Hello, Books on Screen readers, and welcome back from your sun- and domestic beer-soaked holiday weekends! As things heat up on screens and off, July couldn’t be a better time to celebrate our national rights: life, liberty and the pursuit of AC. Those rights are right, right?

Roald Dahl fans, rejoice! This month, we’ll see one of the beloved children’s author’s darker stories brought to life in the Spielberg-helmed adaptation of THE BFG. The source material may have caused a calculable spike in nightlight sales, but the E.T. director supposedly used the book’s more gruesome elements sparingly. The Witches this is not, but let’s face it: there are only so many times you can drag the kids let the kids drag you to Finding Dory. Jokes aside, let’s not underestimate the power of a good movie to help kids learn and grow. You can see this effect play out directly in Life, Animated, a moving, difficult documentary based on the bestselling book by Ron Suskind about the way Disney movies opened the world up for his autistic son.

If you’re looking for more escapist fare (and your vacation fund jar is not quite full), go see Swedish sensation Alexander Skarsgård’s abs in The Legend of Tarzan. They run, they jump, they swing from vine to vine, presumably. It may not pack quite the same emotional wallop as the animated version --- I’m not crying, Phil Collins, you’re crying --- but the studio had the good sense not to saddle us with another origin story. This one sees the King of the Jungle leave his cozy civilized life and head back home to save Jane. Let’s not bother making a joke about Tarzan embracing his true nature; we'll leave the good stuff to the marketing execs. And at the end of the month, be sure to check out Nerve, based on the YA title by Jeanne Ryan, about an inhibited high schooler who decides to participate in a thrilling --- and possibly deadly --- game of social media dare.

If you’re fresh out of SPF, stay in and watch some books on screen from the comfort of your UV ray-free home. Television this month remains slow and steady; we’ll kiss James Malcolm Mackenzie Fraser goodbye on July 9th when the season finale of "Outlander" airs. And you can grab The Divergent Series: Allegiant and Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice on DVD. Don’t worry, my gorgeous, gaffe-prone husband, Henry Cavill, looks perfect on the small screen, too.

Despite what people say about summer being the season to get out and get that sun, my vote is always in favor of “Netflix and chill” --- meaning keep your screens close and your AC closer. Good luck out there, and enjoy!

--- Written and compiled by Emily Hoenig

In Theaters:

The BFG
Cast: Mark Rylance, Ruby Barnhill, Penelope Wilton, Rebecca Hall, Jemaine Clement, Bill Hader
Director: Steven Spielberg
Distributor: Walt Disney Studios
MPAA Rating: PG
Release Date: July 1st
Based on: THE BFG by Roald Dahl

The BFG tells the tale of a young girl, the Queen of England and a benevolent giant known as the BFG, who set out on an adventure to capture the evil, man-eating giants who have been invading the human world.

The Legend of Tarzan
Cast: Alexander Skarsgård, Samuel L. Jackson, Margot Robbie, Djimon Hounsou, Christoph Waltz
Director: David Yates
Distributor: Warner Bros.
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: July 1st
Based on: TARZAN OF THE APES by Edward Rice Burroughs

It has been years since the man once known as Tarzan left the jungles of Africa behind for a gentrified life as John Clayton III, Lord Greystoke, with his beloved wife, Jane at his side. Now, he has been invited back to the Congo to serve as a trade emissary of Parliament, unaware that he is a pawn in a deadly convergence of greed and revenge, masterminded by the Belgian, Captain Leon Rom. But those behind the murderous plot have no idea what they are about to unleash.

Life, Animated
Cast: Owen Suskind, Ron Suskind, Jonathan Freeman
Director: Roger Ross Williams
Distributor: The Orchard
MPAA Rating: PG
Release Date: July 1st
Based on: LIFE, ANIMATED: A Story of Sidekicks, Heroes, and Autism by Ron Suskind

The inspirational story of Owen Suskind, a young man who was unable to speak as a child until he and his family discovered a unique way to communicate by immersing themselves in the world of classic Disney animated films. This emotional coming-of-age story follows Owen as he graduates to adulthood and takes his first steps toward independence.

Our Kind of Traitor
Cast: Naomie Harris, Ewan McGregor, Damian Lewis, Stellan Skarsgård
Director: Susanna White
Distributor: Lionsgate Films
MPAA Rating: R
Release Date: July 1st
Based on: OUR KIND OF TRAITOR by John le Carré

While on holiday in Marrakech, an ordinary English couple, Perry and Gail, befriend a flamboyant and charismatic Russian, Dima, who unbeknownst to them is a kingpin money launderer for the Russian mafia. When Dima asks for their help to deliver classified information to the British Secret Services, Perry and Gail get caught in a dangerous world of international espionage and dirty politics. The couple is propelled on a perilous journey through Paris and Bern, a safe house in the French Alps, to the murky corners of the City of London and an alliance with the British government via a ruthless and determined MI6 agent.

