Summer is  here, which means blockbusters are on the way. When it comes to blockbusters, nothing beats the superhero film --- it's practically a summer staple. This month, X-Men: First Class and The Green Lantern are traveling at light speed to a theater near you.

When it comes to blockbusters, nothing beats the superhero film --- it's practically a summer staple. So prepare yourself for X-Men: First Class, a series prequel that sees archenemies Charles Xavier (Professor X) and Erik Lehnsherr (Magneto) as friends! It's true: the two were once young men discovering their powers together until a rift between them opened. Also in theaters will be The Green Lantern, which reveals a small but powerful force of warriors trying to keep the universe peaceful --- until a new enemy threatens the planet and they must call upon their newest recruit, a mere human who now wears the Lantern's ring.

If you're looking for something less fantastical, there's Submarine --- based on a book by Joe Dunthorne --- which is the coming-of-tale of 15-year-old Oliver Tate, who has two big ambitions: save his parents' marriage and lose his virginity.

A young character also takes center stage in the sunshiny Judy Moody and the NOT Bummer Summe­r, the first time Megan McDonald's Judy Moody has graced the big screen. Starring Heather Graham and newcomer Jordana Beatty, third grader Judy will spend her summer not with her two best friends, as she had planned, but with her wacky Aunt Opal, who is full of surprises. Another family flick, Mr. Popper's Penguins, sees Jim Carrey trying to train a group of penguins for a circus act. Funny and uplifting, the film is based on Richard and Florence Atwater's children's book, which was originally published in 1938.

If you'd rather spend your summer nights inside your (hopefully) air-conditioned abode, be sure to check out our Books into Movies on DVD feature, where we're spotlighting eight films: The Adjustment Bureau, Barney's Version, Beastly, The Eagle, Kill the Irishman, Red Riding Hood, True Grit (which received 10 Oscar nominations) and Unknown.

Submarine
Cast: Craig Roberts, Michael Sheen, Paddy Considine, Sally Hawkins, Yasmine Paige
Director: Richard Ayoade
Distributor: The Weinstein Company
MPAA Rating: R
Release Date: June 3rd (limited)
Based On: SUBMARINE by Joe Dunthorne

Fifteen-year-old Oliver Tate has two big ambitions: to save his parents' marriage via carefully plotted intervention and to lose his virginity before his next birthday. Worried that his mom is having an affair with New Age weirdo Graham, Oliver monitors his parents' sex life by charting the dimmer switch in their bedroom. He also forges suggestive love letters from his mom to dad. Meanwhile, Oliver attempts to woo his classmate, Jordana, a self-professed pyromaniac who supervises his journal writing --- especially the bits about her. When necessary, she orders him to cross things out.

X-Men: First Class
Cast: James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Ross Byrne, January Jones, Kevin Bacon
Director: Matthew Vaughn
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: June 3rd (wide)
Based On: The X-Men comics created by Stan Lee

Before mutants had revealed themselves to the world, and before Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr took the names Professor X and Magneto, they were two young men discovering their powers for the first time. Not archenemies, they were instead at first the closest of friends, working together with other Mutants (some familiar, some new) to prevent nuclear Armageddon. In the process, a grave rift between them opened, which began the eternal war between Magneto's Brotherhood and Professor X's X-Men.

Judy Moody and the NOT Bummer Summer
Cast: Jordana Beatty, Heather Graham, Parris Mosteller, Jaleel White, Garrett Ryan, Preston Bailey, Janet Varney, Kristoffer Winters, Camryn
Director: John Schultz
Distributor: Relativity Media
MPAA Rating: PG
Release Date: June 10th (wide)
Based On: The Judy Moody series by Megan McDonald

This summer, third grader Judy Moody is planning the most super-duper, double-rare summer vacation ever with best friends Rocky and Amy. Except that it turns out Rocky is going to circus camp to learn to tame lions, and Amy is headed off to Borneo with her mom to save a lost tribe while Judy stays home with her pesky little brother Stink and second-best friend Frank Pearl.

Just when she thinks things are as rotten as they can be, her parents announce that they will be going to California and Judy will have to stay behind with her Aunt Opal, who she's never even met! It looks like Judy's best summer ever has just become her way worst summer ever.

But feisty, fearless and ever-funny Judy Moody never gives up! With help from some unexpected sources, she's headed for a summer full of surprises in this charming and spirited family film. Get ready, get set, get MOODY!

Green Lantern
Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, Peter Sarsgaard, Mark Strong, Angela Bassett, Tim Robbins
Director: Martin Campbell
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: June 17th (wide)
Based On: Green Lantern, the DC Comics series by Geoff Johns

In a universe as vast as it is mysterious, a small but powerful force has existed for centuries. Protectors of peace and justice, they are called the Green Lantern Corps. A brotherhood of warriors sworn to keep intergalactic order, each Green Lantern wears a ring that grants him superpowers. But when a new enemy called Parallax threatens to destroy the balance of power in the Universe, their fate and the fate of Earth lie in the hands of their newest recruit, the first human ever selected: Hal Jordan.

Mr. Popper's Penguins
Cast: Jim Carrey, Carla Gugino, Ophelia Lovibond, Philip Baker Hall, James Tupper, Clark Gregg, Angela Lansbury
Director: Mark Waters
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
MPAA Rating: PG
Release Date: June 17th (wide)
Based on: MR. POPPER'S PENGUINS by Richard and Florence Atwater

When a house painter inadvertently receives some penguins from a friend in Antarctica, he decides to train them as a circus act.

In this family comedy, Jim Carrey is Mr. Popper, a driven businessman who is clueless when it comes to the important things in life --- until he inherits six penguins. Popper's penguins turn his swank New York apartment into a snowy winter wonderland --- and the rest of his life upside down. Filmed on a refrigerated soundstage with real Emperor Penguins, Mr. Popper's Penguins is a contemporary adaptation of the classic book.