BLACK PANTHER

PG-13, 134 minutes. Niantic, Waterford, Stonington, Westbrook, Lisbon. Believe the hype: “Black Panther” is easily Marvel’s best film to date. This exhilarating, beautiful and genuinely moving superhero film is firmly rooted in the point of view of director and co-writer Ryan Coogler, a tremendous example of the radical possibilities to be found in Afrofuturism. Coogler builds a thrilling, exciting world, and threads throughout it a story filled with pathos and real-world gravitas. Although our hero, T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman), hails from the African country of Wakanda — a technological wonder powered by the natural resource vibranium — “Black Panther” is Coogler through and through, with a storyline that originates on the streets of Oakland, Calif. The conflict of the film lies in the gulf between the experiences of the Wakandans, who have been shielded from the world’s inequalities, and those who have been colonized, enslaved and oppressed. T’Challa, who becomes king of Wakanda at the beginning of the film, has to decide how he’s going to position Wakanda to aid in the liberation of black people throughout the world while also protecting his country. — Katie Walsh, Tribune Content Agency

THE DEATH OF STALIN

R, 107 minutes. Madison Art Cinemas. Through tonight only at Mystic Luxury Cinemas. Scottish satirist Armando Iannucci most often applies his acidic comedic lens to modern political absurdity, as he did in his film “In the Loop” and on the HBO comedy “Veep.” But politics has never not been chaotic and absurd, and Iannucci tackles history in his latest, “The Death of Stalin.” Adapted from the graphic novels “The Death of Stalin” and “Volume 2 — The Funeral” by Fabien Nury and Thierry Robin, producers Yann Zenou and Laurent Zeitoun sought out Iannucci bring his voice and worldview to the stranger than fiction events that unfolded after the death of General Secretary Comrade Joseph Stalin in 1953. Iannucci wrote the blackly comic script with David Schneider, Ian Martin, and Peter Fellows and assembled a group of actors that range in expertise from TV comedy to Shakespearean theater to make up the group of bumbling lackeys that struggled for power after Stalin’s stroke and subsequent death in 1953. Steve Buscemi takes on the role of Nikita Khrushchev, lending him a Brooklyn-borne sarcasm (all the actors use their own accents), while Jeffrey Tambor turns ultimate successor Georgy Malenkov into a soft, vain and indecisive submissive. — Katie Walsh, Tribune Content Agency

GAME NIGHT

1/2 R, 100 minutes. Waterford. There’s no question the undisputed winner in the new comedy “Game Night” is the generally dependable Rachel McAdams. The infectious, energetic and unfiltered exuberance she brings to the role of the super competitive Annie — one of a group of best friends who get together on a regular basis to play parlor and board games — turns what was little more than an extended episode of a television comedy series into more of a winning effort. Annie and her husband, Max (Jason Bateman), have had a monopoly on the weekly game night battles that range from charades to Scrabble. — Rick Bentley, Minn. Star-Tribune

I CAN ONLY IMAGINE

PG, 110 minutes. Westbrook, Lisbon. Directed by brothers Jon and Andrew Erwin, this film follows the story of Bart Millard, frontman of the Christian rock band MercyMe, and how he came to write the band’s breakthrough single “I Can Only Imagine.” Though Bart (J. Michael Finley) may have written the song in 10 minutes, it took a lifetime of experiences to create it. “I Can Only Imagine” isn’t quite a biopic of Millard, as it only focuses on the hardships of his childhood that led him to write the song. Those experiences are primarily the harrowing physical and emotional abuse that he suffered at the hands of his father, Arthur, played by Dennis Quaid. The script focuses heavily on

the abuse, and Arthur’s ultimate, hardfought redemption. But the parts about Bart’s relationship with God and the gospel saving Arthur are glossed over and simplistic. — Katie Walsh, Tribune Content Agency

JUMANJI: WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE

PG-13, 118 minutes. Through tonight only at Lisbon. Twenty-two years later — and many leaps forward in video game and movie technology — comes a sequel to “Jumanji.” “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle,” a souped-up follow-up to the 1995 film starring Robin Williams, also shares as its source the surreal 1981 picture book by writer and illustrator Chris Van Allsburg, about siblings who open a board game that brings jungle animals careering through their house. The new film, directed by Jake Kasdan, is a genuine hoot and doesn’t take itself too seriously. — Jane Horwitz, The Washington Post

