Quick Flicks
Great ★★★★★ Good ★★★★ Fair ★★★ Bad ★★ Bomb ★ KEY: D, Drug use; N, Nudity; P, Profanity; S, Sexual activity; V, Violence. Reviews are by Bill Goodykoontz unless noted. Listings are subject to late changes by theaters.
NEW THIS WEEK ‘BLADE RUNNER 2049’
★★★★ Denis Villeneuve’s follow-up to Ridley Scott’s classic stars Ryan Gosling as a blade runner; Harrison Ford returns as Deckard. The film serves as a sequel, but also stands on its own. (R —163 minutes) N, P,S, V.
‘DOLORES’
(Not reviewed) Peter Bratt’s documentary looks at the life of Dolores Huerta, the activist who co-founded the first farmworkers’ union with Cesar Chavez.
‘HAPPY’
(Not reviewed) Visual artist Leonard “Porkchop” Zimmerman, who started the HAPPY campaign, is the subject of Michael Patrick McKinley’s documentary. (Not rated — 78 minutes)
‘I AM ANOTHER YOU’
(Not reviewed) Chinese filmmaker Nanfu Wang comes to the U.S. While traveling she meets a drifter living purposely homeless. (Not rated — 80 minutes)
‘LUCKY’ ★★★★1⁄2
Harry Dean Stanton is outstanding in John Carroll Lynch’s film, about an old man coming to terms with his mortality. It wasn’t meant as a memorial to Stanton, but it works as one. (Not rated — 88 minutes)
‘MARK FELT’ ★★
(Randy Cordova) Dry, starchy biopic of the FBI agent (Liam Neeson) who served as Deep Throat in the Watergate scandal. (PG-13 — 103 minutes) P.
‘THE MOUNTAIN BETWEEN US’ ★★
Idris Elba and Kate Winslet are wasted in Hany AbuAssad’s film, about two strangers stranded in the Rocky Mountains after a plane crash. (PG-13 — 103 minutes) P, S.
‘MY LITTLE PONY’ ★★★1⁄2
(Barbara VanDenburgh) The latest Pony adventure may be predictable kid’s fare, but it’s still a colorful delight at any age. (PG – 99 minutes)
‘OVERDRIVE’
(Not reviewed) Car thieves Scott Eastwood and Freddie Thorp get caught stealing from a crime boss, and then must steal from his rival. (PG-13 — 93 minutes) P, S, V.
‘THE STRAY’
(Not reviewed) A dog named Pluto helps a struggling family in Mitch Davis’ film. (PG — 92 minutes)
‘YOU BETTER WATCH OUT’
★★★1⁄2 Chris Peckover’s film, about a night of babysitting gone wrong, successfully blends the holiday and horror genres. It’s fun, in a sick way. (R — 89 minutes) D,P, S, V.
STILL PLAYING ‘AMERICAN ASSASSIN’
★1⁄2 (Randy Cordova) Vince Flynn’s series of novels about black ops agent Mitch Rapp inspires a terribly generic action yarn that doesn’t get any help by a charisma-impaired Dylan O’Brien in the lead role . (R — 111 minutes) P, N, V.
‘AMERICAN MADE’
★★★1⁄2 Tom Cruise plays a pilot splitting time working for the CIA while also running guns and smuggling drugs in the 1980s. Cruise is good but the film is a little slick to make a big impact. (R — 115 minutes) N, P, S.
‘ANNABELLE: CREATION’
★★★1⁄2 Director David F. Sandberg makes an impressive return to form for the latest in the “Conjuring” world, with an origin story of how the doll got so creepy and dangerous to begin with. (R — 109 minutes) V.
‘THE BATTLE OF THE SEXES’ ★★★1⁄2
Emma Stone has never been better than as Billie Jean King, who faces off against Bobby Riggs (Steve Carell, also outstanding) in the 1973 tennis match pitting women’s rights against chauvinism. (PG-13 — 121 minutes) N, S.
‘THE BIG SICK’ ★★★★1⁄2
Kumail Nanjiani stars as a fictionalized version of himself, a struggling comic who falls in love with a woman (Zoe Kazan) who gets sick. It’s a terrific (and funny) look at love and life. (R — 119 minutes) P, S.