Cell
Cast: John Cusack, Samuel L. Jackson, Isabelle Fuhrman, Stacy Keach
Director: Tod Williams
Distributor: Lionsgate
MPAA Rating: R
Release Date: July 8th
Based on: CELL by Stephen King

Stephen King's bestselling novel is brought to terrifying life in this mind-blowing thriller. At the Boston airport, Clay witnesses a scene of chaotic mayhem when an electronic signal turns hundreds of cell phone users into rabid killers. Desperate to find his estranged wife and son, Clay teams with a train driver to battle the horde of murderous "phoners" as the city descends into apocalyptic madness.

Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates
Cast: Zac Efron, Anna Kendrick, Adam Devine, Aubrey Plaza
Director: Jake Szymanski
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
MPAA Rating: R
Release Date: July 8th
Based on: MIKE AND DAVE NEED WEDDING DATES: And a Thousand Cocktails by Mike and Dave Stangle

Hard-partying brothers Mike and Dave place an online ad to find the perfect dates for their sister's Hawaiian wedding. Hoping for a wild getaway, the boys instead find themselves outsmarted and out-partied by an uncontrollable duo.

Our Little Sister
Cast: Haruka Ayase, Masami Nagasawa, Kaho
Director: Hirokazu Koreeda
Distributor: Toho Co., Ltd.
MPAA Rating: PG
Release Date: July 8th
Based on: UMIMACHI DIARY: Diary of a Seaside Town, Beginning 2007 by Akimi Yoshida

Three sisters Sachi, Yoshino and Chika live together in a large house in the city of Kamakura. When their father absent from the family home for the last 15 years dies, they travel to the countryside for his funeral and meet their shy teenage half-sister. Bonding quickly with the orphaned Suzu, they invite her to live with them. Suzu eagerly agrees, and a new life of joyful discovery begins for the four siblings.

The Infiltrator
Cast: Bryan Cranston, Diane Kruger, John Leguizamo, Benjamin Bratt
Director: Brad Furman
Distributor: Broad Green Pictures
MPAA Rating: N/A
Release Date: July 13th
Based on: THE INFILTRATOR: My Secret Life Inside the Dirty Banks Behind Pablo Escobar’s Medellin Cartel by Robert Mazur

Based on a true story, U.S. Customs agent Robert “Bob” Mazur goes deep undercover to infiltrate Pablo Escobar's blood-soaked drug trafficking scene plaguing the nation in 1985 by posing as slick, money-laundering businessman Bob Musella. Teamed with impulsive and streetwise fellow agent Emir Ebreu and rookie agent posing as his fiancé Kathy Ertz, Mazur befriends Escobar's top lieutenant Roberto Alcaino. Navigating a vicious criminal network in which the slightest slip-up could cost him his life, Mazur risks it all building a case that leads to indictments of 85 drug lords and the corrupt bankers who cleaned their dirty money, along with the collapse of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International, one of the largest money-laundering banks in the world.

Into the Forest
Cast: Ellen Page, Evan Rachel Wood, Max Minghella
Director: Patricia Rozema
Distributor: A24
MPAA Rating: R
Release Date: July 22nd
Based on: INTO THE FOREST by Jean Hegland

A worldwide power outage sends the globe toward the brink of apocalypse, forcing two sisters living in their isolated house in the Canadian woods to adapt to their new reality and fight for survival in this stirring end-of-the-world thriller.

Nerve
Cast: Emma Roberts, Dave Franco, Juliette Lewis, Marc John Jefferies, Samira Wiley
Director: Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman
Distributor: Lionsgate
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: July 27th
Based on: NERVE by Jeanne Ryan

Industrious high school senior, Vee Delmonico, has had it with living life on the sidelines. When pressured by friends to join the popular online game Nerve, Vee decides to sign up for just one dare in what seems like harmless fun. But as she finds herself caught up in the thrill of the adrenaline-fueled competition partnered with a mysterious stranger, the game begins to take a sinister turn with increasingly dangerous acts, leading her into a high stakes finale that will determine her entire future.

Indignation
Cast: Logan Lerman, Sarah Gadon, Tracy Letts
Director: James Schamus
Distributor: Summit Entertainment, Roadside Attractions
MPAA Rating: R
Release Date: July 29th
Based on: INDIGNATION by Philip Roth

Based on Philip Roth's late novel, Indignation takes place in 1951, as Marcus Messner, a brilliant working class Jewish boy from Newark, New Jersey, travels on scholarship to a small, conservative college in Ohio, thus exempting him from being drafted into the Korean War. But once there, Marcus's growing infatuation with his beautiful classmate Olivia Hutton, and his clashes with the college's imposing Dean, Hawes Caudwell, put his and his family's best laid plans to the ultimate test.

