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Reviews of movies showing in theaters or streaming online

‘BARBARIAN’: Back in 2007, Quentin Tarantino and

Robert Rodriguez tapped an up-and-coming genre filmmaker, Edgar Wright, to make a parody trailer for a fake movie to play between their “Grindhouse” double feature. Wright came up with “Don’t,” in which a gravelly voice intones, “If you are thinking of going into this house — don’t! If you are thinking of opening this door — don’t! If you are thinking of checking out the basement — don’t!” It was funny because it was deeply recognizable, and it tapped into the audience’s urge to yell at the screen, “don’t go in there!” This is also essentially the plot of Zach Cregger’s “Barbarian,” about which the less one knows, the better. In fact, consider this permission to stop reading this review right now, and just buy tickets. Do not watch trailers, do not read reviews, proceed directly to the theater for one of the most brilliantly executed, sharply incisive and wildly scary horror films of the year, starring Georgina Campbell and Bill Skarsgard. 1:43. 3 ½ stars. — Katie Walsh, Tribune News Service

‘BEAST’: “Beast” is a fairly good, pretty brutal, dumb-smart survival thriller made with a clear, even reductive sense of purpose. After the passing of his beloved but estranged wife, New York-based doctor Nate (Idris Elba) has brought his daughters, played by Iyana Halley and Leah Jeffries, to South Africa for a safari and a visit to their mother’s ancestral African village.

The family is hosted by Nate’s old friend (Sharlto Copley), who takes an intensely personal interest in fighting the illegal poachers going after the lions and other animals native to the savanna. The prologue depicts the nocturnal slaughter of an entire pride, with the exception of the bloodied and now vengeful rogue lion bent on teaching his enemies, the humans, a lesson. This is poor timing for Nate and his girls, though you know how these movies go: What’s bad for shortterm survival odds is generally favorable for long-term family healing. 1:33. 2 ½ stars. — Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune

‘CONFESS, FLETCH’: The crime novels of Gregory Mcdonald emerged in the ’70s as a selfamused antithesis to more typically hard-boiled detective stories. The series began with “Fletch” in 1974 and continued a 20-year run, ending with “Fletch Reflected” in 1994. Irwin Maurice Fletcher (Fletch to everyone who knows him) is a shaggy if confident rebel without a cause — but with a reporter’s stubborn curiosity and tenacity. Helpful traits, seeing as he works for a newspaper when we meet him in the first book. Chevy Chase starred in two movie adaptations in the ’80s, and Jon Hamm steps into those shoes for the newest incarnation, based on Mcdonald’s 1976 follow up to his debut effort: “Confess, Fletch.” It’s a performance that makes you wonder if Hamm even wants to be here. He made his name playing the fictional 1960s ad exec Don Draper for seven seasons on “Mad Men.” It was magnetic to watch, but one career-defining role does not translate into the kind of movie stardom (or actorly instincts) needed to carry a film like this. Hamm just has no take on the guy. Available via video on demand. 1:39. 1 ½ stars. — Nina Metz, Chicago Tribune

‘MEDIEVAL’: Jan Zizka, a beloved 15th-century Czech folk hero, looms large in the nation’s collective consciousness, a skilled, ingenious, one-eyed warrior who led peasants and rebels into battles that he never lost. In Prague, they have erected one of the largest bronze equestrian statues in the world in his honor, and now, the most expensive Czech film ever made, “Medieval,” depicts his early years, with the intense actor Ben Foster taking on the role of Zizka. “Medieval” is written and directed by Czech filmmaker, actor and stuntman Petr Jakl. The story is in part by his father, Petr Jakl Sr., and it’s clear that father and son have both a tremendous reverence for the man, his mission and for his brutal, bloody reputation. If there’s anything to recommend about “Medieval,” it’s the daring, no-holds-barred stunt work, the battles a crunchingly gory affair, with some spectacular underwater sequences. 2:06. 2 stars. — Katie Walsh

‘SEE HOW THEY RUN’: A murder at a country manor kicks off the Agatha Christie play “The Mousetrap,” and a murder backstage after a London performance of said play kicks off the comedy whodunit “See How They Run.” It stars Sam Rockwell as a veteran and indolent police detective who is reluctantly paired with an overeager constable played by Saoirse Ronan. Directed by Tom George from a screenplay by Mark Chappell, “See How They Run” is a throwback with a smirk. Or put more diplomatically: an old-school whodunit reconceived as a farce. It’s self-referential (the characters end up snowed in at a country estate, just like in “The Mousetrap”) and simultaneously pokes fun at the murder mystery form while also paying homage. 1:38. 2 stars. — Nina Metz

‘THE SILENT TWINS’: Adapted by Andrea Seigel from the 1986 book by Marjorie Wallace, “The Silent Twins” is a creative, quirky and fantastical biopic of June and Jennifer Gibbons, British twins from Wales who communicated only with each other and through their creative writing. It is the third feature from Polish filmmaker Agnieszka Smoczynska, who broke through in 2015 with her genre-smashing debut, “The Lure,” a mermaid horror musical, and she brings a similarly inventive approach to imagining the insular world of June and Jennifer. 1:53. 3 stars. — Katie Walsh

‘THREE THOUSAND YEARS OF LONGING’: Australian filmmaker George Miller based his latest cinematic exploration of humanity on the short story “The Djinn in the Nightingale’s Eye” by A.S. Byatt, adapted by Miller and Augusta Gore. “Three Thousand Years of Longing” is a philosophically ambitious project, a cerebral exploration of the function of storytelling in human existence and the meaning of desire. It is a nested Matryoshka doll of story. The outer layer is told by Alithea (Tilda Swinton), a narratologist who has made her way to Turkey for a conference. Upon arrival, she starts to encounter mysterious, magical figures, what she calls djinn (another word for “genie,” referring to the

Muslim belief in invisible spirits that inhabit the world and take the form of humans or animals). While giving a talk about the continuing purpose of myth in our modern, science-based world, she is spooked by a djinn in the audience and faints. The script is so densely packed with mythological insight that some scenes almost gloss over interesting concepts. But even if Miller doesn’t linger on these ideas, they remain in the background of the film, constantly informing the rest of the film. 1:48. 2 ½ stars. — Katie Walsh

‘THE WOMAN KING’: When actor Maria Bello visited the West African nation of Benin in 2015, she learned the history of the Agojie, an all-female military regiment from the Kingdom of Dahomey (and the inspiration for Wakanda’s Dora Milaje from “Black Panther”). Recognizing the cinematic potential for this story, she developed the project with producer Cathy Schulman, and landed “The Old Guard” director Gina Prince-bythewood as director, as well as the formidable Oscar-winning actor Viola Davis as the star. The result is “The Woman King,” an epic, inspiring and beautifully made historical action film that puts women in the middle of the battle for Dahomey circa 1823. “The Woman King” is a remarkable, powerful film, and not to be missed. In English and Portuguese with English subtitles. 2:15. 3 ½ stars. — Katie Walsh

RATINGS: The movies listed are rated according to the following key: 4 stars, excellent; 3 stars, good; 2 stars, fair; 1 star, poor.