GEMINI MAN

H1/2 PG-13, 117 minutes. Starts Friday at Niantic. Starts tonight at Mystic Luxury Cinemas, Waterford, Stonington, Westbrook, Lisbon. Legendary director Ang Lee first dipped his toe into the world of high frame rate cinema with 2016’s “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk,” which was shot and shown in select theaters at 120 frames per second (as opposed the usual 24). Lee and executives hoped critics and audiences might give the new look a chance, but the bizarre adaptation of the best-selling novel wasn’t the hit that allowed the format to break through to the mainstream. Perhaps they just needed a real movie star to sell it. So for his next trick, Lee has put not one, but two Will Smiths in an action movie, “Gemini Man.” Too bad everyone involved forgot about the part that actually makes you care: the script. For what is essentially a tech demonstration of the high frame rate and a completely digital young Will Smith clone character, Lee has dusted off a 22-year-old script from Darren Lemke, on which Billy Ray and “Game of Thrones” showrunner David Benioff also have writing credits. The rewrites over the decades have stripped anything interesting away from the story, which is a mere skeleton, a limp gesture at other, better espionage movies. Smith plays Henry Brogan, a highly skilled assassin who has grown a conscience in his old age. For some garbled reason, his agency turns on him, and he goes on the run with an old pal from the Marines (Benedict Wong) and a young upstart agent, Danny (Mary Elizabeth Winstead). The assassin they send after him is “Junior,” his 23-year-old clone, who was raised by Henry’s former comrade and current genetic mercenary farmer, Clay Verris (Clive Owen). The plot is as boring and low-stakes as could be. There’s no doodad to find, computer chip to destroy or super-virus to avert. It’s just one young, digital Will Smith chasing older, real Will Smith around Cartagena and Budapest while both Will Smiths grapple with the existential crisis of facing… yourself. The most memorable thing about this incredibly unmemorable movie is the vast array of beverages they consume, from coffee to beers to whiskey to strange Hungarian bloody marys. In 120 frames per second, the product placement for which Anheuser-Busch and Coca-Cola must have shelled out a pretty penny is even more glaring. As for digital Will Smith? Let’s just say human actors don’t have to worry about losing their day jobs to deep fakes anytime soon. — Katie Walsh, Tribune News Service

THE ADDAMS FAMILY

PG, 87 minutes. Starts Friday at Niantic. Starts tonight at Waterford, Stonington, Westbrook, Lisbon. This animated version of Charles Addams’ cartoons features the voices of Oscar Isaac, Charlize Theron, Chloë Grace Moretz, and Finn Wolfhard.

JEXI

R, 86 minutes. Starts tonight at Waterford, Stonington, Lisbon. Adam Devine stars in this comedy about a guy too obsessed with his phone.

MILES DAVIS: BIRTH OF THE COOL

Not rated, 115 minutes. Starts Friday at Mystic Luxury Cinemas. A documentary about the great musician. that fresh, green, zesty burst of cheesy flavor amid soft dough and crisp crust. We appreciated Brickside’s use of small tomato slices on this pie, thereby eliminating rogue strips of hot tomato on one’s chin between bites.

For our final trick, we built a calzone ($10, plus $1.50 for each add-on), and where the parm bread could feed two easily and comfortably, the giant calzone will feed two people who will likely want to change into elastic-waist pants afterward. Of course, we added sausage and red peppers to ours, which certainly contributes to the calorie count. My take? The very good, crumbly sausage added an enjoyable layer of texture to the overall mix. It could’ve been spicier, but it was tender and fresh. The menu says Brickside calzones are filled with mozzarella, ricotta, and Pecorino Romano, but I mostly noted ricotta and would not have turned down more mozzarella. As for the peppers, they added a pleasant, slightly sweet note, but they were few and far between in all that ricotta. Still: Great crust and dough softness, and, once again, the sauce served on the side added the welcome addition of bright, tangy flavor. My tasting companion gave it raves all around.

As for Brickside’s big win in the Best of the Shoreline poll, I’ll say this: the pizzas are quite good, and the menu very creative, and they clear the hurdle of proper crust construction consistently. Is it the number-one best in a region known for its pizza ubiquity? Arguable. Brickside beat out Marco’s in Branford, and Alforno in Old Saybrook and Otto in Chester didn’t make the cut at all. All of those shops make excellent pizza. Clearly, we’ll have to suggest a Tournament of Champions to determine the one true best pie in the region, but for now we can easily recommend the fare at Brickside and will gladly return again for another slice.