‘BRAD’S STATUS’ ★★★★
Ben Stiller is terrific as a self-absorbed husband and father jealous of his successful friends. Austin Abrams is equally good as his grounded, musical-prodigy son. (R — 101 minutes) P.
‘COLUMBUS’ ★★★★
Haley Lu Richardson and John Cho are outstanding in Kogonada’s debut feature, about a couple of people stuck for different reasons in the beautiful city of Columbus, Ind. (Not rated — 100 minutes)
‘FLATLINERS’
(Not reviewed) A remake of sorts, in which five medical students trigger near-death experiences to learn what the afterlife is like. Things go awry. With Ellen Page and Diego Luna. (PG-13 — 108 minutes) D,P, S, V.
‘FRIEND REQUEST’
(Not reviewed) A college student accepts a Facebook friend request from someone she doesn’t know; soon her friends start to die. (R — 92 minutes) P, V.
‘THE HITMAN’S BODYGUARD’ ★★
(Barbara VanDenburgh) An overlong odd-couple comedy-action film that pairs Samuel L. Jackson and Ryan Reynolds and gives them little to do but be themselves. (R — 118 minutes) P, V.
‘HOME AGAIN’ ★★
Reese Witherspoon stars as a newly single mother in Hallie Meyers-Shyer’s romantic comedy that is as safe as can be. And boring. (PG-13 — 97 minutes) S.
‘IT’ ★★★★
Andy Muschietti’s adaptation of the Stephen King novel about evil disguised as a clown and the kids who band to defeat him is old-school in its scares, and its relationships. It’s a good combination. (R — 135 minutes) P, V.
‘KINGSMAN: THE GOLDEN CIRCLE’ ★★
Taron Egerton returns for a sequel to the 2015 hit, as does Colin Firth, despite being killed off in the original. They have to save the world again, but this time it’s just so much overkill. Snore. (R — 141 minutes) D,P, S, V.
‘THE LEGO NINJAGO MOVIE’ ★★★
Dave Franco provides the voice for Lloyd, the leader of a group of secret ninjas who project the island from a villain (Justin Theroux), who is Lloyd’s father. Fun, but not memorable. (PG — 101 minutes)
‘MOTHER!’ ★★★1⁄2
Jennifer Lawrence is outstanding in Darren Aronofsky’s film, about … well, eventually, everything. Javier Bardem plays Lawrence’s husband; house guests test their relationship. Just leave it at that. (R – 121 minutes) N, P,S, V.
‘A QUESTION OF FAITH’
(Not reviewed) Three families struck by tragedy, leading them on a path to faith in God. With Richard T. Jones and Kim Fields. (PG — 104 minutes)
‘SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING’ ★★★★
Director Jon Watts remembers what is often forgotten in superhero movies: They’re supposed to be fun. Tom Holland is good in the title role, a teenager who wants to be an Avenger and go to homecoming. (PG-13 — 143 minutes) P, V.
‘STRONGER’ ★★★★
Jake Gyllenhaal and Tatiana Maslany are great in David Gordon Green’s film, about Jeff Bauman (Gyllenhaal), who survived the Boston Marathon bombing and faces a tough road ahead. (R — 116 minues) N, P, S.
‘VICEROY’S HOUSE’
(Not reviewed) Lord Mountbatten (Hugh Bonneville) is dispatched to New Dehli to oversee the country’s transition to independence in Gurinder Chadha’s film. (Not rated — 107 minutes)
‘VICTORIA AND ABDUL’ ★★★
Judi Dench is great as Queen Victoria in Stephen Frears’ film, about her unlikely friendship with an Indian Muslim (Ali Fazal), who definitely plays second fiddle in the film. (PG-13 —112 minutes) P.
‘WIND RIVER’ ★★★★
Taylor Sheridan’s film, about a murder on a Native American reservation, pairs Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen to solve the crime. Not quite up to “Hell or High Water,” which Sheridan also wrote, but not much is. (R — 107 minutes) P, V.
‘YEAR BY THE SEA’ ★★
Karen Allen’s engaging performance is the only saving grace in Alexander Janko’s cliche-ridden film, about a woman who takes a year off from her marriage to move to Cape Cod and find herself. Not quite as phony as the awful ‘Home Again,’ but in that neighborhood. (Not rated — 114 minutes)