THE LEISURE SEEKER

R, 112 minutes. Madison Art Cinemas. Starts Friday at Niantic and Mystic Luxury Cinemas. Paolo Virzi’s “The Leisure Seeker” takes its title from a vintage Winnebago on the verge of collapse but technically still functioning. The same could be said of its owners, Ella and John Spencer. John, played by Donald Sutherland, is sliding into something like dementia, although Ella, played by Helen Mirren, can still make decisions and lay plans. One day, Ella hauls out The Leisure Seeker and, after duct-taping the gaps where exhaust seeps in, takes John on a road trip to Key West, the onetime home of his favorite author, Ernest Hemingway.On discovering the Spencers gone, Will (Christian McKay), their grown son, freaks out. That’s understandable. Anyone who’s wrestled with the idea of growing old — and anyone familiar with the term “foreshadowing” — can see how this ill-advised vacation might end. On the spectrum of films about the travails of old age, “The Leisure Seeker” is closer to a light comedy like “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” than a bleak rumination like Michael Haneke’s “Amour.” The problem is that director and co-writer Virzi wants to have it both ways, mixing breezy humor with moments of painful realism and poignancy. If any two actors could

carry that off, it would be Mirren and Sutherland, both blessed with high intelligence and exquisite dramatic timing. “The Leisure Seeker,” however, doesn’t give them nearly enough to work with. — Rafer Guzmán, Newsday

LOVE, SIMON

PG-13, 109 minutes. Stonington, Waterford, Westbrook, Lisbon. Does 2018 need an earnest coming out story about an upper-middle class cisgender white boy? At face value, the tale of “Love, Simon” could possibly seem a bit dated. But the teen comedy — directed by Greg Berlanti, written by Elizabeth Berger and Isaac Aptaker, based on the book “Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda” by Becky Albertalli — is impossibly infectious, and so much more than just a coming out story. The nature of the film itself is political: It’s a necessary and humane representation that foregrounds a queer character’s journey and gives them a swooningly romantic love story to boot. But setting all that aside, “Love, Simon” is simply a fantastic high school comedy that’s grounded, funny and heartwarming. Nick Robinson stars as Simon, a senior in high school who’s been privileged with a charmed life — loving parents (Josh Duhamel and Jennifer Garner), a sweet sister (Talitha Eliana Bateman), gorgeous home, inexplicably hip musical taste, and a clique of awesome friends. The only thing that sets Simon apart is his deep, dark secret — he’s lusting after the hunky gardener next door. That’s right, he’s gay. But how, now, with legal gay marriage, a supportive, liberal family and a multi-culti group of cool friends, could that be an issue? — Katie Walsh, Tribune Content Agency

MIDNIGHT SUN

H1/2 R, 91 min. Through tonight only at Waterford. Still playing at Stonington, Westbrook, Lisbon. The ailing teen romance genre is a rite of passage for many young stars. Now, wild child/former Disney star Bella Thorne gets in on the action with “Midnight Sun,” across from Patrick Schwarzenegger (son of Arnie). “Midnight Sun” is the story of an 18-year old girl, Katie, afflicted with xeroderma pigmentosum, or XP. It means she’s hypersensitive to the sun, and has therefore been shut up inside for all of her young life, shielded by tinted windows, lest she instantly break out in skin cancer or her brain “contract.” Katie mostly lives a quiet life, with only her dad (Rob Riggle) and friend Morgan (Quinn Shepherd) for company, and sometimes she ventures at night out to play guitar and busk at the train station. She pines after Charlie (Schwarzenegger), who passes by her house every day, and is shocked when he approaches her at the station one night. Thanks to help from Morgan, the pair strike up a romance, getting to know each other at night — Katie claims she’s “busy” during the day. It’s the kind of over-the-top style native to the Disney sitcoms where she got her start. — Katie Walsh, Tribune Content

PACIFIC RIM UPRISING

1/2 PG, 111 minutes. Waterford, Stonington, Lisbon, Westbrook. At the end of the monsters-versus-robots flick “Pacific Rim,” a breach at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean is closed, plugging a hole that allowed hellish creatures to emerge and terrorize the globe. But after the movie earned $400 million worldwide, was that portal really going to stay closed? No, of course not. And, with sincere apologies to the front-line cities on the Pacific Rim facing a mauling, we say thank goodness, because the new sequel “Pacific Rim Uprising” is a visually-stunning, expertly crafted dose of cheer-at-the-screen fun. It’s the definition of what a blockbuster sequel should be. The new film opens in 2035, 10 years after the last Kaiju was defeated and the breach closed. Our heroes now are Jake (John Boyega), the rebellious son of Elba’s character, and the teen orphan Amara (Cailee Spaeny), who builds her own Jaeger out of spare parts. — Mark Kennedy, Associated Press

