Buffalo Movies: New films open in theaters this weekend. Here’s which movies are playing and where to see them in WNY.

(Above: Jamie Lee Curtis and Emma Mackey in Ella McCay (2025). Photo by 20th Century Studios/20TH CENTURY STUDIOS – © 2025 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.)

By M. Faust

OPENING THIS WEEK: 

AKHANDA 2 – THAANDAVAM (NR) Sequel to the 2021 Telugu-language fantasy film. Starring Nandamuri Balakrishna, Samyuktha Menon, Aadhi Pinisetty, and Kabir Duhan Singh. Directed by Boyapati Sreenu. Regal Elmwood

DUST BUNNY (R) “Family horror film” about an eight-year old girl who hires a hitman to kill the monster under her bed that ate her family. Starring Mads Mikkelsen, Sophie Sloan, Sheila Atim, David Dastmalchian, and Sigourney Weaver. Directed by Bryan Fuller. Regal Quaker, Regal Transit

ELLA MCCAY (PG-13) Writer-director James L. Brooks’ first film since 2010’s How Do You Know is a comedy with a political backdrop starring Emma Mackey as a governor-to-be juggling work and family issues. With Jamie Lee Curtis, Jack Lowden, Kumail Nanjiani, Ayo Edebiri, Julie Kavner, Rebecca Hall, Albert Brooks, and Woody Harrelson. AMC Maple Ridge, AMC Market Arcade, Dipson Amherst, Dipson Capitol, Dipson Flix, Dunkirk Multiplex, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

MOWGLI (NR) Tribesman versus government officers in the jungle in this Telugu action drama. Starring Bandi Saroj Kumar, Roshan Kanakala, and Sakshi Mhadolkar. Directed by Sandeep Raj. Regal Elmwood

NOT WITHOUT HOPE (R) Friends struggle to survive after their boat capsizes in the ocean off the Mexican coast. Starring Zachary Levi, Josh Duhamel, and Quentin Plair. Directed by Joe Carnahan (The A-Team). Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

REBUILDING (PG) A cowboy tries to recover from disastrous wildfires in a FEMA camp with other survivors. Starring Josh O’Connor, Lily LaTorre, and Meghann Fahy. Directed by Max Walker-Silverman. Regal Transit

SENTIMENTAL VALUE (R) After the death of their mother, two women struggle to reconnect with their estranged father in this drama that was awarded the Palme d’Or at Cannes this year. Starring Renate Reinsve, Stellan Skarsgård, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, and Elle Fanning. Directed by Joachim Trier (The Worst Person in the World). North Park

SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT (NR) New remake of the 1984 slasher movie that outraged locals when it played the North Park at Christmastime. Starring Rohan Campbell, Ruby Modine, and David Tomlinson. Directed by Mike P. Nelson (Wrong Turn). Dipson Capitol, Regal Elmwood, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

NOW PLAYING: 

100 NIGHTS OF HERO (PG-13) Feminist medieval fantasy adapted from the graphic novel by Isabel Greenberg. Starring Emma Corrin, Nicholas Galitzine, Maika Monroe, Amir El Masry, Richard E. Grant, Felicity Jones, and Charli XC. Directed by Julia Jackman (Bonus Track). Regal Quaker 

DHURANDHAR (NR) Hindi language thriller based on the true story of government efforts to take down a terrorist network operating out of Pakistan NB: It’s 3 ½ hours long, which is long even by Bollywood standards (but not the longest film showing this week). Starring Ranveer Singh, Sanjay Dutt, and Akshaye Khanna Regal Elmwood

ETERNITY (PG-13) In the afterlife, a recently deceased woman has a week to choose between her first love and the man she spent most of her life with as a partner for the rest of eternity. Starring Elizabeth Olsen, Miles Teller, and Callum Turner. Directed by David Freyne (Dating Amber). AMC Maple Ridge, Dunkirk Multiplex, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

FACKHAM HALL (R) British comedian Jimmy Carr wrote this broad spoof on Downtown Abbey, starring Ben Radcliffe as a pickpocket who gets hired at a posh manor house and quickly rises through the ranks. Co-starring Damian Lewis, Thomasin McKenzie, Katherine Waterston, and Tom Felton. Directed by Jim O’Hanlon. Regal Quaker, Regal Transit 

