Movie recommendations from Times critics Justin Chang (J.C.) and Kenneth Turan (K.T.). All titles are in general release unless otherwise noted.

The Assistant

Writer-director Kitty Green, with a big assist from star Julia Garner, creates a compelling scenario out of current events that is especially good at depicting how a company-wide culture of psychological abuse and mind games perpetuates itself, how powerful people whipsaw the emotions of those below them. R. (K.T.)

Limited

Ford v Ferrari

A barnburner of a motion picture that mainlines heart-in-mouth excitement and tug-at-the-heart emotion in a career-defining effort by director James Mangold, this glorious throwback combines a smart, modern sensibility with the best of traditional storytelling, plus sterling acting by stars Matt Damon and Christian Bale and a tip-top supporting cast. (K.T.) PG-13.

I Lost My Body

As inventive a piece of animation as you’re likely to see, this extraordinary film is about a hand with a mind of its own. Directed by France’s Jérémy Clapin. (K.T.) NR.

Netflix

The Irishman

Its possibly true story of the life and crimes of a Mafia hit man, starring Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci, is a revelation, as intoxicating a film as any from 2019, allowing director Martin Scorsese to use his expected mastery of all elements of filmmaking to ends we did not see coming. (K.T.) R. Netflix

Knives Out

Rian Johnson’s deliriously entertaining country-house murder mystery brings together a splendid cast (led by Daniel Craig and Ana de Armas), an ingenious script and a razor-sharp indictment of class inequality and moral rot in contemporary America. (J.C.) PG-13.

Little Women

As written and directed by Greta Gerwig and starring a transcendent Saoirse Ronan, the seventh and latest big-screen version of Louisa May Alcott’s novel is here and it’s a pip, with its strong, unmistakable message and even stronger emotions reinforcing each other to splendid effect. (K.T.) PG

Marriage Story

An emotionally lacerating experience, a nearly flawless elegy for a beautifully flawed couple played by Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson, both in peak form. Writer-director Noah Baumbach, a peerless observer of domestic pettiness and passive-aggressive behavior, puts every unflattering detail under his dramatic microscope. (J.C.) R.

Netflix

Parasite

Winner of the best picture Oscar and Canne’s Palme d’Or, Bong Joon Ho’s deviously entertaining thriller about two very different families is an ingenious weave of domestic dark comedy, class allegory and, ultimately, devastating tragedy. (J.C.) R. Limited

Portrait of a Lady on Fire

Looking and seeing become quietly radical acts in Céline Sciamma’s rapturously intelligent love story, starring Noémie Merlant and Adèle Haenel as an 18th century portrait painter and her subject. (Justin Chang) R.

ArcLight Hollywood

Uncut Gems

Adam Sandler gives the performance of his career as a Manhattan jewelry dealer and gambling addict pinballing from one bad decision to the next in Josh and Benny Safdie’s relentlessly tense thriller. (J.C.) R. Limited