Naughty, nice movies add spice to holiday
From “Jumanji” to “Star Wars,” the season is packed with box-office gifts.
You’ve decked the halls and bought the gifts. So, now what?
Like most of us, you’re probably about ready to check out of impeachment conversations at the dinner table and head to the movies.
But what should you see? That “Jumanji” sequel with Kevin Hart and The Rock? The Daniel Craig murder mystery everyone says is the next coming of Agatha Christie? A feline musical with Taylor Swift and Idris Elba wearing animated cat fur? And isn’t there just something you can turn on at home?
We’ve got you. No matter what mood your family just put you in for being too single/late/political/independent/overworked or otherwise, let the movies do their magic this holiday season. Films are showing now unless otherwise noted.
If the Force is compelling you: ‘Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’
Good thing Santa Claus carries a big bag: He’ll need it to hold all the new and returning characters, huge starships and even a posse of space horses in the closer to the nine-movie Skywalker saga. When an ancient evil rises again, it’s up to a trio of Resistance heroes (Daisy Ridley, John Boyega and Oscar Isaac) to lead the fight to save the galaxy far, far away.
If you’re looking for a psychedelic sing-along: ‘Cats’
If you’re looking for two hours of madcap feline shenanigans with some seriously trippy visuals, “Cats” is for you! The Tom Hooper-directed musical extrava
ganza offers more of a Jellicle plot than its Broadway counterpoint, plus Idris Elba in his cat skivvies, all of the Andrew Lloyd Webber hits and a scenestealing appearance by Taylor Swift. Love it or hate it, you won’t not talk about it for days after. But a warning: If you’ve never seen the play, it won’t even kind of make sense.
If this classic novel is near and dear to your heart: ‘Little Women’
Director/screenwriter Greta Gerwig (“Lady Bird”) obviously adores her source material and applies some modern sparkle to her take on March sisters Jo (Saoirse Ronan), Meg (Emma Watson), Beth (Eliza Scanlen) and Amy (Florence Pugh). Rounded out with Meryl Streep’s zesty take on the crotchety Aunt March and Timothee Chalamet’s playboy-next-door Laurie, this “Little Women” (out Christmas Day) is guaranteed to provide all of the holiday feels (plus an ending that provides new insight into author Louisa May Alcott).
If you want to see an amazing transformation: ‘Bombshell’
You’ll forget it’s Charlize Theron playing Megyn Kelly, thanks to light prosthetics, tinted contacts and the actress’ ability to modulate her voice just like the former Fox News star. Viewers will be given a tour of Fox News and the alleged predatory tactics that Roger Ailes (John Lithgow) employed over women at the network he founded, from Gretchen Carlson (Nicole Kidman) to aspirational reporters (Margot Robbie).
If you want to see a ton of stars in a hilarious whodunit: ‘Knives Out’
Offset holiday tensions by carting your entire family to see what dysfunction really looks like. A truckload of stars hits the screen in this darkly funny murder mystery, which investigates a wealthy patriarch’s death – and everyone is a suspect. We promise you won’t guess the twist.
If you’re the holiday horror type: ‘Black Christmas’
Hoping for a holiday scare? “Black Christmas” is for you. The remake of the 1974 film tags along as Riley (Imogen Poots) and her sorority sisters get ready to hit a host of holiday parties at the fictional Hawthorne College. That is, until a masked stalker starts targeting them. United, will these women survive the twisted patriarchal tale?
If you want some good ol’ courtroom justice: ‘Just Mercy’
Jamie Foxx received a Screen Actors Guild supporting actor nomination for his role in the legal drama (in theaters Christmas Day) as a black Alabama death-row inmate wrongfully convicted of murdering an 18-year-old white woman. Director Destin Daniel Cretton’s take on an inspirational real-life story also stars Michael B. Jordan as the young Harvard lawyer who takes the incarcerated man’s case, Brie Larson as a fellow legal eagle and Rob Morgan as a troubled war veteran with an execution date.
If you’re needing a different sort of war movie: ‘1917’
Director Sam Mendes( “Skyfall”) mined the stories his grandfather told him for this World War I thriller (out
Christmas Day) that chronicles a deathdefying mission in one continuous take. George MacKay and Dean-Charles Chapman star as young British soldiers who have to deliver a message in time to save 1,600 men from a German trap, and the stellar supporting cast includes Colin Firth, Andrew Scott and Benedict Cumberbatch.
If you’re a Clint Eastwood completist: ‘Richard Jewell’
The Oscar-winning director takes on the complicated story of an Atlanta security guard who saved people at the 1996 Olympic Park bombing but then was considered a prime suspect by authorities. Paul Walter Hauser plays Jewell, who gets much-needed legal support from a former boss (Sam Rockwell) and much love from his devoted mom (Golden Globe nominee Kathy Bates).
If you want some Rock around the Christmas tree: ‘Jumanji: The Next Level’
Dwayne Johnson does a Danny DeVito impression for a good bit of this action-adventure sequel, which involves a mission into a dangerous video-game world to rescue a teenager (Alex Wolff ), an all-star cast of video-game avatars including Johnson, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, Karen Gillan, Nick Jonas and Awkwafina, plus a herd of speedy ostriches.
If you have a passion for pigeons and/or Will Smith: ‘Spies in Disguise’
James Bond gets a bird-brained twist in this animated spy buddy comedy (out Christmas Day). Suave secret agent Lance Sterling (voiced by Smith) accidentally drinks an experimental serum concocted by a young scientist (Tom Holland) and, much to his chagrin, is turned into a winged wonder. The two guys team up to turn Lance being into a handsome human dude and stop a cybernetic villain’s nefarious shenanigans.
If you’re seeking one holy night out: ‘The Two Popes’
Of course, there’s plenty of pontificating in this dramedy (now streaming on Netflix) chronicling the rivalry and friendship between two real-life pontiffs, Pope Benedict (Anthony Hopkins) and Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio (Jonathan Pryce), who became the future Pope Francis. It digs into real-life issues regarding the Catholic Church – from sexual abuse to inequality – but doesn’t forget to have heart and humor, too.