New and Noteworthy: Movies

A Million Ways to Die In the West Seth MacFarlane of Ted and Family Guy and Oscar-hosting infamy stars in and directs a raunchy Western spoof. R

Chinese Puzzle Transatlantic relationship and parental woes as a divorced Kelly Reilly leaves Europe for New York with her kids in tow, leaving their father, her ex (Romain Duris), no choice but to follow. The final installment in Cédric Klapisch's trilogy that began with L'Auberge Espanole and continued with Russian Dolls. Those films' Audrey Tautou and Cécile de France also show up. R

 Maleficent "There is evil in this world, hatred and revenge," says Angelina Jolie, adding a gleeful cackle to her summation in the "true story" of the villainess from the Sleepy Beauty tale. Visual-effects whiz Robert Stromberg makes his directorial debut. PG-13

   Cold in July After shooting and killing a home invader, a man fears for his family's safety when the dead man's ex-con father shows up.

The Dance of Reality This autobiographical film follows writer-director Alejandro Jodorowsky's childhood in Chile. Spanish with subtitles.

Ida In 1960s Poland, a young woman's path to being a nun takes a detour when she is told a shocking secret about her background. Polish with subtitles.

Reviewed by critics Steven Rea (S.R.), Tirdad Derakhshani (T.D.), and David Hiltbrand (D.H.). W.S. denotes a wire-service review.

Read complete reviews at www.inquirer.com/movies.

Finding Vivian Maier A fascinating puzzle-piece mystery - and a revelatory portrait of an eccentric figure who worked as a nanny in Chicago from the 1950s through the 1990s - and who dragged her charges through the city, taking pictures. The heretofore unknown street photographs are nothing less than brilliant; the documentary about this curious figure is a find in more ways than one. 1 hr. 23 No MPAA rating (adult themes) - S.R.

The Grand Budapest Hotel Wes Anderson's eighth, and most teeming, film is a between-the-wars comic caper set in a fictitious central European land, where Ralph Fiennes is the concierge of an elegant alpine hostelry. When a wealthy guest dies, and the will is read, a mad dash for money and a prized painting ensues. With Adrien Brody, Willem Defoe, F. Murray Abraham, Saoirse Ronan, and newcomer Tony Revolori. Sublime. R (violence, profanity, adult themes) - S.R.

Locke A tour de force, and a tour down a British motorway in the dead of night, with Tom Hardy as Ivan Locke, a man in a car, on his Bluetooth, trying to keep the pieces of his life from flying apart. And that is the sum of writer/director Steven Knight's extraordinary movie. 1 hr. 25 R (profanity, adult themes) - S.R.

The Immigrant Marion Cotillard is nothing less than amazing as a destitute Pole who arrives at Ellis Island, 1921, and falls in with a smoothtalking pimp (Joaquin Phoenix). James Gray (Two Lovers, The Yards) directs this half-crazy, fascinating yarn. R (nudity, violence, profanity, adult themes) - S.R.

Only Lovers Left Alive Jim Jarmusch's sly and seductive vampire movie, starring Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton as two old (very old) lovers, is as much about the life-sustaining force of music as it is about any hankering for blood. With Anton Yelchin, Mia Wasikowska, and John Hurt. 2 hrs. 03 R (profanity, nudity, adult themes) - S.R.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 **1/2 Schematic sequel to 2012's reboot of the Marvel Comics franchise starring a kid (Andrew Garfield) who morphs into a web-slinging superhero is driven by adolescent heartache and indecision, and by gigantic, effects-driven fight scenes - against super-foes including Jamie Foxx's Electro and Dane DeHaan's Green Goblin. And through it all: Emma Stone's Gwen Stacy, a lash-batting cartoon of brainy cute-osity. 2 hrs. 22 PG-13 (intense action, violence, adult themes) - S.R.

The Double *** An amiable surrealist joke, with Jesse Eisenberg as a shy, bumbling office drone who becomes more than a little flustered when a new employee shows up - looking pretty much exactly like Jesse Eisenberg, too. An adaptation of Dostoyevsky's doppelganger novella, realized in brownish shades of noir. 1 hr. 33 R (profanity, adult themes) - S.R.

Godzilla **1/2 Giant Japanese monster reappears in this narratively muddled, effects-driven reboot. Bryan Cranston, Elizabeth Olsen, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson are among the noble thespians who tear around, screaming as if the world was collapsing around them. It is, thanks to a 350-foot-tall pile of dinosauric scales and dentition. 2 hrs. 3 PG-13 (intense action, carnage, adult themes) - S.R.

Million Dollar Arm *1/2 Jon Hamm stars as a desperate sports agent who sets out to find baseball talent in India and ends up babysitting two young homesick villagers. Not nearly as heartwarming as it intends. With Lake Bell, Aasif Mandvi, Suraj Sharma, and Madhur Mittal. 2 hrs. 03 PG (suggestive language and situations) - D.H.

Neighbors *** In this lewd comedy, Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne are young parents whose lives are massively disrupted when a rowdy fraternity led by Zac Efron moves into the house next door. Smutty? Oh, yes. And often fall-on-the-floor funny. 1 hr. 37 R (profanity, nudity, sexual content, violence, alcohol and drug abuse) - D.H.

X-Men: Days of Future Past *** Time-travel is of the essence in this entertaining seventh installment in the series based on the Marvel comics about a gang of misfit mutant superheroes and their respective mentors, Professor Charles Xavier and Magneto. Directed by Bryan Singer, with Hugh Jackman's Wolverine as the linchpin. Geeky, action-packed fun. 2 hrs. 11 PG-13 (intense action, violence, adult themes) - S.R.