Film Focus: Jan. 17-23, 2025
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Film Focus: Jan. 17-23, 2025

M Faust0Tagged ,

By M. Faust
(Image above from ‘One of Them Days’)

Perhaps more interesting than any of the films actually opening is the fact that six movies that are likely awards contenders are re-opening this weekend at various Regal Theaters: Anora, Conclave, Flow, Sing Sing, The Substance and The Wild Robot.

Flow
Anora
Conclave
The Wildl Robot

OPENING THIS WEEK: 

AUTUMN AND THE BLACK JAGUAR (NR) From France, a nature drama about a teenager who returns to the Amazon rainforest to rescue a panther she bonded with as a child. Starring Emily Bett Rickards, Lumi Pollack, and Paul Greene. Directed by Gilles de Maistre (The Wolf and the Lion). Regal Elmwood, Regal Transit

ONE OF THEM DAYS (R) Comedy starring Keke Palmer and SZA as roommates struggling to come up with the month’s rent. With Vanessa Bell Calloway, Katt Williams and Maude Apatow. Directed by Lawrence Lamont. AMC Maple Ridge, AMC Market Arcade, Dipson Capitol, Dunkirk Multiplex, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

THE ROOM NEXT DOOR (PG-13) Tilda Swinton and Julianne Moore as old friends struggling with the issue of suicide when one of them has inoperable cervical cancer. With John Turturro and Alessandro Nivola. Directed by Pedro Almodóvar (Parallel Mothers). Dipson Amherst, North Park, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria Read M. Faust’s review here

WISH YOU WERE HERE (PG-13) Julia Stiles directed this romantic drama about a woman who finds love with a partner who has only one flaw: he’s dying. Starring Isabelle Fuhrman, Mena Massoud, Gabby Kono-Abdy, Kelsey Grammer and Jennifer Grey. Dipson Capitol, Dipson Flix

WOLF MAN (R) The Blumhouse juggernaut sets its sights on another classic horror genre. Starring Julia Garner, Christopher Abbott, and Sam Jaeger. Directed by Leigh Whannell (The Invisible Man). AMC Maple Ridge, AMC Market Arcade, Dipson Capitol, Dipson Flix, Dunkirk Multiplex, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

NOW PLAYING:

ANORA (R) Winner of the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival, a boisterous comedy about a Brooklyn sex worker whose fairytale romance with a rich young Russian runs afoul of his family. Starring Mikey Madison, Mark Eydelshteyn, Yura Borisov Russian, and Karren Karagulian. Directed by Sean Baker (Tangerine). Regal Elmwood, Regal Walden Galleria Read M. Faust’s review here

BABYGIRL (R) Nicole Kidman as a CEO who risks her family and career for an affair with an intern. With Harris Dickinson, Sophie Wilde, and Antonio Banderas. Directed by Halina Reijn (Bodies Bodies Bodies). Regal Quaker, Regal Transit Read M. Faust’s review here. 

BETTER MAN (R) Biopic of Robbie Williams in which his character is played by an CGI monkey. To answer the inevitable question: Robbie Williams is a British pop singer. With Steve Pemberton, Alison Steadman and Kate Mulvany. Directed by Michael Gracey (The Greatest Showman). Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

A COMPLETE UNKNOWN (R) Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan in a biography that culminates with his appearance with an electric band in 1965. Co-starring Edward Norton, Elle Fanning, Monica Barbaro, Boyd Holbrook, and Scoot McNairy. Directed by James Mangold (Walk the Line). AMC Maple Ridge, Aurora, Dipson Amherst, Dipson Capitol, Dipson Flix, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Spotlight Theater of Warsaw Read M. Faust’s review here. 

CONCLAVE (PG) Adaptation of the best-selling novel set during the Catholic Church’s secretive process to elect a new Pope. Starring Ralph Fiennes, Jacek Koman, Lucian Msamati, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, and Isabella Rossellini. Directed by Edward Berger (All Quiet on the Western Front). Regal Elmwood, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria Read M. Faust’s review here.

DEN OF THIEVES 2: PANTERA (R) Sequel. If you saw the original, you know what it was about, and if you didn’t why would you want to see the sequel? Starring Gerald Butler, O’Shea Jackson and Evin Ahmad. Directed once again by Christian Gudegast. AMC Maple Ridge, AMC Market Arcade, Dipson Capitol, Dipson Flix, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

FLOW (PG) Critically acclaimed animated movie about a cat and diverse other animals trying to survive on a sailboat after an apocalyptic flood. Directed by Gints Zilbalodis (Away). Regal Elmwood, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria Read M. Faust’s review here.