PETER RABBIT

1/2 PG, 93 minutes. Stonington, Lisbon, Westbrook. Hollywood studios have recently been pillaging the literary canon of beloved children’s literature, digging up fodder for animated feature films. The best of these, like the “Paddington” movies, successfully meld nostalgia with modern and exciting filmmaking, while the more questionable ones, like the recent “Ferdinand,” manage to muddle the source material with too many pop songs and dirty jokes. The new “Peter Rabbit” adaptation manages to land right in the middle — the animation technology is top-notch, but the gentle spirit of Beatrix Potter’s books is subsumed into a chaotic, violent mayhem, manically soundtracked to the day’s hits. Will Gluck directs and co-wrote with Rob Lieber this adaptation of “The Tale of Peter Rabbit,” the story of naughty rabbit Peter (James Corden), who can’t help but snack from Mr. McGregor’s garden. This version ups the ante significantly in the Garden Wars, especially when Mr. McGregor (Sam Neill) dies, and his fastidious nephew Thomas (Domhnall Gleeson) comes to Windermere. — Katie Walsh, Tribune Content

RED SPARROW

R, 139 minutes. Through tonight only at Stonington. Jennifer Lawrence’s “Red Sparrow” is seemingly the 2018 version of Charlize Theron’s “Atomic Blonde.” But that’s where the comparisons end. While the 1980s Berlin-set “Atomic Blonde” was a violent, colorful, sexy and darkly absurdist film, Russian spy thriller “Red Sparrow,” directed by Francis Lawrence, is epic, methodical and unfortunately plodding, jettisoning thrills for a stultifying moodiness. The film is based on the novel by retired CIA spook Jason Matthews, who racked up over three decades of experience in the field. In the story of “Red Sparrow,” poor but politically connected ballerina Dominika (Lawrence) is drawn into a shadowy spy world by her high-ranking SVR officer Uncle Vanya (Matthias Schoenaerts) when her dance career is ended with a “Showgirls”-style sabotage. He uses her as bait for one of his targets, and with a dead businessman’s blood on her skin and no way to support herself or her ailing mother, she accepts his offer to train as a “Sparrow” — spies who use sex and seduction to psychologically manipulate and collect information from their targets. — Katie Walsh, Tribune Content Agency

THE POST

PG-13, 115 minutes. Through tonight only at Westbrook. “The Post” goes against the contemporary Hollywood grain. Propulsive major studio cinema made with a real-world purpose in mind, it’s a risky venture that succeeds across the board. Prodded into existence by Steven Spielberg, one of the few filmmakers capable of making the studio system do his bidding and of persuading major players such as Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks to go along with him, “The Post” takes on a particularly counterintuitive subject. That would be The Washington Post’s 1971 role in publishing what came to be known as the Pentagon Papers, a top-secret 47-volume, 7,000-page Department of Defense study of the war in Vietnam that exposed all manner of official prevarications and outright lies extending over the terms of four presidents. “The Post” is the rare Hollywood movie made not to fulfill marketing imperatives but because the filmmakers felt the subject matter had real and immediate relevance to the crisis both society and print journalism find themselves in right now. — Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times

7 DAYS IN ENTEBBE

1/2 PG-13, 106 minutes. Through tonight at Niantic. Starts Friday at Mystic

Luxury Cinemas. “7 Days in Entebbe” recounts the tale of a real plane hijacking that looms large in the history of Israel. In June 1976, two German and two Palestinian revolutionaries — the nomenclature varies from “freedom fighter” to “terrorist” depending on who you ask — hijacked an Air France flight from Tel Aviv to Paris and directed it to Entebbe, Uganda, to demand the release of 52 political prisoners. The smart script weaves together the happenings at the terminal in Uganda, emceed by an ebullient Idi Amin (Nonso Anozie), just happy for the media exposure, as well as the political distress in Jerusalem as Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin (Lior Ashkenazi) struggles for power with his Defense Minister Shimon Peres (Eddie Marsan). It’s poignant and powerful to consider the ways in which negotiation between Israel and Palestine reverberated throughout the lives and careers of Rabin and Peres, and the history of conflict in the Middle East, which stretches back to Europe. The film never lets us forget that legacy. — Katie Walsh, Tribune Content Agency

