Film Friday (1/16): This Week's New Movies & Trailers

Metacritic
Updated

Opening this weekend

. Paddington PG FAMILY/COMEDY Trailers

Collecting surprisingly upbeat reviews (and a few Wes Anderson comparisons) given that the film was bumped from a holiday release to January (necessitated by a last-minute casting change), this live-action/CGI adaptation of Michael Bond’s classic children’s book stars Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Nicole Kidman, Jim Broadbent, Peter Capaldi, and Julie Walters.

Nationwide releases . American Sniper R ACTION/DRAMA Trailers

Expands nationwide. Just nominated for six Academy Awards including best picture, Clint Eastwood’s adaptation of Chris Kyle’s autobiography stars Bradley Cooper as a Navy SEAL sniper who recorded the most kills of any American military sniper in history during multiple tours of duty in the Iraq War.

. Blackhat R THRILLER Trailers

Michael Mann’s first feature since 2009’s Public Enemies looks at the world of cybercrime through the actions of those trying to prevent it. The globetrotting thriller stars Chris Hemsworth and Viola Davis, but it appears to be a rare misfire for Mann, with his worst reviews in over three decades.

. The Wedding Ringer R COMEDY Trailers

Kevin Hart works as a best-man-for-hire who is enlisted by a socially awkward groom (Josh Gad) in this R-rated buddy comedy from first-time director Jeremy Garelick (The Break-Up).

Notable limited and/or VOD releases . Still Alice PG-13 DRAMA

Returns to theaters. Julianne Moore was nominated for an Oscar for her performance as a college professor diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s in this drama from Quinceañera writer-directors Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland.

. Da Sweet Blood of Jesus NR HORROR/ROM-COM Vimeo

VOD only. Spike Lee's latest is a Kickstarter-funded remake of Bill Gunn’s 1973 horror classic Ganja & Hess starring Stephen Tyrone Williams, Elvis Nolasco, Zaraah Abrahams, and Rami Malek. The film is available exclusively on VOD for the next month, with a limited theatrical release planned for February 13.

Additional limited and/or VOD releases (in alphabetical order) . Appropriate Behavior NR COMEDY

. Gangs of Wasseypur R FOREIGN/DRAMA/THRILLER

. Human Capital NR FOREIGN/DRAMA

. Joy of Man's Desiring NR FOREIGN/DOCUMENTARY

. Little Accidents NR DRAMA

. Loitering With Intent NR DRAMA/COMEDY

. Match NR DRAMA/COMEDY

. Medeas NR DRAMA

. Northern Borders NR DRAMA

. Son of a Gun NR ACTION/DRAMA

. Spare Parts PG-13 DRAMA

. Still Life NR DRAMA/COMEDY

. Three Night Stand NR DRAMA/COMEDY

. Vice NR SCI-FI/ACTION/THRILLER

All movies now in theaters... | Recent DVD/Blu-ray releases... | Recent streaming releases...

New trailers and updates for upcoming films

A second look at Avengers: Age of Ultron

The latest trailer for Joss Whedon’s Avengers: Age of Ultron provides a few more hints about what might be happening when Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, The Incredible Hulk, Black Widow, and Hawkeye assemble to fight Ultron (voiced by James Spader). Tony Stark looks to be the man who created the mess, and Chris Hemsworth’s Thor and Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk aren’t too pleased about it (luckily for him, Tony has his Hulkbuster armor). There’s a mysterious woman in a cave and Andy Serkis, rumored to be playing Ulysses Klaw (an enemy of Black Panther), makes his first appearance. Avengers: Age of Ultron opens on May 1st.

Susan Cooper is a Spy

Following Bridesmaids and The Heat, Melissa McCarthy and director Paul Feig will reunite this summer for a spoof of the spy genre. Originally titled Susan Cooper after McCarthy’s character, Spy finds her turning from office drone to field agent in order to help out her partner (Jude Law) and another top agent played by Jason Statham. Rose Byrne, Morena Baccarin, Bobby Cannavale, Allison Janney, and 50 Cent also star. Look for Spy in theaters beginning May 22nd.

From Non-Stop to Run All Night

Beginning March 13th, Liam Neeson will once again try take the money of action fans everywhere with his latest geezer-and-a-gun movie, Run All Night. Neeson reunites with his Unknown and Non-Stop director, Jaume Collet-Serra, to tell the story of an aging hitman who is forced to take on his former boss (Ed Harris) to protect his estranged son and his family. (We wouldn't want them to be taken or anything.) Joel Kinnaman plays Neeson’s son, and the strong supporting cast includes Vincent D'Onofrio, Bruce McGill, Genesis Rodriguez, Boyd Holbrook, Holt McCallany, and Common.

A second chance to Get Hard

In The Wedding Ringer (out today), Kevin Hart helps Josh Gad with his wedding. In Get Hard, Kevin Hart gets paid to train Will Ferrell how to survive prison. Writer Etan Cohen (Tropic Thunder, Men in Black III) makes his feature directorial debut from a script written with Jay Martel and Ian Roberts (writers for Key and Peele), so maybe the prison movie will be better than the wedding movie. At least the trailer indicates the film knows it’s playing with stereotypes. Find Get Hard in theaters beginning March 27th.

