NOW PLAYING THE TOP 5
Here are the top five movies at the North American box office:
Kung Fu Panda 3:
Though this film still has a bit of the snotty silliness of Po’s (Jack Black) first pair of adventures, it’s easy to tell that the qi is fading here, hitting up some familiar beats, and not working through them with the elegance of a master. The next step in Po’s journey is becoming a teacher, a process he can’t quite master until he comes to know himself.
Rating: out of 5.
★★★
(David Berry)
Hail, Caesar!:
The film’s title is also that of the film within the film, a biblical epic derailed when the star (George Clooney) is kidnapped. Hollywood “fixer” Eddie Mannix (Josh Brolin) steps up to save the day while putting out other fires. Forgettable but fun.
Rating: ★★★ 1/2 out of 5
(Chris Knight)
Star Wars: The Force Awakens:
The Force is with this one. New characters create sparks — es- pecially Daisy Ridley as desert scavenger Rey — while director and co-writer J.J. Abrams stocks the film with enough familiar people (Han, Chewie), places (desert planets) and things (gonk droids?) to endear him to fans of the franchise.
Rating: ★★★★★ out of 5
(Chris Knight) The Revenant: The story of Hugh Glass is not for the faint of heart. Attacked by a grizzly and left for dead in the wilds of 1820s South Dakota, he survives — but survive for vengeance, or seek vengeance in order to survive? Alejandro González Iñárritu directs Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hardy in this near-perfect story. Rating: ★★★★★ out of 5
(Chris Knight)
The Choice:
Adaptations of Nicholas Sparks’s novels — 11 and counting — follow a pattern, and this one is no exception. Neighbours Travis (Benjamin Walker) and Gabby (Teresa Palmer) meet in southern sunshine and sudden rain, have tasteful sex and fall in love until a convenient tragedy threatens all. Rating: ★★ out of 5
(Chris Knight)