GAME CHANGER (NR) Telugu language action drama about a police officer fighting political corruption. Starring Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, and Sankalpa Banerjee. Directed by S. Shankar. Regal Elmwood

GLADIATOR II (R) Sequel. Starring Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal, Denzel Washington, Connie Nielsen and Derek Jacobi. Directed by Ridley Scott (Napoleon). Regal Elmwood, Regal Transit Read M. Faust’s review here

KRAVEN THE HUNTER (R) This looks like standard action movie fare, but it gets at least some cred for being directed by J.C. Chandor, who has some very good films to his credit—All is Lost, Margin Call, A Most Violent Year. Starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ariana DeBosek, Alessandro Nivola and Russell Crowe. Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

THE LAST SHOWGIRL (R) Pamela Anderson has been getting a lot of awards talk for her starring role here as an aging showgirl unsure how to deal with the future when her long-running show closes. With Dave Bautista, Jamie Lee Curtis, Brenda Song, and Kiernan Shipka. Directed by Gia Coppola (Palo Alto). Dipson Amherst, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker

MOANA 2 (PG) Animated sequel. With the voices of Auli’i Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson, Alan Tudyk, and Nicole Scherzinger. Directed by David G. Derrick Jr., Jason Hand, and Dana Ledoux Miller. AMC Maple Ridge, Dipson Capitol, Dipson Flix, Dunkirk Multiplex, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

MUFASA THE LION KING (PG) Animated sequel, or prequel or whatever. With the voices of Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr. and Tiffany Boone. Directed by Barry Jenkins (If Beale Street Could Talk). 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

NOSFERATU (R) Writer-director Robert Eggers (The Northman) inches toward the mainstream with this adaptation of the 1922 German horror film based on Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Starring Bill Skarsgård, Nicholas Hoult, Lily-Rose Depp, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Simon McBurney, and Willem Dafoe. AMC Maple Ridge, AMC Market Arcade, Dipson Capitol, Dipson Flix, Dipson McKinley, Dunkirk Multiplex, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria Read M. Faust’s review here. 

SING SING (R) Widely praised drama based on a true story about men incarcerated at the infamous prison who gain new leases on life in a theater company. Starring Colman Domingo, Clarence Maclin and Sean San Jose. Directed by Greg Kwedar (Transpecos). Read M. Faust’s review here. Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 3 (PG) Sequel. A live action Jim Carrey joins a voice cast including Ben Schwartz, James Marsden, Tika Sumpter, Idris Elba, and Keanu Reeves. Directed by Jeff Fowler. AMC Maple Ridge, AMC Market Arcade, Dipson Capitol, Dipson Flix, Dunkirk Multiplex, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

THE SUBSTANCE (R) Horror film starring Demi Moore as an aging celebrity who takes a black-market cell-replicating drug to make her appear younger. Gee, do you suppose there could by any negative side effects? Co-starring Margaret Qualley and Dennis Quaid. Written and directed by Coralie Fargeat (Revenge). Regal Elmwood, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

WICKED (PG) Adaptation of the long running musical that tells the story of The Wizard of Oz from the point of view of the Wicked Witch. N.B.: This is only part one. Starring Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum, and Peter Dinklage. Directed by John M. Chu (G.I. Joe: Retaliation). AMC Maple Ridge, AMC Market Arcade, Dipson Capitol, Dipson Flix, Dunkirk Multiplex, Regal Elmwood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria Read the review by Mia Ciechalski here

THE WILD ROBOT (PG) Pixar animation adapted from the popular children’s books about a robot stranded on an island and the animals it befriends. Of course they are talking animals, providing voice work for Lupita Nyong’o, Pedro Pascal, Catherine O’Hara, Bill Nighy and Stephanie Hsu. Directed by Chris Sanders (The Croods). Regal Elmwood, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria

ETC.

METROPOLIS (Germany, 1927)—The fully restored version of Fritz Lang’s silent science fiction masterpiece, set in a futuristic city sharply divided between the working class and the city planners. Tues 7 pm. Screening Room

THE SECRET OF NIMH (1982, G)— Animated feature about a field mouse whose quest to save her home from a farmer’s plow leads her to a race of super-intelligent rats. With the voices of Elizabeth Hartman, Peter Strauss, Arthur Malet, Dom DeLuise, John Carradine, Derek Jacobi, Aldo Ray, Shannen Doherty, Wil Wheaton and Hermione Baddeley. Directed by Don Bluth (The Land Before Time). Sat-Sun 11:30 am. North Park

SOMEWHERE IN TIME (1980, PG)—Unusual cult classic starring Christopher Reeve as a playwright so obsessed with a portrait of a woman (Jane Seymour) from 1912 that he devises a way to go back in time to meet her. With Christopher Plummer and Teresa Wright.  Directed by Jeannot Szwarc, (Supergirl). Fri Jan 24. Screening Room

THEATER LOCATIONS AND WEBSITES

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