All of the sudden, this week, the dynamic for this summer’s movie releases got a little bit more intense. Universal released an announcement that they were moving around their release dates, and bumped the Philip K. Dick adaptation “The Adjustment Bureau” from July 30 to Sept. 17. That meant they had an empty release slot in the middle of the blockbuster season, and decided against all odds to move the Zac Efron-starring “The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud” up from Oct. 15 to July 30.

The fact that releasing “Charlie St. Cloud” on that day coincides with the release of the Vanessa Hudgens film “Beastly” cannot be just coincidence. Now not only will July 30 be the battle of the angsty dramas appealing to the younger Disney crowd, but it will also show which side of the Zac/Vanessa couple has the biggest box office draw.

It’s kind of a bogus move on Universal’s part, if we do say so ourselves. We understand that “The Adjustment Bureau” would more than likely be overshadowed by the release of Christopher Nolan’s much anticipated “Inception,” which hits theaters July 16, but “Charlie St. Cloud” has no marketing campaign to speak of so far, and even though we love us some Zac Efron here at Hollywood Crush, we aren’t too pumped up about it.

CBS Films, on the other hand, has done a great job of hyping “Beastly,” which we all seem to be anxiously anticipating. “Beastly” has a wider appeal to the audience “Charlie St. Cloud” would be going for, thanks to the star power of Vanessa, Alex Pettyfer, Mary-Kate Olsen and Neil Patrick Harris, and the fact it is a modern reimagining of “Beauty and the Beast.”

We feel like “Charlie St. Cloud” reaches out to a slightly older audience, but the summer isn’t the best time for a low-key drama unless you’re banking on someone like Zac’s star power. [Source]