OPENING THIS WEEK

CAROL

Rated R. 118 minutes. Violet Crown. See review, Page 46.

CONCUSSION

After the recent success of Spotlight, here is another movie about people who are fighting for truth and justice. In this case, instead of the Catholic Church, the heroes are going up against another powerful institution: the NFL. Will Smith plays Bennet Omalu, a pathologist who discovers the extent of the brain damage suffered by football players who receive multiple concussions, and tries to spread the word. Luke Wilson plays his opponent, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. Rated PG-13. 123 minutes. Regal Stadium 14; Violet Crown; DreamCatcher. (Not reviewed)

DADDY’S HOME

Will Ferrell effectively played the milquetoast to Mark Wahlberg’s tough guy in the 2010 buddy-cop romp The Other

Guys, and now they bring the same dynamic to a family comedy. Ferrell plays a mild-mannered executive who is trying to be the best father to his stepchildren that he can, until one day the real dad (Wahlberg) comes roaring in on his motorcycle and makes him look like a total square. Linda Cardellini plays the mom who is caught between them. Rated PG-13. 96 minutes. Regal Stadium 14; DreamCatcher. (Not reviewed)

THE DANISH GIRL

Rated R. 120 minutes. In French, German, and English, with subtitles. Regal DeVargas. See review, Page 48.

THE HATEFUL EIGHT

Quentin Tarantino finally delivers us the Western that he’s promised for years, and it involves a hodgepodge of strangers who find themselves stuck in a Wyoming cabin during a blizzard. Bounty hunter (Kurt Russell) is delivering a woman (Jennifer Jason Leigh) to be hanged. Channing Tatum, Samuel L. Jackson, and Tim Roth co-star. Spaghetti Western maestro Ennio Morricone provides the score. Rated R. 168 minutes. Opens Wednesday, Dec. 30. Jean Cocteau Cinema. (Not reviewed)

JOY

Director David O. Russell reteams with actress Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper, the stars of his celebrated films Silver Lining

Playbook and American Hustle. This time he casts Lawrence as Joy Mangano, the real-life matriarch of a generation-spanning business that began when she invented the Miracle Mop. Robert De Niro, Diane Ladd, and Virginia Madsen also star. Rated PG-13. 124 minutes. Regal Stadium 14; DreamCatcher; Violet Crown. (Not reviewed)

MY FRIEND VICTORIA

Not rated. 95 minutes. In French with subtitles. The Screen. See review, Page 40.

JAMES WHITE

Rated R. 85 minutes. Center for Contemporary Arts. See review, Page 49.

POINT BREAK

The 1991 thriller Point Break, which starred Patrick Swayze as a surfing bank robber and Keanu Reeves as an undercover FBI agent trying to catch him, was a big hit that enjoys a cult following to this day. It’s hard to imagine that the film’s fans ever wanted a remake, yet here one is, with Édgar Ramírez in the Swayze role and Luke Bracey playing Reeves’ part. Rated PG-13. 113 minutes. Screens in 3-D and 2-D at Regal Stadium 14. Screens in 2-D only at Regal DeVargas; DreamCatcher. (Not reviewed)

YOUTH

Not rated. 118 minutes. Regal DeVargas. See review, Page 42.