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“21 Years: Richard Linklater” Not rated. Reviewed at denverpost.com/movies. “Awake: The Life of Yogananda” 66¼5PG. Reviewed on page 6C. “Diplomacy” Story on page 5C. “Keep On Keepin' On” R. Reviewed on page 1C. “The Pyramid” R. Not reviewed. “Why Don't You Play In Hell?” Not rated. Reviewed at denverpost.com/movies. Selected mini-reviews of films in theaters, listed alphabetically: “Beyond the Lights” Musical romance. 66 ¼ 5PG-13. If you are lactose intolerant, you may want to forgo this musical drama. Because there is a mild hint of cheese to this wish-fulfillment saga. But I’m a connoisseur and writer-director Gina Prince-Bythewood’s movie is a tasty pleasure. Talented Gugu Mbatha-Raw portrays Noni, the U.K. import who ends her biggest night in her young R&B career yet hanging from the ledge of a swank hotel, with only the grip of police officer Kaz Nicol between her and the tabloid’s headlines. Did she intend to leap? The entertainment press has its theories. Whatever is brewing between the cop and the singer make for a engagingly romantic tale. (Lisa Kennedy, The Denver Post) 116 minutes “Big Hero 6” Animated adventure. Need a hug? Not only the booster-seat crowd will want one from Baymax , the over-sized, inflatable robot invented to be a personal health assistant in this Marvel comic-inspired tale of grief, comfort and smarts. When tragedy strikes, prodigy Hiro Hamada and his brother’s ultra-smart friends unite as the masked gang of the title to halt a tech- thieving villain. (Kennedy) 109 minutes “Birdman” Dark comedy.
In this dark, soaring, fantastical comedy, director Alejandro G. Iñárrituhe finds no shortage of the damaged. Michael Keaton nakedly embodies Riggan Thomson, a former superhero franchise star angling for an artistic triumph on Broadway. Thomson tries to mount, direct and star in an adaptation— his own!— of a Raymond Carver short story. Edward Norton plays Mike Shiner, the brilliant thespi-
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OPENED WEDNESDAY
“Foxcatcher” “Horrible Bosses 2” “Penguins of Madagascar”
CONTINUING
an Thomson hires, who becomes in many ways a necessary archenemy.At the Esquire. (Kennedy) 119 minutes “Foxcatcher” Drama. R. Movies seldom achieve the meticulous vision of director Bennett Miller’s drama about the fraught relationship of scion John du Pont, a wrestling coach wannabe, and Olympic gold medalist Mark Schultz. Even so, some have found the brooding tale a cold outing, its exquisitely mindful craft beside the point. It is not. Utilizing forward-moving, deeply meditative rhythms, Miller examines the tragic consequences of a co-dependent but profoundly unequal relationship. More vitally, “Foxcatcher” offers an uncomfortable but resonant take on the ongoing wrestling bout between American entitlement and optimism. Steve Carell and Channing Tatum dig deep into lost men du Pont and Schultz respectively. As older brother Dave Schultz, Mark Ruffalo helps transport the story for peculiar to poignantly tragic. At the Mayan. (Kennedy) 134 minutes “Fury” WWII drama. R. “Fury” is a handsome film and not merely because Brad Pitt plays Don “Wardaddy” Collier, the central figure in this visceral World War II drama about a tank commander and his crew at the vicious end of World War II in Europe. (Kennedy) 133 minutes “The Homesman” Western. R. Apart from the surly old bandit referred to by the film’s title, nearly all the characters of import in Tommy Lee Jones’ “The Homesman” are women. Some, like the hardy pioneer embodied by Hilary Swank, demonstrate what fortitude it took to succeed on the frontier. Others, such as the three “cuckoo clocks” she volunteers to escort back East, reflect the consequences that such a demanding life could put on those of a less resilient temperament. Grace Gummer, Miranda Otto and Sonja Richter also star. At the Chez. (Peter Debruge, Variety) 122 minutes “Horrible Bosses 2” Comedy. R. At the risk of suggesting that “Horrible Bosses 2 has a compelling reason to exist, it’s worth noting that the movie does function, on one level, as an anti-capitalist revenge fantasy aimed at the excesses of the 1 percent. Mainly, however, this inane and incredibly tasteless sequel qualifies as an excuse to bring back those hard-working funnymen Jason Bateman, Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis for another round of amateur-criminal hijinks and semi-improvised vulgarity. (Justin Chang, Variety) 108 minutes “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1” Drama.
PG-13. At the conclusion of “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire,” Katniss’ (Jennifer Lawrence) force-field shattering arrow left the society in turmoil. Thus, revolution is on the horizon in the franchise’s third installment. Director Francis Lawrence, in his second outing in the franchise, stays fairly true to the original text, carrying over the war-torn bleakness of “Catching Fire” without any of the disturbing thrill of the Games. In its best moments, the movie has a tense, night-before-the-battle feel. It boasts some imaginative visuals, a few truly thrilling moments, and standout performances from Lawrence, Elizabeth Banks, Woody Harrelson and Philip Seymour Hoffman. (Lindsey Bahr, Associated Press) 123 minutes “Interstellar” Sci-fi adventure.
