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Movies: New and Noteworthy

COMING THIS WEEK By Steven Rea Amy Documentary about British jazz, soul and R & B singer Amy Winehouse, who became a global superstar with the 2006 release of Back to Black and who died from drug and alcohol abuse just five years later at age 27. R

Minions (from left) Bob, Kevin, and Stuart paddle their way to Manhattan in "Minions," the comedy adventure in which the Minions try to save all Minionkind from annihilation. (Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment)
Minions (from left) Bob, Kevin, and Stuart paddle their way to Manhattan in "Minions," the comedy adventure in which the Minions try to save all Minionkind from annihilation. (Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment)Read more

COMING THIS WEEK

By Steven Rea

Amy Documentary about British jazz, soul and R & B singer Amy Winehouse, who became a global superstar with the 2006 release of Back to Black and who died from drug and alcohol abuse just five years later at age 27. R

Minions The little yellow henchthings from the Despicable Me movies get a movie of their own, with the voice talents of Sandra Bullock, Jon Hamm, Michael Keaton, Allison Janney, Steve Coogan, Geoffrey Rush, and Pierre Coffin. PG

Self/less Sci-fi thriller about a rich, dying guy (Ben Kingsley) who undergoes an experimental medical process that transfers his consciousness into the body of a not-rich, not-dying younger guy (Ryan Reynolds). Tarsem Singh (Mirror Mirror, Immortals) directs. PG-13

Opening This Week

Batkid Begins A city comes together to make a 5-year-old cancer patient's dream come true in this documentary.

Cartel Land In another documentary, a small-town Mexican doctor and an American military veteran lead citizen groups in the battle against deadly drug cartels.

The Gallows Twenty years after a high school theater production leads to a deadly disaster, students at the same school attempt to revive the play with tragic consequences.

Excellent (****)

Reviewed by critics Steven Rea (S.R.), Tirdad Derakhshani (T.D.), Dan DeLuca (D.D.), Molly Eichel (M.E.), and Gary Thompson (G.T.). W.S. denotes a wire-service review.

Ex Machina Alex Garland's forward-looking, brilliantly unsettling sci-fi thriller stars Oscar Isaac as the billionaire inventor of a sentient robot, Domhnall Gleeson as the whiz-kid programmer invited to run the 'bot through a series of tests, and Alicia Vikander as Ava, the cyber-creature in question. Is she true A.I.? And if she is, what does that mean for humankind? 1 hr. 48 R (violence, profanity, nudity, adult themes) - S.R.

Inside Out The central characters in Pixar's propulsively inventive animated adventure aren't talking toys or cars. They're emotions: Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust, and Sadness, jockeying for control in the mind of a preteen girl. The first psychological thriller that's fun for the whole family. Really psychological. And really fun. From the director of Up, with the voice talents of Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, Lewis Black, Mindy Kaling, and Bill Hader. 1 hr. 34 PG (scary corners of the mind, adult themes) - S.R.

Very Good (***1/2)

Eden Paul (Félix de Givry) is so caught up in the French music scene that he neglects to notice that the world is moving on without him in Mia Hansen-Løve's loose film.2 hr. 11 R (drug use, language, and some sexuality/nudity) - M.E.

The Farewell Party Gadget guy Yehezkel (Ze'ev Revach) gets a gang together to help his cancer-stricken friend go out on his own terms. This hit Israeli dramedy is honest, graceful, and funny as it explores with deep compassion its characters' familial and romantic relationships. 1 hr. 35 No MPAA rating (adult themes, some profanity) - T.D.

Love & Mercy Breathtaking psychological biopic of Brian Wilson, the songwriting savant behind the Beach Boys, toggling back and forth between the mid-'60s and the band's landmark Pet Sounds album and the '80s, when Brian, wrongly diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic, was under the despotic care of psychologist Eugene Landy. Paul Dano is brilliant as the young Brian; John Cusack brings the middle-age and broken Brian to life. Elizabeth Banks and Paul Giamatti co-star. 1 hr. 52 PG-13 (drugs, violence, profanity, adult themes) - S.R.

