Sex, murder and puppets, and the plot thickens
‘The Happytime Murders’
You can say one thing for “The Happytime Murders”: The movie is comfortable with its identity as a sex-, violenceand languagefilled comedy filled with puppets.
Melissa McCarthy plays a foul-mouthed human cop who’s paired up with a foul-mouthed puppet detective to solve a string of murders involving the cast of an old puppet television show.
There’s propositioning, sex, drug abuse, swearing, brutal violence — most, though not all, involving puppets.
Maya Rudolph, Joel McHale and Leslie David Baker head up the human cast. Brian Henson, son of the late Muppet-master Jim Henson, directed. “The Happytime Murders” is rated R for pervasive crude and sexual content, pervasive language, and some drug material. It runs for 91 minutes.
‘The Miseducation of Cameron Post’
In “The Miseducation of Cameron Post,” Chloë Grace Moretz plays a high school girl who finds a way to make a good situation out of a difficult one.
In this case, the difficult situation is being shipped off in 1993 to a therapy camp where teenagers are treated for “same-sex attraction.” But the setting that’s supposed to put those feelings to an end turns, instead, into a place where she finds other people who feel the way she does and a place to belong — if the powers that be don’t find out, of course.
Sasha Lane and Forrest Goodluck play her new comrades in arms; Jennifer Ehle and John Gallagher Jr. are the leaders of the gay-conversion camp.
Entertainment Weekly critic Leah Greenblatt gave the movie a B: “Writer-director Desiree Akhavan … has crafted a thoughtful if somewhat formless drama about the
struggle between human instinct and ideology, populated by finely drawn characters whose lives would be interesting to watch unfold onscreen even without their ‘unnatural’ leanings.” “The Miseducation of Cameron Post” is not rated, but has mature content. It runs for 90 minutes.
‘Papillon’
Of the high-profile 1970s movies in the remake mill, “Papillon” would seem like a long shot.
First told on the screen in an ambitious production in 1973 starring Dustin Hoffman and Steve McQueen, “Papillon is drawn from the autobiographical novel by Henri “Papillon” Charrière, a Parisian safe-cracker who, in his telling, made an alliance with a counterfeiter to find away to escape from the French island prison.
This time around, Charlie Hunnam plays the safe-cracker, with Rami Malek (who’ll be seen this fall as Freddie Mercury in “Bohemian Rhapsody”) as the meek but resourceful counterfeiter.
Early reviews are mixed-positive: “(Director Michael) Noer’s adventure is ultimately a dramatic and dynamicenough telling of an indelible fact-based story to connect with viewers,” Variety’s Dennis Harvey wrote. “Papillon” is rated R for violence, gory images, language, nudity and some sexual material. It runs for 133 minutes.
‘A.X.L.’
“A.X.L.” isn’t your typical boy-andhis-dog story.
For one thing, A.X.L., the title dog, is a robot — a top-secret project developed for the military, but whose circuits go wrong in an experiment gone awry.
After the robo-mutt is abandoned, a free spirit played by Alex Neustaedter finds him and forms a bond that not only turns to friendship but amps of the dog’s development exponentially — which makes them both a target. “A.X.L.” is rated PG for suggestive material, thematic elements and some language. It runs for 98 minutes.
‘Beautifully Broken’
Faith, fathers and families are the focus of the new drama “Beautifully Broken.”
The stories of three fathers — one a refugee, another a prisoner and the third a preacher — connect across the globe in this faith-fueled tale, filmed on location from South Africa to Louisiana.
The cast includes Scott William Winters, Benjamin Onyango, Emily Hahn, Eric Roberts, Jessica Obilom, Tammi Arender and Thomasina “Goo Goo” Atkins, with appearances by Christian music stars Toby McKeehan and Michael W. Smith. “Beautifully Broken” is rated PG-13 for mature thematic content involving violence and disturbing images, and some drug material. It runs for 108 minutes.
