NOW IN THEATERS
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
This sequel to the 2010 smash Alice in Wonderland doesn’t have director Tim Burton, but many cast members return — most important, Johnny Depp reprises his Mad Hatter role. James Bobin directs this installment, set three years after the first film, in which Alice (Mia Wasikowska) learns that the Mad Hatter is getting madder and sets out to travel through time to save him and all of Wonderland. In his final production credit, Alan Rickman once more voices the Caterpillar. Rated PG. 113 minutes. Screens in 3-D and 2-D at Regal Stadium 14. Screens in 2-D only at Regal DeVargas; DreamCatcher. (Not reviewed)
THE ANGRY BIRDS MOVIE
It might seem as if there is little movie material in the Angry Birds mobile app and video game, which allows users to catapult cartoon birds into various structures in order to eliminate pigs. Don’t underestimate Hollywood’s ability to make a movie out of anything that’s been on a T-shirt at Target. This adaptation centers on three misfit birds (voiced by Jason Sudeikis, Josh Gad, and Danny McBride) who must stop the pigs that have taken over their island. The trailer features jokes about vomit and drinking urine, and Sean Penn voices one of the pigs, so all bets are off as to what you can expect. Rated PG. 97 minutes. Screens in 2-D only at Regal Stadium 14; DreamCatcher. (Not reviewed)
A BIGGER SPLASH
Luca Guadagnino (I Am Love) has taken his title from a 1967 David Hockney painting and his plot from the 1969 Alain Delon thriller La Piscine. Tilda Swinton is Marianne Lane, a rock legend whose onstage persona seems lifted from
The Lord of the Rings. But we hardly get to hear her — she’s blown out her voice and is recovering mutely from a throat operation. She’s gone to ground with her lover Paul (Matthias Schoenaerts) on Pantelleria, a windswept island in the Strait of Sicily. Who should show up but her former lover and record producer, Harry (Ralph Fiennes), an ebullient, coke-fueled force of nature, with his Lolita-ish daughter Penelope (Dakota Johnson) in tow. Who does not want to do what to whom? That’s the question that hangs over this atmospheric, carnal, scenic adventure. Flecks of information from the past are doled out like fish food, the bare scenery (human and island) is inviting, and the plot surges and drags through a little too much time. Rated R. 125 minutes. In English and Italian with subtitles. Regal DeVargas. (Jonathan Richards)
CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR
There’s a crowd-pleasing centerpiece in the latest Marvel Studios extravaganza, in which a number of its heroes — Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Falcon (Anthony Mackie), War Machine (Don Cheadle), Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), Ant-Man (Paul Rudd), and more — engage in a giant rumble. This roughly 40-minute scene is full of the jokes, action, and special effects that fans have come to associate with the franchise. That set piece is fun, but it’s surrounded by a ponderous, unpleasant plot in which Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) and Captain America (Chris Evans) square off over whether or not superheroes should be regulated by the United Nations. This part of the film boasts dead children, torture, suicide, terrorism, people being punched to death, and a real viciousness from the lead heroes. The mix of grim violence with yuks from Spider-Man (new to the Marvel movies, played by Tom Holland) is uneasy, but Civil War is partly rescued by the introduction of Chadwick Boseman’s dignified, captivating Black Panther. Rated PG-13. 146 minutes. Screens in 2-D only at Regal Stadium 14; Violet Crown. (Robert Ker)
DHEEPAN
A film with many unexpected turns, Dheepan begins in a refugee camp in Sri Lanka, where Dheepan (Jesuthasan Antonythasan), Yalini, and nine-year old Illayaal form a makeshift family to escape their war-torn country and begin a life somewhere else. The film ends in a drug-infested housing project in a Parisian suburb. Inventively directed by Jacques Audiard, the film won the Palme d’Or at last year’s Cannes Film Festival. In this powerful film, in which the threat of violence is always imminent, Illayaal’s poetry recitation provides a sliver of hope. Not rated. 115 minutes. In Tamil and French with subtitles. The Screen. (Priyanka Kumar)
THE INVITATION
Will (Logan Marshall-Green) and his girlfriend (Emayatzy Corinealdi) attend a dinner party hosted by his ex-wife, Eden (Tammy Blanchard), and her new husband (Michiel Huisman). It soon becomes apparent that not all is what it seems. We follow Will’s paranoia through twists and turns, trying to determine if this is a dangerous environment or if Will is an unreliable narrator because of his inability to cope with the death of his and Eden’s son. The film keeps us guessing until the shocking finale. Director Karyn Kusama guides the film with creeping dread, sexual tension, and an eye for detail. It’s an ace thriller, but also a study in the ways we handle grief. Not rated. 100 minutes. Jean Cocteau Cinema. (Robert Ker)