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl The title characters are high school boys who make impish movie shorts that riff on the film classics they watch during lunch so they don't have to hang out with other kids (some of their masterworks: Eyes Wide Butt, Senior Citizen Kane). They are forced to befriend a girl dying of leukemia in this gut-punch of a film that avoids cliche. 1 hr. 44 PG-13 (sexual content, drug material, profanity, and some thematic elements) - G.T.

Rebels of a Neon God Tsai Ming-liang's debut gets its first theatrical showing in the United States. The Thai great, whose movies are lively, urban parables that burrow into the nitty-gritty of life in modern Taipei, directs this film about the colliding lives of three youths. There's a deep undercurrent of emotional tension and psychological violence in Rebels of the Neon God, a powerful, suppressed energy that erupts in several brief scenes of violence - petty acts of theft, destruction, vandalism - but never explodes fully. Yet, in the end, there is no catharsis for them. 1 hr. 46 No MPAA rating (sexuality, some nudity, violence, smoking) - T.D.

Spy The unabashed and unapologetic Melissa McCarthy stars as a desk-bound CIA officer unexpectedly sent into the field - Paris, Rome, Budapest - in this lunatic cloak-and-dagger farce directed by Bridesmaids' Paul Feig. Allison Janney, Miranda Hart, Jude Law, and a very funny Jason Statham also star, with Rose Byrne and her piles of hair as the villain of the tale. 2 hrs. R (profanity, raunch, violence, adult themes) - S.R.

Testament of Youth This moving, mournful film, based on the memoir of Vera Brittain, features lush visuals seeking to find some of the poetry inspired by war. Brought to life with improbable power by James Kent, it features Alicia Vikander as Brittain. 2 hrs. 09 PG-13 (adult themes) - G.T.

Also on Screens

Closer to God **1/2 Midnight indie about a scientist who clones the first human - and who has a few skeletons in his closet. One of them still has some flesh on it. 1 hr. 21 No MPAA rating (horror, icky clinical stuff, profanity, adult themes) - S.R.

Dope *** The comic story of a bright kid named Malcolm (Shameik Moore) whose eclectic interests (punk, vintage hip-hop, academics, Harvard) make him a protruding nail in a neighborhood full of eager hammers. He ends up with a bag of drugs, and, knowing the cops aren't an option, starts a scheme to unload it. The story is a mess - but the themes of a misfit kid trying to carve out his own space in a world that wants to limit his options are on point. 1 hr. 55 R (language) - G.T.

Fresh Dressed *** Ego Trip founder Sacha Jenkins explores the history of fashion and hip hop in this entertaining documentary, featuring interviews from the likes of Nas, Kaney West, and P. Diddy. 1 hr. 30 No MPAA rating (language) - M.E.

Heaven Knows What ** Joshua and Ben Safdie's vérité film based loosely on the life of star Arielle Holmes, who plays Harley, a woman drifting through life constantly in search of her next smack fix. 1 hr. 33 R (drug use, language, disturbing and violent images, sexuality, graphic nudity) - G.T.

Infinitely Polar Bear *** Deeply personal and filled with love, Maya Forbes' directing debut is drawn from her experiences growing up with a father diagnosed with manic depression. The film throws a memoir-ish lasso around late-1970s, Cambridge, Mass., with Mark Ruffalo as the careening dad, Zoe Saldana as the mom trying to pursue a career and Imogene Wolodarsky (Forbes' real-life daughter) and Ashley Aufderheide as the young girls caught in the throes. A movie seen through a child's viewfinder and the filter of memory; as adults, obseving from a distance, the landscape of mental illness looks more troubling. 1 hr. 28 R (profanity, adult themes) - S.R.

Jurassic World *** The genetically spliced mega-beast that runs amok in the third Jurassic Park sequel is trumpeted by its theme-park creators as "bigger, scarier, cooler." The movie is bigger and it is pretty scary. But it's not cooler, or smarter, than the original. Bryce Dallas Howard and Chris Pratt lead a cast whose main job is to run for their lives. A lot of them don't make it. 2 hrs. 04 PG-13 (intense action, dino violence, profanity, adult themes) - S.R.

