Film Focus: ‘Hamnet,’ ‘100 Nights of Hero,’ ‘Merrily We Roll Along’ among openings
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Film Focus: ‘Hamnet,’ ‘100 Nights of Hero,’ ‘Merrily We Roll Along’ among openings

The Editor0Tagged ,

WNY Movies: ‘Fackam Hall,’ more ‘Freddy’s’ on tap, too

By M. Faust
(Image above: Jessie Buckley, left, and Paul Mescal in “Hamnet”; photo by Agata Grzybowska © 2025 ,Focus Features)

OPENING THIS WEEK: 

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 Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit

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 opening this week). Starring Ranveer Singh, Sanjay Dutt, and Akshaye Khanna Regal Elmwood, 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 Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

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

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 Quaker, 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, Spotlight Theater of Warsaw

NOW PLAYING: 

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 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, Dipson Capitol, Dipson Flix, 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). Regal Quaker, Regal Transit

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

RENTAL FAMILY (PG-13) Brendan Fraser as an actor struggling to get by in Japan until he lands a new gig with a “rental family” agency. Co-starring Takehiro Hira, Mari Yamamoto, Akira Emoto, and Shannon Gorman. Directed by Hikari (37 Seconds). Regal Quaker, Regal Transit

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, Regal Walden Galleria

SISU: ROAD TO REVENGE (R) This sequel to a Finnish action movie I’ve never heard of is being described by reviewers as a delight for those who revel in imaginative killing scenes. Caveat emptor. Starring Jorma Tommila, Stephen Lang and Richard Brake. Directed by Jalmari Helander. Regal Quaker, 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, Dipson Capitol, North Park

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, Angola, Aurora, Dipson Amherst, Dipson Capitol, Dipson Flix, Dunkirk Multiplex, Hamburg Palace, 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, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria, Spotlight Theater of Warsaw

ETC:

THE BISHOP’S WIFE (1947) Holiday classic starring Cary Grant as an angel sent to help out a struggling bishop (David Niven) and his neglected wife (Loretta Young). The plot doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, but the leads are irresistible and the B&W photography (shot in his usual deep focus by Citizen Kane cinematographer Gregg Toland) is gorgeous, making this well worth seeing on the biggest of local screens. 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 Dec. 12 7:30 pm, Tues Dec. 16 7:30 pm Screening Room

LOVE ACTUALLY (2003, R)—For his directorial debut, screenwriter Richard Curtis (Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill). crams a dozen or so stories about people looking for love during the holidays into a single film. To be more precise, he crams the climactic scenes from a dozen such movies into one film. Much of it is appealing, even irresistible, but you can’t help wishing he’d developed some of these stories a bit more: there’s too much gooey frosting and too little cake. The all-star British (mostly) cast features Colin Firth, Liam Neeson, Emma Thompson, Martin Freeman, Keira Knightley, Hugh Grant, Martine McCutcheon, Laura Linney, Alan Rickman, Billy Bob Thornton, and Rowan Atkinson, but Bill Nighy steals the movie as a washed-up rock star attempting a holiday comeback. Sun 1 pm, Tues 7:30 pm. Screening Room

THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW (1975, R)—Because what says Christmas more than a rousing chorus of “Sweet Transvestite”? Do the Time Warp again with Tim Curry, Susan Sarandan, Barry Bostwick and all the rest. Fri 7:30pm. Screening Room

STRANGE JOURNEY: THE STORY OF ROCKY HORROR—Buffalo premiere of a new documentary about everyone’s favorite audience participation movie. Directed by Richard O’Brien’s son Linus. Sat 2 pm Screening Room

THEATER LOCATIONS AND WEBSITES

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