THE JUNGLE BOOK
This adventure film is not so much an adaptation of Rudyard Kipling’s 1894 original as it is a live-action take on Disney’s 1967 animated version of the story — with a darker tone and more action. Neel Sethi (a little hit and miss) plays young Mowgli, the human raised by wolves who must escape the deadly tiger Shere Khan (voiced by Idris Elba). On his journey, Mowgli is guided by the panther Bagheera (Ben Kingsley), befriends the bear Baloo (Bill Murray), and faces off against both the monkey King Louie (Christopher Walken) and the snake Kaa (Scarlett Johansson). Some themes get repetitive, and the tiger is too scary for the littlest ones, but Jon Favreau directs with a sure hand; the film is gorgeous, and the animals are wonderfully animated and voiced. Rated PG. 105 minutes. Screens in 2-D only at Regal Stadium 14; Violet Crown. (Robert Ker)
THE LOBSTER
Gorgeous cinematography and a fascinating premise anchor this dystopian film about love and romance. David (Colin Farrell) has lost his wife, so he is sent to a hotel, where he has 45 days to find a new partner or be turned into an animal. Residents of the hotel hunt a tribe of loners who live in the nearby woods, where coupling is punishable by maiming. Many high-level actors — including Rachel Weisz and John C. Reilly — contribute intensely controlled performances, but there is more style than substance to this story. Rated R. 119 minutes. Regal DeVargas. (Jennifer Levin)
LOVE & FRIENDSHIP
This delicious comedy of manners has the exquisite flavor of a scrumptious high tea at Harrods. It’s based on Lady Susan, a little-known comic novella that Jane Austen wrote when she was about eighteen. At the center of it all is Lady Susan, played to conniving perfection by Kate Beckinsale. She is a beautiful widow described as “the most accomplished flirt in all England,” who has little trouble wrapping men around her little finger as she begins shopping in earnest for a rich husband for herself and one for her daughter Frederica (Morfydd Clark). Wit is often present in Jane Austen adaptations, but it generally plays a supporting role to romance. Here, it’s front and center. American director Whit Stillman (The Last Days of Disco) and his marvelous cast have more fun than should be legal with this material. Rated PG. 92 minutes. Center for Contemporary Arts; Violet Crown. (Jonathan Richards)
THE MAN WHO KNEW INFINITY
This mannered, if clichéd, drama tells the true story of Srinivasa Ramanujan (Dev Patel), a brilliant mathematician from Madras, India, who is admitted to Cambridge University in 1914. Thanks in part to the mentorship and friendship of Prof. G.H. Hardy (Jeremy Irons), he overcomes cultural barriers and his lack of formal mathematical training to grow famous for his theories. Patel imbues his role with pride and a dogged determination, and Irons embodies a man who is firm yet sympathetic. The story centers around their relationship, and its pleasant moments are drawn out by the actors. It all falls along a well-worn path, however, and there’s nothing particularly cinematic about how it is staged. Rated PG-13. 108 minutes. Regal DeVargas. (Robert Ker)
ME BEFORE YOU
Emilia Clarke plays Lou, a young woman who takes a job as a caregiver for a recently paralyzed man (Sam Claflin). As their time together passes, she becomes the source of inspiration through his hard times, and a romantic relationship blossoms. Screenwriter Jojo Moyes adapted the script from her own novel. Rated PG-13. 110 minutes. Regal Stadium 14; Violet Crown; DreamCatcher. (Not reviewed)
MONEY MONSTER
George Clooney and Julia Roberts team up once again in this story about a television financial advisor named Lee Gates (Clooney). The studio is taken hostage by an armed man (Jack O’Connell) who lost all of his money because of bad advice from the show. Gates and his producer (Roberts) must figure out how to defuse the situation. Jodie Foster directs. Rated R. 98 minutes. Regal Stadium 14. (Not reviewed)
NEIGHBORS 2: SORORITY RISING
In the 2014 hit Neighbors, Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne played a couple of new parents who had to contend with an obnoxious fraternity moving in next door to them. In this sequel, a sorority moves in next door (led by Chloë Grace Moretz), and they need the help of the former frat boy (Zac Efron) to get them out. Some of the humor will be too gross for many tastes, but there are also some very funny bits, lifted primarily by the cast and Rogen’s usual manic obsession with marijuana. The movie is not as progressive and feminist as it repeatedly claims to be, but it tries. The best jokes are liberally given to men and women alike, as well as same-sex couples, and the sense of inclusion does add to the experience. Rated R. 92 minutes. Regal Stadium 14; DreamCatcher. (Robert Ker)