FIVE NIGHTS AT FREDDY’S 2 (PG-13) Video-game based horror sequel. Starring Josh Hutcherson, Piper Rubio, Elizabeth Lail, Matthew Lillard, and Wayne Knight. Directed by Emma Tammi. AMC Maple Ridge, AMC Market Arcade, Dipson Capitol, Dipson Flix, Dunkirk Multiplex, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria, Spotlight Theater of Warsaw 

HAMNET (PG-13) Fictional story about William Shakespeare and his wife that asks what effect the death of their young son might have had on his work. Starring Jessie Buckley Paul Mescal, Emily Watson, and Joe Alwyn. Directed by Chloé Zhao (Nomadland). AMC Maple Ridge, Dipson Amherst, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Walden Galleria

HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS (2000, PG) 25^th anniversary re-release of Ron Howard’s live action adaptation of the beloved children’s story. With Jim Carrey, Jeffrey Tambour, and Christine Baranski. Angola (Fri, Sat, Thurs only), Dipson Capitol, Dipson Flix, Dunkirk Multiplex, Regal Elmwood, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria, Spotlight Theater of Warsaw

JUJUTSU KAISEN: EXECUTION (R) Online fans are annoyed that one-third of this feature film of the popular anime series consists of scenes from the show’s second series. Directed by Shouta Goshozono and Yôsuke Takada. AMC Maple Ridge, AMC Market Arcade, Dipson Capitol, Dunkirk Multiplex, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

KILL BILL: THE WHOLE BLOODY AFFAIR (NR) The title pretty much says it all. NB: It’s an hour longer than Dhurandhar. Starring Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Michael Madsen, Darryl Hannah, Lucy Liu, Viveca A. Fox, Sonny Chiba, and Gordon Liu. Directed by Quentin Tarantino. Regal Walden Galleria

MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG (NR) Adaptation of the 1981 Broadway musical by Stephen Sondheim and George Furth, charting (in reverse time) the three-decade relationship among three friends. Starring Jonathan Groff, Lindsay Mendez, and Daniel Radcliffe. Directed by Maria Friedman, adapting her 2024 Broadway revival of the show. Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

NOW YOU SEE ME: NOW YOU DON’T (PG-13) Guess they didn’t want to just call it Now You See Me 3. Starring Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco, Isla Fisher, Lizzy Caplan, and Morgan Freeman. Directed by Ruben Fleischer (Zombieland). AMC Maple Ridge, AMC Market Arcade, Aurora, Dunkirk Multiplex, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

NUREMBERG (PG-13) Russell Crowe as Hermann Göring preparing to face trial for war crimes, being interrogated by US Army psychiatrist Rami Malek. With Michael Shannon, Richard E. Grant, Colin Hanks, and John Slattery. Directed by James Vanderbilt (Truth). Hamburg Palace, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit

ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER (R) Director Paul Thomas Anderson’s new film, loosely inspired by the Thomas Pynchon novel Vineland, starring Leonardo DiCaprio as a onetime radical who tried to summon up his former fire when his daughter is kidnapped. Co-starring Sean Penn, Benecio del Toro, and Regina Hall. Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

PREDATOR: BADLANDS (PG-13) Sequel. Starring Elle Fanning and Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi. Directed by Dan Trachtenberg (10 Cloverfield Lane). Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

REGRETTING YOU (PG-13) Drama about a woman and her teenaged daughter struggling to recover after the death of her husband. Starring Allison Williams, Mckenna Grace, Dave Franco, and Clancy Brown. Directed by Josh Boone (The Fault in Our Stars). Regal Quaker

ROLLING STONES: AT THE MAX (NR) Reissue of the 1991 concert film in IMAX format. Directed by Noel Archambault, David Douglas and Roman Kroitor. Regal Transit (Fri-Sun only)

THE RUNNING MAN (R) Remake of the 1987 Stephen King dystopian thriller that was only notable for the performance of its star. The world just isn’t the same without Richard Dawson. This one stars Glen Powell, William H. Macy, Lee Pace, Michael Cera, Sean Hayes, and Josh Brolin. Directed by Edgar Wright (Last Night in Soho). Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit

SARAH’S OIL (PG) True story of an African-American girl in Oklahoma of the early 1900s who believes there is oil under the family house. Starring Naya Desir-Johnson, Zachary Levi, and Sonequa Martin-Green. Directed by Cyrus Nowrasteh. Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