THE SHAPE OF WATER

1/2 R, 123 minutes. Westbrook. The Oscar-winning “The Shape of Water” is a sexy, violent, preposterous, beautiful fantasy, co-writer and director Guillermo del Toro’s most vivid and fully formed achievement since “Pan’s Labyrinth” 11 years ago. Set in 1962, the story marries “Creature from the Black Lagoon” to “Beauty and the Beast,” referencing all sorts of other movies. Yet this one is its own being. It’s exquisitely detailed and period-accurate when it wants to be, and a gorgeous fabrication when the emotions and the underwater Cloud Cuckoo-Land romance, nutty but sincere, require another side of del Toro’s imagination. Sally Hawkins is Elisa, the mute janitor who, we’re told, was rescued from a river as a foundling. She bears two deep scars on her neck, the ones rendering her speechless. Elisa works the midnight shift at a government research center somewhere in Baltimore. A new “asset” has been brought in for examination: He, or It, comes from the Amazon, has gills for breathing, legs for walking, and wide, sideways-blinking eyes. — Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune

SHERLOCK GNOMES

PG, 86 minutes. Niantic, Waterford, Stonington, Westbrook, Lisbon. There’s a current boom of family-friendly film fare inspired by beloved British literary characters, which makes this moment ripe for the animated “Sherlock Gnomes,” the sequel to 2011’s “Gnomeo and Juliet.” In terms of ranking these adaptations, “Sherlock Gnomes” is quite a bit more pleasant than “Peter Rabbit,” but doesn’t touch the wonder of “Paddington 2.” It’s a fairly serviceable animated feature, with a few inspired elements, and more than enough gnome puns to go around. The beloved British literary characters are, of course, Sherlock Holmes and Watson, as well as Romeo and Juliet. They offer enough rich, recognizable lore to pad out this London-set mystery, directed by “Kung Fu Panda” director John Stevenson, written by Kevin Cecil, Andy Riley and Ben Zazove. As for the appeal of using garden gnome characters, well, it’s anyone’s guess. — Katie Walsh, Tribune Content

TOMB RAIDER

1/2 PG-13, 118 minutes. Through tonight only at Mystic Luxury Cinemas. Still playing at Waterford, Stonington, Westbrook, Lisbon. This “Tomb Raider” isn’t so bad (how’s that for a blurb?) and might occasionally cause you to look up from your popcorn. It’s a reasonably lively origin story, in which we meet 21-year-old Lara as an aimless London drifter, desperately missing the father (Dominic West) who left her behind seven years ago. She refuses to take over his vast holdings, insisting that he’s not dead. So insistent, in fact, that she bribes a reluctant Hong Kong sailor (Daniel Wu) to take her to a remote, dangerous island off the coast of Japan — her father’s last-known destination. And then, tombs get raided (you knew that was coming), arrows are shot, bullets are dodged, villains snarl, and death on a raging waterfall is evaded by means of a rusted-out plane. — Moira McDonald, Seattle Times

UNSANE

1/2 R, 97 minutes. Niantic, Stonington, Westbrook, Lisbon. In this Stephen Soderburgh horror effort, a woman is committed to a mental institution, where she is confronted by her greatest fear. But is it real? “Unsane” introduces us to Sawyer Valentini (Claire Foy), a youngish woman who has moved from Boston to nondescript Pennsylvania. She’s settling in, but not comfortably: Sawyer has sharp edges, a jumpy energy, a whiff of toxicity. She brings home a man one night, comes on strong, then reels away from him as if punched. After seeing a therapist to complain of anxiety — an understatement, we’re thinking — Sawyer signs a few routine-looking papers. Then, as nurses and orderlies calmly close in on her, she realizes she has committed herself to Highland Creek, a psychiatric ward. That’s only the beginning of “Unsane,” which proceeds, in 98 fast-paced minutes, to pull Sawyer through a labyrinthine nightmare

— and us along with her. “Unsane” qualifies as a minor masterpiece. — Rafer Guzmán, Newsday

A WRINKLE IN TIME

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