MICK LASALLE’S MOVIE PICK

I keep telling you, and you keep putting the moment off. But if you want to be seen at the best parties, you must, sooner or later, go see “Last Year at Marienbad,” not for the pleasure of actually seeing it, but for the relief and subsequent status of having seen it. It is without question a midcentury classic.

At the same time, it’s one of the most boring films ever made: A man and a woman meet at a fancy ball, and the man says that they met last year in Marienbad, but she doesn’t remember, and he doesn’t quite remember, either, and it goes on like that for only 94 minutes. It’s beautifully filmed, however, and if you’re going to see it — and you are — you might as well see it at the Castro.

2:20 and 6 p.m. Sunday, July 14. $13. Castro Theatre. 429 Castro St., S.F. www.castrotheatre.com

“Last Year at Marienbad:”

being mean to him. Worst of all, Taron Egerton has a weak voice and sounds nothing like Elton John in the ’70s and something like Elton in his 70s. Rated R. 121 minutes. — M. LaSalle

NThe Souvenir Another quiet, multi-layered character study by the emerging British master Joanna Hogg about a film school student (Honor Swinton Byrne, daughter of Tilda Swinton) in 1980s England whose dreams are derailed by an affair with an older, sophisticated man (Tom Burke) who has a secret drug addiction. Rated R. 119 minutes.

— G. Allen Johnson

MSpider-Man: Far From Home The new “Spider-Man” is a necessary return to Earth, or at least earthbound concerns, for a series that had reached for the stars. It feels rushed at times, especially with the Mysterio character played with low

energy by Jake Gyllenhaal. But the smaller scenes with Spider-Man’s return to school are handled well. A fun movie that successfully hits the reset button for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Rated PG-13. 129 minutes. — P. Hartlaub

The Spy Behind Home Plate Documentary about Moe Berg, who played baseball in the major leagues in the 1920s and ’30s and became a spy in World War II, working behind enemy lines to seek information about Germany’s nuclear program. Directed by Aviva Kempner. Not reviewed. Not rated. 101 minutes.

KStuber Despite Kumail Nanjiani, who is pleasant to be around, this film -about a cop who hijacks an Uber driver and his car for dangerous police work -- is ugly, formulaic, uninspired, not funny, badly directed and badly written. Aside from that, it’s

swell. Rated R. 93 minutes.

— M. LaSalle

MThe Third Wife Exquisitely filmed Vietnamese movie about a 14-year-old girl who becomes the third wife of a wealthy landowner in the 19th century, and the relationship she develops with the other two wives. Recalls such ’90s arthouse hits as “The Scent of Green Papaya” and “Raise the Red Lantern. Not rated. 96 minutes.

— G. Allen Johnson

MToni Morrison: The Pieces I Am This touching and expansive documentary, produced for PBS’ American Masters label, is unreserved and unflinching in its praise for its subject: Nobelwinning writer Toni Morrison, now age 88. Among those singing her praises: Oprah Winfrey, Walter Mosley, Fran Lebowitz, Angela Davis. Rated PG-13. 119 minutes. — Zaki

Hasan

LThe White Crow Rudolf Nureyev comes across as a pretty obnoxious fellow in this story of his life in Russia, from his student days leading up to his defection to the west. The defection scene is almost worth the price of admission, but two (subtitled) hours in the presence of a creep is a bit much. Directed by Ralph Fiennes. Rated R. 127 minutes. In Russian and French with English subtitles.

— M. LaSalle

MWild Rose Thinly plotted yet highly engaging, this tale of a Glaswegian woman just out of prison and intent on pursuing country stardom in Nashville confirms the extraordinary talent of Irish singer and actress Jessie Buckley (HBO’s “Chernobyl”). Her unusually unguarded expression gives the viewer entry into all her character’s emotions, her singing voice is wonderful and her charisma abundant. Rated R. 100 minutes. — C. Meyer

MYesterday This latest from Danny Boyle, about a struggling musician who wakes up in an alternate universe in which the Beatles never existed, features winning performances from Himesh Patel and Lily James, and allows audiences to share vicariously in the experience of hearing Beatles songs as if for the first time. Funny and at times touching. Rated PG-13. 116 minutes. — M. LaSalle