Artsies
Breathe, 3 Stars (Unrated) 1 Hr, 31 Min
Charlie is an average French suburban teenager, but when she becomes fast friends with Sarah, the rebellious new girl at school, she discovers there’s nothing average about how she feels in Melanie Laurent’s sexy sophomore film.
Director: Mélanie Laurent
Starring: Joséphine Japy, Lou de Laâge, Isabelle Carré
Goodnight Mommy, 3.5 Stars (R), 1 Hr 39 Min
In the heat of the summer. A lonesome house in the countryside between woods and corn fields. Nine-year-old twin brothers are waiting for their mother. When she comes home, bandaged after cosmetic surgery, nothing is like before. The children start to doubt that this woman is actually their mother. It emerges an existential struggle for identity and fundamental trust.
Director: Severin Fiala, Veronika Franz
Starring: Elias Schwartz, Lukas Schwartz Thorsteinsson
Prophet’s Prey 3.5 Stars, (NR) 1 Hr. 30 Min
When Warren Jeffs rose to Prophet of the Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints, he took control of a religion with a history of polygamous and underage marriage. In a short time, Warren managed to expand these practices and the power of his position in unprecedented ways. He bridged the gap between sister wives and ecclesiastically rape, befuddling the moral compass of his entire congregation. The film examines Warren Jeffs’ life and shows how he became a worshipped and adored Prophet. Warren has a devout following numbering in the tens of thousands – many of whom would give their life at any moment with just one word from the Prophet. Despite a trail of abuse and ruined lives, Warren has maintained his grip on power.
Director: Amy Berg
Starring: Warren Jeffs (yeah, we never thought we would see that either).
Sleeping With Other People, 3 Stars (R) 1 HR 35 Min
Jason Sudeikis and Alison Brie star as two romantic failures whose years of serial infidelity and self-sabotage have led them to swear that their relationship will remain strictly platonic. But can love still bloom while you’re sleeping with other people? Writer/director Leslye Headland’s (Bachelorette) sexy romantic comedy co-stars Amanda Peet, Adam Scott, and Natasha Lyonne.
Director: Leslye Headland
Starring: Jason Sudekis, Alison Brie
Fartsies
The Martian, 4 Stars (PG-13) 2 Hr 14 Min –
During a manned mission to Mars, Astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon) is presumed dead after a fierce storm and left behind by his crew. But Watney has survived and finds himself stranded and alone on the hostile planet. With only meager supplies, he must draw upon his ingenuity, wit and spirit to subsist and find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive. Millions of miles away, NASA and a team of international scientists work tirelessly to bring “the Martian” home, while his crewmates concurrently plot a daring, if not impossible rescue mission. As these stories of incredible bravery unfold, the world comes together to root for Watney’s safe return.
Director: Ridley Scott
Starring: Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain
Sicario 3.5 Stars (R) 2 Hr
In the lawless border area stretching between the U.S. and Mexico, an idealistic FBI agent [Emily Blunt] is enlisted by an elite government task force official [Josh Brolin] to aid in the escalating war against drugs. Led by an enigmatic consultant with a questionable past [Benicio Del Toro], the team sets out on a clandestine journey forcing Kate to question everything that she believes in order to survive.
Director: Denis Villeneuve
Starring: Emily Blunt, John Bernthal
The Walk, 3.5 Stars (PG) 2 Hr 3 Min
“The Walk” is the true story of a young dreamer, Philippe Petit, and a band of unlikely recruits who together achieve the impossible: an illegal wire walk in the immense void between the World Trade Center towers. With little more than nerve and blind ambition, Petit and his ragtag crew overcome daunting physical obstacles, betrayals, countless close calls and overwhelming odds to beat the system and execute their mad plan.
X96 Editorial note: no idea why they made this movie. The documentary “Man On Wire” was pretty great and we would recommend you see it first. Why they felt the need to fictionalize this is beyond us. Also, we love JGL, but the makeup they use on his face in “The Walk” is freaking us out.
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Starring: Joseph Gordon-Leavitt, Ben Kingsley, Charlotte Le Bon
Next week
Mississippi Grind (R) 1 Hr 48 Min
Gerry is a talented poker player, but his gambling habit is getting the best of him. One day, he meets a charismatic young traveler named Curtis. Deeming Curtis his lucky charm, Gerry convinces him that they should hit the road together. As they gamble their way down South toward a legendary high-stakes poker game in New Orleans, the trip’s highs and lows unveil the duo’s true character and motivation, and an undeniable bond forms between them.
Director: Ryan Fleck, Anna Boden
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Sienna Miller
He Named me Malala (PG-13) 2 Hr
A look at the events leading up to the Taliban’s attack on the young Pakistani schoolgirl, Malala Yousafzai, for speaking out on girls’ education and the aftermath, including her speech to the United Nations.
Director: Davis Guggenheim
Starring: Malala Yousafzai, Ziauddin Yousafzai, Toor Pekai
Highway to Dhampus (PG) 1 Hr 40 min
When Laxmi, headmistress of a small orphanage in Nepal, is visited by a rich socialite attempting to fix her image through charitable acts, a chain of events is set in motion that affects everyone involved. Ajit, the western-savvy bush pilot, Colt, the American photojournalist and chaperone, and even Elizabeth, the spoiled British heiress, all discover their own reasons to ultimately change for the better.
Director: Rick McFarland
Starring: Rachel Hurd-Wood, Gunner Wright, Suesha Rana
Pan (PG) 1 Hr 51 min
12-year-old orphan Peter is spirited away to the magical world of Neverland, where he finds both fun and dangers, and ultimately discovers his destiny — to become the hero who will be forever known as Peter Pan.
Director: Joe Wright
Starring: Levi Miller, Hugh Jackman, Garrett Hedlund