Magic Mike XXL **1/2 Channing Tatum brings the boys back together for another go 'round the pole. Tatum, who wrote this sequel, plays ex-stripper Mike, who leaves his successful custom furniture business behind to get back on the road with the Kings of Tampa (minus Matthew McConaughey) to hit up a male stripper convocation in Myrtle Beach. 1 hr. 55 R (language) - G.T.

Manglehorn ** Clutching a fluffy white cat and the memories of the woman he loved and lost, Al Pacino furrows his brow in hambone rue in the title role of David Gordon Green's thick-as-sap character study. With Holly Hunter, Harmony Korine and Chris Messina. 1 hr. 37 R (profanity, adult themes) - S.R.

Max ** A dog returns from war to the family of the deceased soldier who used to care for him. Family-style sentimentality ensues between hero dog Max and troubled Justin (Josh Wiggins). Max goes off the rails when he goes from canine to James Bond-style foiler of crimes. 1 hr. 51 PG (action violence, peril, brief language) - M.E.

The Overnight **1/2 Alex and Emily get in over their heads when their attempt to make friends with another couple (Jason Schwartzman and Judith Godrèche) leads to copious drinking, weed-smoking, skinny dipping, and other dalliances. 1 hr. 30 R (strong sexuality, graphic nudity, language, and drug use) - G.T.

Pitch Perfect 2 *** The Barden Bellas are underdogs once more in the sequel to the 2012 sleeper hit. After a humiliating incident in front of the president, the all-female a cappella powerhouses attempt to make their way to the world championships. It's pretty much the same movie as the first, but that's not a bad thing. PG-13 (innuendo and language). - M.E.

San Andreas *** Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is an LAFD helicopter pilot who has a lot of searching and rescuing to do when the Big One rocks not only SoCal, but the entire state, including San Francisco, which just happens to be where his daughter is trapped beneath the rubble. Quite literally the blockbuster of the year, an awesomely fun disaster pic. 1 hr. 54 PG-13 (action, carnage, rubble, adult themes) - S.R.

Ted 2 **1/2 Seth MacFarlane's talking bear returns to smoke a lot of weed, hang on the couch with his buddy John (Mark Wahlberg), and fight the power by reimagining the Dred Scott decision so that his wife can have a baby. 1 hr. 55 R (language) - G.T.

Terminator: Genisys ** This head-scratcher, the fourth iteration of the James Cameron-born Terminator franchise, allows for any character, or any cyborg, in any iteration, can be anywhere, for any reason, which certainly makes things easier for the writers, if not the viewers. Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney) travels back in time only to find that Sarah Connor (Emilia Clarke) does not need saving, fundamentally altering the characters from the beloved first two entries into the series. 1 hr. 59 PG-13 (violence) - G.T.

Tomorrowland **1/2 Disney's retro-futuristic, time-toggling adventure aspires to Back to the Future thrills and Wizard of Oz magic but doesn't quite make the grade. Britt Robertson, as the brainy daughter of a NASA scientist, teams with George Clooney, playing a disgruntled inventor, while flashbacks to the kid version of the Clooney character - at the 1964 World's Fair - try to make sense of it all. 2 hrs. 10 PG (action, violence, adult themes) - S.R.

When Marnie Was There *** The final film from Studio Ghibli is a minor ghost story that cannot compare to some of the Japanese animation house's finer works (Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away). But, like other Ghibli films, it is lovely to look at and filled with magic. When Marnie Was There will be shown with both the English-language dub and in the original Japanese with subtitles. 1 hr. 43 PG (thematic elements and smoking) - M.E.

The Wolfpack *** Six teens isolated from society in their Lower East Side apartment by their allegedly abusive father learn about the world through movies they meticulously recreate in Crystal Moselle's stranger-than-fiction documentary. 1 hr. 20 R (profanity) - G.T.