Jason Bourne
Cast: Matt Damon, Alicia Vikander, Julia Stiles, Tommy Lee Jones, Vincent Cassel
Director: Paul Greengrass
Distributor: Universal Studios
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: July 29th
Based on: The Jason Bourne series by Robert Ludlum and Eric Van Lustbader

It's been 10 years since Jason Bourne walked away from the agency that trained him to become a deadly weapon. Hoping to draw him out of the shadows, CIA director Robert Dewey assigns hacker and counterinsurgency expert Heather Lee to find him. Lee suspects that former operative Nicky Parsons is also looking for him. As she begins tracking the duo, Bourne finds himself back in action battling a sinister network that utilizes terror and technology to maintain unchecked power.

On TV:

“Rizzoli & Isles”
Cast: Angie Harmon, Sasha Alexander, Lorraine Bracco, Lee Thompson Young, Bruce McGill, Jordan Bridges
Network: TNT
Air Dates: Mondays at 9pm ET
Based On: The Rizzoli & Isles series by Tess Gerritsen

"Rizzoli & Isles" follows Boston detective Jane Rizzoli and medical examiner Maura Isles, complete opposites and good friends who solve crimes and bust some of Boston's most notorious criminals.

“Queen of the South”
Cast: Alice Braga, Adriana Barraza, Veronica Falcón
Network: USA 
Air Dates: Tuesdays at 10pm ET
Based On: THE QUEEN OF THE SOUTH by Arturo Pérez-Reverte

Teresa flees Mexico after her drug-runner boyfriend is murdered. Settling in Spain, she looks to become the country's reigning drug smuggler and to avenge her lover's murder.

“Hunters”
Cast: Nathan Phillips, Britne Oldford, Mark Coles Smith
Network: Syfy
Air Dates: Mondays at 10pm ET
Based On: The Alien Hunter series by Whitley Strieber

The disappearance of a decorated FBI agent's wife leads him to a secret government unit assembled to hunt a group of ruthless terrorists --- shadowy figures that may or may not be from this world.

“Outlander,” Season 2
Cast: Caitriona Balfe, Sam Heughan, Tobias Menzies
Network: Starz
Air Dates: Saturdays at 9pm ET; season 2 finale July 9th
Based On: The Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon

“Outlander” follows the story of Claire Randall, a married combat nurse from 1945 who is mysteriously swept back in time to 1743, where she is immediately thrown into an unknown world where her life is threatened. When she is forced to marry Jamie Fraser, a chivalrous and romantic young Scottish warrior, a passionate relationship is ignited that tears Claire's heart between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives.
 

On DVD:

Miracles from Heaven
Cast: Jennifer Garner, Queen Latifah, Brighton Sharbino, John Carroll Lynch, Martin Henderson, Kylie Rogers
Director: Patricia Riggen
MPAA Rating: PG
DVD Release Date: July 12th
Based on: MIRACLES FROM HEAVEN: A Little Girl, Her Journey to Heaven, and her Amazing Story of Healing by Christy Wilson Beam

When Christy discovers her 10-year-old daughter Anna has a rare, incurable disease, she becomes a ferocious advocate for her daughter's healing as she searches for a solution. After Anna has a freak accident, an extraordinary miracle unfolds in the wake of her dramatic rescue that leaves medical specialists mystified, her family restored and their community inspired. Based on a true story.

The Divergent Series: Allegiant
Cast: Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Miles Teller, Ansel Elgort, Octavia Spencer, Jeff Daniels
Director: Robert Schwentke
MPAA Rating: PG-13
DVD Release Date: July 12th
Based on: ALLEGIANT by Veronica Roth

After the earth-shattering revelations of Insurgent, Tris must escape with Four and go beyond the wall enclosing Chicago. For the first time ever, they will leave the only city and family they have ever known. Once outside, old discoveries are quickly rendered meaningless with the revelation of shocking new truths. Tris and Four must quickly decide who they can trust as a ruthless battle ignites beyond the walls of Chicago which threatens all of humanity. In order to survive, Tris will be forced to make impossible choices about courage, allegiance, sacrifice and love.

Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice
Cast: Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Jesse Eisenberg, Diane Lane, Laurence Fishburne
Director: Zack Snyder
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: July 19th
Based on: THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS comic by Frank Miller

Superman and Batman unite! Fearing the actions of a god-like super hero left unchecked, Gotham City's own formidable, forceful vigilante takes on Metropolis's most revered, modern-day savior, while the world wrestles with what sort of hero it really needs. And with Batman and Superman at war with one another, a new threat quickly arises, putting mankind in greater danger than it's ever known.