Opening Wednesday: ‘Operation Finale’
The capture of Adolf Eichmann — the mastermind of Hitler’s “final solution,” who escaped the fall of Germany to go into hiding in South America — is one of history’s great hunting stories. It’s also one of history’s great ethical dilemmas: Once you’ve found evil, what do you do about it?
“Operation Finale” tells the story of the hunting and capturing and bringing to justice of Eichmann by an elite Israeli force charged with pulling off the raid to capture the monster and bring him back to Israel to stand trial for crimes against humanity.
Oscar Isaac plays the leader of the mission, with Ben Kingsley as Eichmann. Nick Kroll, Mélanie Laurent and Lior Raz also co-star. Screenwriter-turned-director Chris Weitz directed. “Operation Finale” is rated PG-13 for disturbing thematic content and some language. It runs for 118 minutes.
The best off-the-grid movies
“RZA: Live From the 36th Chamber”: Hip-hop legend RZA — he of the Wu-Tang Clan — performs his live rescoring of the 1978 kung-fu classic “The 36th Chamber of Shaolin” at 9:30 p.m. Saturday at the Oriental Theatre, 2230 N. Farwell Ave. The first special-event programming at the movie palace since Milwaukee Film reopened the Oriental, the RZA movie/concert is the only such staging in the Midwest. Tickets at the door are $55, $36 for Milwaukee Film members. Info: mkefilm.org/orientaltheatre.
“2001: A Space Odyssey”: The first of several showings of Stanley Kubrick’s seminal 1968 sci-fi masterpiece is also the biggest — in screen size, anyway. AMC Mayfair Mall 18, 2500 N. Mayfair Road, Wauwatosa, is showing the remastered movie in IMAX format Friday through Wednesday at 2:30, 6 and 9:30 p.m. Info on tickets and prices: amctheatres.com/movie-theatres/ milwaukee/amc-mayfair-mall-18.
“The King”: To get at the heart of both Elvis Presley’s grip on American culture and the direction that fractious culture has steered into, filmmaker Eugene Jarecki — whose credits include the arresting Sundance Film Festival prize winners “Why We Fight” and “The House I Live In” — rode in the King’s 1963 Rolls Royce on a cross-country tour to get people talking about both, and how they intersect. 3:50 p.m. Friday, 8 p.m. Sunday and 6:25 p.m. Monday at the Oriental Theatre, 2230 N. Farwell Ave. Info: mkefilm.org/oriental-theatre.
“Dark Money”: Filmmaker Kimberly Reed explores the role of the title currency in American political life by looking at the role outside corporate donors play in an election in Montana in this documentary-as-thriller. 1:10 p.m. Friday; 9:50 a.m. and 5:40 p.m. Sunday; 3:50 p.m. Monday and Tuesday; and 6:30 and 9:10 p.m. Thursday. Info: mkefilm.org/oriental-theatre.
“Skate Kitchen”: A teenage skateboarder finds her way with help from an all-girl skateboarding crew in this drama by writer-director Crystal Moselle, starring newcomer Rachelle Vinberg and Jaden Smith. 6:50 and 9:40 p.m. Friday; 12:15 p.m. Sunday; 9:25 p.m. Monday and Wednesday; 8:35 p.m. Tuesday; and 4 p.m. Thursday. Info: mkefilm.org/oriental-theatre.
Marvel IMAX mayhem: To mark Marvel’s 10th anniversary of controlling its movie fate in theaters, AMC Mayfair Mall 18, 2500 N. Mayfair Road, Wauwatosa, is kicking off a run of all 20 Marvel movie universe movies, all showing in the IMAX format, at noon Thursday with one that started it all, 2008’s “Iron Man.” Also showing Thursday: “The Incredible Hulk,” 3 p.m.; “Iron Man 2,” 6 p.m.; and “Thor,” 9 p.m. Info: amc theatres.com/movie-theatres/milwau kee/amc-mayfair-mall-18.
“Making ‘The Five Heartbeats’ “: A behind-the-scenes look at the making of Robert Townsend’s beloved 1991 movie about the rise and fall of an R&B singing group. 7 p.m. Monday at Marcus Theatres’ Majestic, Menomonee Falls, North Shore and South shore cinemas. $12.50. Info: marcustheatres.com.
