The movies I’m talking about today are my husband’s picks. They’re sequels or prequels to some of his favorite series, which are themselves remakes or reboots of series from the ’70 or ’80s, so us Gen Xers started watching them when we were kids.

First up is “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.” I went into this with low expectations, as I did not love “Mad Max: Fury Road.” I normally like postapocalyptic stuff, but not this subgenre which seems to be revenge-flick/car-chase-movie-but-with-monster-trucks.

I do love Charlize Theron though (who was in “Fury Road”), and Anya Taylor-Joy did an amazing job playing the younger version of Theron’s character, the titular Furiosa. With a prosthetic nose, Chris Hemsworth was unrecognizable – and also amazing – as Dementus, the warlord of a biker gang.

I liked this more than “Fury Road,” if only because I was able to follow the plot better this time. I was on the edge of my seat the entire 148 minutes, which I guess is a good sign – if you’re the type of person who likes experiencing anxiety for fictional characters. There’s a lot of torture and other gross stuff that inspires disgust and dread (and I think that’s probably the goal here). Despite knowing Furiosa had plot armor, it was intense and suspenseful. I admit that’s better than watching a movie where you don’t care what happens to the characters, but I was relieved when it was over.

George Miller is a skilled filmmaker; he brings you right into this cruel and gritty futuristic world. The problem is that I don’t want to be there.

I felt the same way about “Dune: Part Two.” The cast is wonderful (I love Zendaya and Timothee Chalamet), the cinematography makes you feel like you’re in Arrakis – suffering with them. It is emotional and dark and not a place I want to be for 166 minutes.

Like “Furiosa,” it’s unsettling and creepy. If you compare “Furiosa” and “Dune” to say, the “Guardians of the Galaxy” movies, which are also violent and sometimes dark, at least the Guardians series is balanced with lighthearted, hopeful moments, connection, and humor, whereas “Dune” and “Furiosa” are bleak and depressing.

Of course, I realize these movies aren’t trying to be Marvel movies. The new Dune films are directed by Denis Villeneuve, who has earned nominations and awards, but is not known for uplifting, feel-good movies. (And the books are bleak as well.)

My take is that real life is depressing enough. And I live in a hot desert; I don’t care to watch it onscreen. To make matters worse, we saw this in the theater and the electricity went out. We had to evacuate the building halfway through the film and didn’t get around to watching it again until a couple weeks later.

Another sequel to a movie franchise that began in the ’80s, “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire,” came out in March and we saw it in theaters. It was a little more fun than 2021’s “Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” maybe because we were just meeting the newer characters for the first time and now we “know” them. This time around, they’re in New York City, battling a powerful entity known as Garraka.

It’s not deep or earth-shattering; it’s Ghostbusters. But it’s entertaining enough and it’s less than two hours long (but not much less, at 115 minutes).

The fourth film in a franchise rebooted in 2011, “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” takes place 300 years after the events of the previous film (“War for the Planet of the Apes,” 2017). This one was 145 minutes. Why are all these movies longer than two hours?

Even though the characters are mostly chimpanzees, it reminded me of “Furiosa.” Postapocalyptic worlds, kidnappings, revenge, etc. And again, it’s stunning and impressive. If you’ve seen any of these movies, you know the CGI looks convincing and real. I just wish they’d spent as much time and effort stitching up all the plot holes.

Another sequel coming up this summer is “Alien: Romulus,” the seventh movie in the Alien franchise. It is set between the events of the first two movies, “Alien” (1979) and “Aliens” (1986). It will be in theaters Aug. 16.

In yet more prequel/sequel/reboot news: The second season of “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” will be available on Amazon Prime on Aug. 29.

Season 2 of the other long blond wig show, “House of the Dragon,” will premiere on HBO on June 16.

Here’s hoping they start off with a bang instead of the slow burn that characterized their first seasons.

Over on Disney+, the miniseries “Agatha All Along” (a spinoff of the Marvel series “WandaVision”) will air the first two episodes on Sept. 18, with subsequent episodes released weekly.

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