The Crazies.

I’ve heard that Zombieland is almost more a comedy than a horror movie. So, I went with The Crazies, which I haven’t heard too much about but I remember the previews being decent for it.

The Crazies

To my surprise the movie was actually a lot better than what I thought it would be. It had a zombie feel to it, but these were different types of zombies that didn’t really seem interested in brains. They seemed more interested in just killing people, basically acting like crazy zombies. I guess that’s where they got the name of the movie?

Anyway, the movie starts to change directions into a government cover-up conspiracy theory in the middle and that’s when it really started to get interesting. The army gets called in and tons of people die and get shot by them as they quarantine the city trying to keep the infected in the same area.

The main character is interesting and believable, as well as his deputy but I didn’t really connect with anyone else. The visuals were great, and the sound was that of a classic horror movie, so no complaints there.

I’d recommend going to check this one out if you are wanting to have the thrill of zombies chasing you around. Britt on the other hand didn’t like it as much I don’t think.

The Walking Dead

Last night, as football was dying down Brittany and I found ourselves with nothing to watch. Then, I remembered that The Walking Dead was about to premier.

Boy, am I glad I remembered. This show went far beyond my expectations and honestly I’m more excited about this show than any other show on TV currently.

Let me start by saying that I’m completely surprised that this show is on TV, if this were a movie it would be rated R. It lives up to the hype of any zombie movie’s gore level, tons of gun shots to the head, a lot of blood spraying, and a lot of cheering from me. Brittany on the other hand had her hands over her face through most of the episode. I will definitely make sure that Micah is asleep before watching any more from this series, seeing as his only interaction with zombies so far in his life has been from Plants vs. Zombies.

This show is going to be rich in character I believe; I’m already caring about the main character. The opening sequence with him (a sheriff’s deputy) and his partner was brilliant and got me connected to both of them immediately. By judging by the preview for the rest of the season it seems there will be several other characters I will get close to and hope they don’t get eaten by the blood thirsty undead.

Overall this show really surprised me and really has me wanting more. I haven’t been this interested in a show since the beginning of Lost, and we all know how that show turned out. Let’s just hope they can carry this awesome premier throughout the rest of the season.

Even if you aren’t into zombie lore, I seriously recommend checking out this show, but make sure no kiddies are around and be careful if you have a weak stomach for blood.

Here is the trailer:


That was my entertainment of the weekend, a good zombie filled Halloween!