“South Pacific”: One of the 1950s biggest musicals gets a rare big-screen
outing for its 60th anniversary this week, thanks to Turner Classic Movies. 2 p.m. Sunday and 7 p.m. Wednesday at Marcus Theatres’ Majestic, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge and South Shore cinemas. $12.50. Info: marcus theatres.com.
“Rudy”: Sean Astin stars in the inspirational, based-on-a-true-story drama, showing in a 25th anniversary edition, about an undersized player with a big heart who’s determined to take the field for Notre Dame’s Fighting Irish football team. 7 p.m. Tuesday and 2 p.m. Sept. 2 at Marcus Theatres’ Majestic, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge and South Shore cinemas. $12.50. Info: marcustheatres.com.
“Good Burger”: Before he was “Saturday Night Live’s” longest-running cast member, Kenan Thompson was part of Kenan and Kel, with comrade Kel Mitchell, on Nickelodeon’s “All That.” Their classic “Good Burger” bit got turned into this cult-lite 1997 comedy. 11:59 p.m. Friday and Saturday at Landmark Downer Theatre, 2589 N. Downer Ave. $8.50. Info: landmarktheatres. com/milwaukee.
“The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King”: The big finale for Peter Jackson’s Tolkien trilogy, which won 11 Oscars, including best picture, gets an extended-edition (nearly four hours) screening. Noon Sunday and 7 p.m. Monday and Wednesday at Marcus Theatres’ Bistroplex Southridge, and Majestic, Menomonee Falls, Ridge and South Shore cinemas. $5. Info: marcustheatres.com.
“Zoe”: Ewan McGregor, Lea Seydoux and Theo James star in a love story set amid a research lab that designs technology focusing on perfecting romantic relationships. 4:30 p.m. Wednesday at Avalon Theater, 2473 S. Kinnickinnic Ave. $8.50. Info: avalonmke.com.
This week’s free outdoor movies
“The Little Mermaid” and “Jaws”: You are not going to find a better free outdoor-movie double-feature in Milwaukee this year (or maybe any year) than this combo — Disney’s 1989 animated musical and Steven Spielberg’s ultimate summer action movie from 1975. C’mon — they’re both set on the sea. “Little Mermaid” is showing at 7:15 p.m. Friday, with “Jaws” at 8:45, both as part of the final entry in the Peck Flicks series in the outdoor Peck Pavilion at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts, 929 N. Water St. Info: marcus center.org.
“A Wrinkle in Time”: Disney and “Selma” director Ava DuVernay teamed up for this take on Madeleine L’Engle’s beloved story of a girl in pursuit of her lost father. Appropriately for a timebending tale, it’s showing at two different times and places this week: at dusk Saturday in Veterans Park, 1010 N. Lincoln Memorial Drive; and at 7:15 p.m. Tuesday at The Corners of Brookfield, 20111 W. Blue Mound Road. Info: thecornersofbrookfield.com.
“Monsters, Inc.”: Pixar’s 2001 movie answered many questions, including, “What scares monsters?” Find the answer in Port Washington’s Friday Night Flicks series, with activities starting at 7 p.m. and the movie at dusk in Meadows Park, 1400 W. Portview Drive. Info: portwashingtonparksandrec.com.
“Cars 3”: Lightning McQueen has a midlife crisis of sorts in this 2017 Pixar sequel. Showing at 8 p.m., with premovie activities featuring Kids Are People Too, in Waukesha’s Monday Night at the Movies program at the Les Paul Performance Center in Cutler Park, 321 Wisconsin Ave. Info: waukesha-wi.gov.
“The Inner Circle”: Whitewater’s own Tom Hulce plays a man with a tricky occupation — Josef Stalin’s longtime projectionist — in this 1991 drama. Showing at 8:30 p.m. Friday at Paul’s Alley Cinema, 170 S. 2nd St. Info: Paul’s Alley Cinema Facebook page.