Kristen Stewart gets serious in Cannes hit Clouds of Sils Maria

In Olivier Assayas’ latest, Juliette Binoche plays Maria Enders, a legendary film actress who agrees to star in a revival of the play that made her famous, but this time she will play the role of Helena, an older woman driven to suicide by Sigrid, a young woman who will be played by Hollywood starlet Jo-Anne Ellis (Chloe Moretz). While Binoche’s performance earned plenty of praise when the film premiered in Cannes last year, it’s Kristen Stewart, as her assistant Val, who critics singled out most often. Even though critics didn’t fall for Olivier Assayas’ Something in the Air quite as hard as they did for Carlos and Summer Hours, good early reviews indicate Clouds of Sils Maria is one to look for when its comes to select theaters on April 10th.

Unfriended

Jason Reitman’s Men, Women & Children tried (and mostly failed) to warn us about the dangers of the internet. Unfriended seems to accomplish what that film couldn't do in its trailer alone. The story revolves around six high school friends who are video chatting one night and receive a message from a classmate who killed herself exactly one year earlier. At first they think it's a prank, but when the girl starts revealing their darkest secrets and taking revenge, there’s no escape. While Open Windows attempted the “everything takes place on a computer screen” gimmick last year (with some success), Levan Gabriadze’s horror debut looks to be a slick evolution of that idea. Catch Unfriended in theaters on April 17th.

Buzzard

Ape writer-director Joel Potrykus’ second feature follows Marty (Joshua Burge), a small-time scam artist, as he flees his hometown to hide out in Detroit with nothing but a pocket full of bogus checks, his Power Glove, and a bad temper. After earning good early reviews, Buzzard hits theaters on March 6th.

Cymbeline is now Anarchy

Director Michael Almereyda re-teams with his Hamlet star, Ethan Hawke, in this re-imagining of Shakespeare’s Cymbeline in a modern criminal underworld of drugs and biker gangs. Ed Harris stars as Cymbeline, whose daughter, Imogen (Dakota Johnson), attracts trouble in the form of Penn Badgley, Hawke and Anton Yelchin. Milla Jovovich, John Leguizamo, and Delroy Lindo also star. Early reviews have been poor, but the newly titled Anarchy (maybe Lionsgate is trying to attract Sons of Anarchy fans?) will hit theaters and VOD on March 13th.

Short takes (and a few we missed while we were away)

Nicolas Cage and Hayden Christensen team up to protect the rightful heir to the Imperial throne and cash a paycheck in Outcast. Find it in theaters and On Demand beginning February 6th.

Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, and Evangeline Lilly star in Ant-Man, coming to theaters July 17th.

Here’s a second look at Neill Blomkamp’s Chappie with Dev Patel, Hugh Jackman, and South African rap group Die Antwoord. Look for it in theaters March 6th.

In Good Kill, director Andrew Niccol reunites with his Gattaca star, Ethan Hawke, for a look at the life of a drone pilot.

Horror film The Lazarus Effect stars Olivia Wilde, Mark Duplass, Evan Peters, and Donald Glover. Look for it in theaters February 27th.

Ryan Reynolds is hearing things in Marjane Satrapi’s The Voices, a February 6th release.

After being delayed due to legal disputes about Emma Thompson’s script, Effie Gray, starring Dakota Fanning as the teenage bride of art critic John Ruskin, will come to theaters on April 3rd.

News and notes

  • Birdman and The Grand Budapest Hotel each received nine Academy Award nominations to lead all films. View a complete list of this year's Oscar nominees.

  • The live-action Ghost in the Shell, starring Scarlett Johansson and directed by Rupert Sanders (Snow White and The Huntsman), will hit theaters on April 14, 2017.

  • Due to scheduling problems, Tom Hardy has dropped out of David Ayer’s Suicide Squad. Jake Gyllenhaal is his possible replacement. - THR & TheWrap

  • Brad Pitt, Christian Bale, Ryan Gosling, and Steve Carell will star in writer-director Adam McKay’s adaptation of Michael Lewis’ The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine. - Variety & THR

  • Michael Keaton is in talks to play Ray Kroc in John Lee Hancock’s The Founder, the story of the rise of McDonald's. - THR

  • The team behind Gone Girl—writer Gillian Flynn, director David Fincher, and star Ben Affleck—will work together on Strangers, an update of the Alfred Hitchcock classic Strangers on a Train. - Deadline

  • The Edge of Tomorrow team of Tom Cruise and Doug Liman are in talks to reunite on Mena, the story of Barry Seal, a pilot and Medellin cartel drug smuggler turned DEA and CIA informant. - THR

  • John Krasinski will star in Michael Bay’s 13 Hours based on Chuck Hogan’s adaptation of Mitchell Zuckoff’s book Thirteen Hours: A Firsthand Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi. - Variety

  • D.J. Caruso (I Am Number Four) is in talks to direct G.I. Joe 3. - Deadline

  • Jeffrey Tambor, recent Golden Globe winner for Transparent, has joined Ben Affleck, J.K. Simmons, Jon Bernthal, and Anna Kendrick in The Accountant. - THR

  • Ansel Elgort (The Fault in Our Stars) is in early talks to star in Edgar Wright’s next film, Baby Driver. - Variety

  • Jason Bateman and Rebecca Hall will star alongside writer-director Joel Edgerton in his feature directorial debut, Weirdo, the story of a married couple whose fresh start in a new town is disrupted by an old friend. - Deadline

  • Rodrigo Santoro will play Jesus in Timur Bekmambetov's remake of Ben-Hur. - THR

  • A remake of Escape From New York is in the works at Fox. Original director John Carpenter will executive produce - Deadline

  • Michelle Williams and Casey Affleck will play husband and wife in Kenneth Lonergan’s Manchester-by-the-Sea. - THR

  • Selena Gomez will star opposite Paul Rudd in Rob Burnett’s adaptation of Jonathan Evison’s novel The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving. - Deadline