WAKE UP DEAD MAN: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY (PG-13) Daniel Craig returns as master detective Benoit Blanc in this third entry in the popular mystery series. Co-staring Josh O’Connor, Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Cailee Spaeny, Daryl McCormack, and Thomas Haden Church. Directed by Rian Johnson (Looper). Dipson Amherst

WICKED: FOR GOOD (PG) Sequel. Actually, more of the same film, they just broke it up into two parts to get you to spend twice as much to see it. Starring Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey, Peter Dinklage, Michelle Yeoh, and Jeff Goldblum. Directed by Jon M. Chu. AMC Maple Ridge, AMC Market Arcade, Dipson Capitol, Dipson Flix, Dunkirk Multiplex, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria, Spotlight Theater of Warsaw

ZOOTOPIA 2 (PG) Ten years is a long time in coming for a sequel to a children’s film, but here it is anyway. With the voices of Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, Shakira, Idris Elba, Ke Huy Quan, Andy Samberg, David Strathairn, Patrick Warburton, Quinta Brunson, and Danny Trejo. Directed by Jared Bush and Byron Howard. AMC Maple Ridge, AMC Market Arcade, Dipson Capitol, Dipson Flix, Dunkirk Multiplex, Joylan (no shows Mon, Weds), Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria, Spotlight Theater of Warsaw

ETC:

THE BELLS OF ST. MARYS (1945) Bing Crosby returns as Father O’Malley in this sequel to Going My Way, without Barry Fitzgerald but with Ingrid Bergman as a nun running an inner-city school in financial distress. With Henry Travers, William Gargan, and Ruth Donnelly. Directed by Leo McCarey (Duck Soup). Sat-Sun 11:15 am. North Park

IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE (1946)—Jimmy Stewart gets to see what life for his friends and community would have been like had he never lived in Frank Capra’s holiday classic. Co-starring Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, Thomas Mitchell, Henry Travers, Beulah Bondi, Frank Faylen, Ward Bond, Gloria Grahame, H.B. Warner, Frank Albertson, Sheldon Leonard, and Charles Lane; look carefully and you can spot Ellen Corby and Carl ‘Alfalfa’ Switzer. Fri, Tues, Fri Dec. 19 7:30 pm. Screening Room

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THEATER LOCATIONS AND WEBSITES

AMC Maple Ridge, 4276 Maple Road, Amherst www.amctheatres.com

AMC Market Arcade, 639 Main Street, Buffalo www.amctheatres.com

Angola Theatre, 72 N. Main St., Angola, NY https://angolatheatre.com/

Aurora Theater, 673 Main Street, East Aurora https://theauroratheatre.com/

Dipson Amherst, 3500 Main Street, Buffalo. www.dipsontheatres.com

Dipson Capitol Theater, 720 Builders Way, Niagara Falls www.dipsontheatres.com

Dipson Flix, 4901 Transit Road, Depew www.dipsontheatres.com

Dunkirk Multiplex, 10520 Bennett Road, Dunkirk https://www.dunkirkmultiplex.com/

Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center Cinema, 431 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo https://www.hallwalls.org/

Hamburg Palace, 31 Buffalo Street, Hamburg www.hamburgpalace.com

Joylan, 11 W. Main Street, Springville https://joylantheater.com/

North Park, 1428 Hertel Avenue, Buffalo https://northparktheatre.org/

Regal Elmwood, 2001 Elmwood Avenue., Buffalo https://www.fandango.com/

Regal Quaker Crossing, 3450 Amelia Drive, Orchard Park https://www.fandango.com/

Regal Transit, 6707 Transit Road. Williamsville https://www.fandango.com/

Regal Walden Galleria, Galleria Mall, Cheektowaga https://www.fandango.com/

Riviera Theater, 67 Webster Street, North Tonawanda https://rivieratheatre.org/

The Screening Room, Boulevard Mall Amherst www.screeningroom.net

Spotlight Theater of Warsaw, 23 S Main Street, Warsaw https://www.spotlighttheater.com/movie-theater/warsaw

Squeaky Wheel, Tri-Main Center, 2495 Main Street, Suite 310, Buffalo https://squeaky.org/Transit Drive-In Theatre, 6655 S. Transit Road, Lockport https://www.transitdrivein.com CLOSED UNTIL SPRING