The Premise Cartoon turns live action with the story of a stupid man aided by the wonders of technology and the token scantily-clad surgeon.

What to Look For Everyone remembers Inspector Gadget from their childhood--the stories of the battle between the evil Claw and the clueless Inspector for the safety of the world all wrapped up into cheery half-hour segments. Matthew Broderick stars as the detective hunk and Rupert Everett takes up the role of Claw, who in the cartoon was never seen except for a cryptic hand massaging a big fat ugly cat. The plot is similar to the cartoon--in this one Gadget is blown up during a chase with Claw but is miraculously put back together by the seductive surgeon Brenda (Joely Fisher). Brenda also seems to have some vendetta against the Claw, and together they set out to destroy their evil enemy.

The Buzz Children are bored by the half-hour cartoon--it's a tad bit questionable why anyone would like to watch a hour and a half of trench-coated Matthew Broderick and a mini-skirted Joely Fisher. Looks like another whammy against Broderick--at least he's still got his Ferris royalties and Ms. Sarah Jessica.

DEEP BLUE SEA   Directed by Renny Harlin   Starring Saffron Burrows, Thomas Jane, LL Cool J   July 30

The Premise Scientists onboard a floating research facility off the coast of California experiment with mako sharks in order to find a cure for AIDS and other diseases. The experiments take a horrifying turn for the worse when the newly altered sharks turn on the inhabitants of the laboratory and endanger the lives of all.

What to Look For Apparently, the idea to use sharks originated from the fact that sharks are one of the oldest species on Earth, as well as the fact that they are resilient to diseases. Still, this medical justification does nothing to dispel the feeling that this movie sounds like a pumped-up, '90s version of Jaws crossed with Jurassic Park. I mean, come on! Killer sharks threaten the lives of scientists on a sinking laboratory? Don't expect anything profound. Still, the supporting appearances of Samuel L. Jackson and Stellan Skarsgard help enhance the film's credibility, and in the area of special effects, audiences won't be disappointed (the film's effects supervisor, Jeff Okun, was responsible for the effects in Sphere and Stargate). It remains to be seen whether all of the special effects and star power can take away the smell of a fishy premise.

The Buzz Can anyone say Waterworld? The recent failures of water-based action films such as Sphere and Deep Rising seem to indicate a pattern of low success for the genre. In keeping with that pattern, the response to this film will be luke-warm at best.

MUPPETS FROM SPACE   Directed by Tim Hill   July 30

The Premise Gonzo wants to find his family, but before he does so, he announces to the world that he is living proof that extraterrestrial life exists. This gets the attention of government operatives, who proceed to hunt him down (it's kind of like The X-Files, except in this case one of the operatives is wrestler Hollywood Hogan). Not only must Gonzo flee the men in black, he also must decide whether to board the mother ship and join his family or stay on earth with his Muppet friends.

What to Look For Those adorable felt-covered creatures are back, and this time they're literally out-of-this-world. The Muppets' seventh feature film has Gonzo searching for his true identity. In a shocking revelation, it turns out his parents are actually aliens! And there you were thinking he was related to your Uncle Ned. Gonzo may be the star, but never fear--Kermit and all your Muppet favorites will be making appearances. And then there are those who won't have a hand up their back: besides Hogan, other real-life performers include Andie MacDowell, F. Murray Abraham and David Arquette.

The Buzz The last couple of Muppet movies have seen only minor success, but there are plenty of fans out there and children's movies are always welcome mid-summer. And in case you're suffering from post-Star Wars withdrawal by the time Muppets From Space shows up, remember this: Frank Oz, who here voices Miss Piggy, is also the voice of Yoda. AUGUST

BROKEDOWN PALACE   Directed by Jonathan Kaplan   Starring Claire Danes, Kate Beckinsale, Bill Pullman, Daniel Lapaine, Lou   Diamond Phillips   August 6

The Premise Upon graduation, two friends (Danes and Beckinsale) embark on a trip to Bangkok, Thailand. However, their vacation soon takes a disastrous turn when the two girls are accused of drug trafficking and sentenced to 33 years in a Thai prison.

What to Look For Danes is breaking out of her previous typecasting as she ditches her nice girl image that has followed her from My So-Called Life to Romeo and Juliet to Les Miserables and replaces it with a tougher character. In the recent trend of theme-sharing movies (war, asteroids, bugs), this plot seems to echo Return to Paradise (drugs and Americans in trouble with the law in Asia). Another interesting tidbit is that a thoughtless quote by Danes about living conditions in Manila, Philippines, where it was filmed, led to violent reactions. There is talk of banning all Claire Danes' movies from Manila forever.

The Buzz As far as the general public is concerned, I would guess this film will not receive an enthusiastic reception. However, with its strong cast, critics may be a little more impressed.

FIGHT CLUB   Directed by David Fincher   Starring Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, Jared Leto, Helena Bonham Carter, Meat   Loaf, Eion Bailey   August 6

The Premise In search of companionship and empathy, a confused young man [Norton] wanders from support group to support group, seeking human connection. He ultimately finds it when he and his friend, Tyler Durden (Pitt), create a new club where rich, bored young men fight each other till one surrenders or dies. The trend soon spreads in to cult-like, society-warping proportions. Also, the nameless narrator [Norton] becomes involved in a love triangle with Tyler and a girl named Marla [Carter].

What to Look For Full to the brim with gratuitous violence, this bleak portrayal of the souls within the men of today seems grim and hopeless. Instead of being disturbed by the grotesque and twisted idea of fight clubs, society desperately grasps onto it with enthusiasm. As for the cast, Pitt and Norton both have strong experience with dark, disturbing films (Seven and American History X respectively), and Fincher has proven his original directing abilities in movies such as Seven and The Game.

The Buzz Well, any movie containing two incredibly gorgeous men can expect to do well in the box-office whether it's any good or not. Two hours of gazing at Brad Pitt and Jared Leto is reward enough for many young ladies. However, from the standpoint of critics, I predict mixed reviews, some praising its original and harsh social critique while others are disturbed by its perhaps unnecessarily grim and graphic depiction of the fight scenes.

THE IRON GIANT   Directed by Brad Bird   Starring the voices of Jennifer Aniston, Harry Connick, Jr.   August 6