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Reviews

Ratings:

**** Excellent

*** Good

** Fair * Poor

Reviewers: S.R., Steven Rea; D.D., Dan DeLuca; T.D., Tirdad Derakhshani; M.E., Molly Eichel; G.T., Gary Thompson; W.S., Inquirer wire services.

Ant-Man See Steven Rea's review on Page 4.

Boulevard See Tirdad Derakhshani's review on Page 5.

Do I Sound Gay? See Molly Eichel's review on Page 9.

Hippocrates: Diary of a French Doctor See Tirdad Derakhshani's review on Page 10.

Jimmy's Hall See Steven Rea's review on Page 8.

Lila & Eve See Molly Eichel's review on Page 6.

Mr. Holmes See Steven Rea's review on Page 5.

Reality See Also on screens on Page 11.

Safelight See Tirdad Derakhshani's review on Page 10.

Trainwreck See Steven Rea's review on Page 4.

The Tribe See Tirdad Derakhshani's review on Page 10.

Amy An extraordinary documentary about Amy Winehouse, the British singer who died in 2011, at age 27, a victim of too much drink, too many drugs and too much fame. Soul-stirring, heartbreaking, the film uses a trove of archival film, much of it it shot on smart phones by friends, lovers, bandmates, roadies, record execs and fans, to trace the life and blazing career of the singer and songwriter with the trademark beehive, the tats and the fearsome talent. 2 hrs. 08 R (drugs, profanity, adfult themes) - S.R.

Cartel Land A boots-on-the- ground documentary about violence and vigilantism on both sides of the U.S./Mexico border and the powerful drug cartels whose billion-dollar trade has led to corruption, chaos - and crisis. 1 hr. 38 R (graphic violence, 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.

The Gallows 1/2* This addition to the growing refuse pile of dreadful found-footage horror pics labors under the delusion that shaking, bumping, dropping, sliding, throwing, pitching, and kicking handheld cameras and minicams while 20-something actors run around on an ill-lighted sound stage amounts to an experience of terror. It does not. 1 hr. 21 (violence, profanity) - T.D.

I'll See You in My Dreams Blythe Danner stars as a longtime widow whose life of quiet routine is upended by the appearance of two men: the young pool guy (Martin Starr), who becomes her drinking buddy, and an old charmer of a Texan (Sam Elliott), who enters into a serious courtship. A poignant character study, tinged with sadness. And Danner, at its center, shines. 1 hr. 35 PG-13 (profanity, drugs, adult themes) - S.R.

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.

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 pre-teen 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.

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.

Love & Mercy 1/2 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 a psychologist. Paul Dano is brilliant as the young Brian, John Cusack brings the middle-aged and broken Brian to life. Elizabeth Banks and Paul Giamatti co-star. 1 hr. 52 PG-13 (drugs, violence, profanity, adult themes) - S.R.

Mad Max: Fury Road Never mind Furious 7, really. George Miller's mega-reboot of his '80s franchise plays like Fast and Furious - The Thermonuclear Edition, a turbocharged chase across a toxic wasteland with Vin Diesel and pals replaced by Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron, who are certainly not pals at all. Post-apocalyptic heavy-metal mayhem. 2 hrs. R (extreme violence, intense action, 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.

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl ***1/2 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.

Minions A spinoff of, and prequel to, the Despicable Me movies, starring a trio of yellow, pill-shaped pipsqueaks who speak in an undecipherable tongue and find themselves in the merry employ of a supervillain bent on usurping the British throne. It's 1968 (when else?) and mayhem rules the day. A hyperanimated animated farce with shades of Silent Era slapstick, Three Stooges slapfests and the jaw-slappping wackiness of a stoner comedy. 1 hr. 31 PG (cartoon mayhem, adult themes) - S.R.

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 capella 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. 1 hr. 55 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 ther Big One rocks not only SoCal, but the entire state as well, 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.

Self/less Ben Kingsley is a dying kabillionaire who undergoes a radical, and radically expensive, experimental procedure, having his consciousness transplanted into the brain and body of a strapping thirtysomething played by Ryan Reynolds. Suddenly, Gandhi looks like Green Lantern. Disturbing. 1 hr. 56 PG-13 (violence, sex, profanity, adult themes) - S.R.

Spy 1/2 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.

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 (profanity) - G.T.