THE NICE GUYS
The 1970s is the setting for this crime film, but it is also an excuse to tell an R-rated story with the hard-boiled cinematic aesthetics of that time. Writer and director Shane Black has had a hand in buddy-crime films from
Lethal Weapon to Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, and he’s so smart that he can’t help but satisfy. Ryan Gosling (never funnier) and Russell Crowe play a private investigator and thug-for-hire, respectively, who reluctantly team up to puzzle out the apparent suicide of a porn star and uncover a plot much deeper than they were expecting. Their camaraderie is endearing, the jokes land, the plot twists are occasionally shocking, and expectations are turned on their head when the smartest person in every room is a teenage girl (Angourie Rice). Rated R. 116 minutes. Regal Stadium 14; Violet Crown. (Robert Ker)
OUR LAST TANGO
This documentary tells the story of Argentine tango dancers María Nieves Rego and Juan Carlos Copes, a pair who achieved considerable fame, got married, and had a very unhappy divorce. The dancers, now in their eighties, were interviewed for the film and even dance together one last time. The film also contains dramatic recreations of early moments in their lives. Not rated. 85 minutes. In Spanish with subtitles. Jean Cocteau Cinema. (Not reviewed)
POPSTAR: NEVER STOP NEVER STOPPING
The comedy trio Lonely Island (Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, and Jorma Taccone), best known for their SNL shorts, bring their talents to the big screen in this mockumentary about a former boy-band member named Conner Friel (that’s Conner4Real to you) who must cope with the flop of his second solo album. His extended entourage includes characters played by Will Arnett, Maya Rudolph, Tim Meadows, Sarah Silverman, and many others. Rated R. 86 minutes. Regal Stadium 14; Violet Crown; DreamCatcher. (Not reviewed)
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: OUT OF THE SHADOWS
The 2014 Michael Bay-produced reboot of the Teenage Mutant
Ninja Turtles franchise gets a sequel, as the four heroes must once more save New York City and chow down on pizza, dude. This time, the CGI effects that animated the turtles are applied to a wider array of their villains, including the warthog Bebop (Gary Anthony Williams), the rhinoceros Rocksteady (Stephen Farrelly), and the alien Krang (Brad Garrett). Megan Fox reprises her role as April O’Neil, the turtles’ human friend. Rated PG-13. 112 minutes. Screens in 3-D and 2-D at Regal Stadium 14. Screens in 2-D only at Violet Crown; DreamCatcher. (Not reviewed)
WEINER
Anthony Weiner was a New York City congressman, a rising star in the Democratic Party, and a frequent guest on news and late night shows. He was connected to the top tier of political power — his wife, Huma Abedin, is a close aide to Hillary Clinton. And then the roof fell in. He was, it seems, given to sexting and sending pictures of his bulging underwear to strangers via social media. He resigned. And then a few years later he announced his comeback by filing to run for mayor of New York City. Enter filmmakers Josh Kriegman (a former Weiner staffer) and Elyse Steinberg, with a proposal to follow the candidate through the campaign. The result is one of the most fascinating and excruciating political documentaries you will ever see. At the end of the film, Kriegman asks him, “Why have you let me film this?” Weiner can only shrug. Rated R. 96 minutes. Center for Contemporary Arts. (Jonathan Richards)
X-MEN: APOCALYPSE
This year, superhero films have gotten much darker and overstuffed with characters, and the worst offender yet is this entry in the X-Men series, the fourth to be directed by Bryan Singer. The mega-powerful villain Apocalypse (Oscar Isaac) has awakened from centuries-long slumber and has a plan to destroy the world that is so complex that it takes an hour to set up without ever totally making sense. He enlists Magneto (Michael Fassbender), along with other mutants who are given about eight lines of dialogue each, to fight the X-Men (led by Jennifer Lawrence’s Mystique) in a duel in which the fate of the planet is on the line, though it also weirdly feels like there’s nothing at stake. An excellent scene with the speedy Quicksilver (Evan Peters) marks the only point of levity in this mostly Wolverine-free movie. Some insider nods to longtime comic-book fans can’t compensate for the movie’s crushing self-seriousness and spotty special effects in what seems like a franchise-killing dud. Rated PG-13. 144 minutes. Screens in 3-D and 2-D at Regal Stadium 14. Screens in 2-D only at Violet Crown; DreamCatcher. (Robert Ker)