13. Earth is down to its final crop— corn— when reluctant farmer and former astronaut Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) and young daughter Murph learn that NASA still exists. And that Professor Brand (Nolan vet Michael Caine) is working to get humans through a newly discovered wormhole. If— and it’s the biggest “if” of all— Brand and a crew of astronauts can find a sustaining home. Anne Hathaway plays Brand’s daughter, astronaut Amelia Brand. Movies journey to space to contemplate Earth. They hurl headlong into the future to ponder the past and the present. We escape into their multiplex fantasies to re-engage emotional realities. With this cinematic, storytelling feat, Christopher Nolan and cowriter Jonathan Nolan have delivered a tale spectacular and doggedly humane, one that tussles with fathers and daughters, our pioneering spirit and parental passions, the desire to go and are ache to stay. IMAX and 35mm formats in addition to digital. (Kennedy) 168 minutes “Nightcrawler” Dark drama.
In writer-director Dan Gilroy’s atmospheric film, a slightly off autodidact finds his calling chasing down night-time police blotter disasters and freelancing his video to a local TV news director desperate for ratings. What it really has going for it is an idiosyncratic, transfixing performance by Jake Gyllenhaal as Louis Bloom. (Kennedy) 117 minutes “Penguins of Madagascar” Animated adventure. PG. The latest example of DreamWorks Animation’s franchise mania is a frantic, peppy, in-your-face slice of irreverent animated action. The intent is to explore the backstory of the scene-stealing penguin quartet from the three previous “Madagascar” films: Skipper (voiced by Tom McGrath), Private (Christopher Knights), Kowalski (Chris Miller) and Rico (Conrad Vernon). Kowalski serves as the brains of the operation, Rico is the wild card, and junior member Private simply wants respect— something narcissistic nincompoop Skipper is too self-involved to recognize. Fortunately, there’s an international incident brewing, so Skipper can spring his team into action and Private can prove his worth in an inevitable 11th-hour triumph. (Geoff Berkshire, Variety) 92 minutes “Rosewater” Historical drama. R. The punishing ordeal of Iranian journalist Maziar Bahari— imprisoned for 118 days on charges of espionage— is brought to the screen with impressive tact and intelligence by writer-director Jon Stewart in this alternately somber and darkly funny drama. Largely a two-person film between Bahari (played by Gael García Bernal) and the interrogator who puts him through a gauntlet of soul-crushing mind games, Stewart’s confident, superbly acted debut feature works as both a stirring account of human endurance and a topical reminder of the risks faced by journalists in pursuit of the truth. At the Mayan. (Scott Foundas, Variety) 102 minutes “St. Vincent” Comedy.
PG-13. First-time feature director and writer Theodore Melfi has two reasons why this tale of an accidental babysitter and his hopeful ward is a minor comedic miracle. The obvious one is Bill Murray as drinking, gambling, stripper-engaged Vincent McKenna. The surprise comes by way of Jaeden Lieberher as Oliver, the wise-child whose almost divorced mom Maggie is doing the best she can. (Kennedy) 103 minutes “The Theory of Everything” Romantic biopic. 13. Yes, Oscar-winner James Marsh’s drama about theoretical astrophysicist Stephen Hawking and mate Jane Hawking, née Wilde, tussles with quantum physics and Einstein’s theory of relativity. But its intellectual-emotional force also comes from being simultaneously being a stirring romance. Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones portray the pair who meet a in Cambridge in 1963. In the midst of the amazing— big ideas! deep love!— the devastating happens: Hawking is diagnosed with motor neuron disease, often referred to as ALS. The movie charts the trajectory of a longterm relationship even as it tracks Hawking’s shattering scientific successes. (Kennedy) 123 minutes “Touch the Wall” Documentary. rated. Christo Brock and Grant Barbeito began filmming swimmer Missy Franklin when she was 14. She was special, to be sure but how special the filmmakers couldn’t have guessed. Nor could they have planned amore perfect dramatic complement to Franklin than Kara Lynn Joyce. In her mid-twenties, the Olympic silver medalist joined Franklin and coach Tim Schmitz’s team, the Colorado Stars, a year later with the aim of making it to London’s 2012 Olympic games. What the film lacks aesthetically, it more than makes up for in dogged access— the kind of fly-on-the-wall view filmmakers get because they have the trust of their subjects, in this case Franklin, her winning parents and Joyce. At the SieFilm Center. (Kennedy) 101 minutes “Whiplash” Drama. R. Go figure. Writer-director Damien Chazelle’s harrowing and elegant tale of an ambitious young jazz drummer and his bullying teacher is not a terrific jazz music film. And yet, the film is one of the best of 2014. At the Mayan. (Kennedy) 106 minutes