‘Moana’
The latest live-action remake from Disney, directed by Thomas Kail, hews closely to the source material.
From our review:
The studio’s so-called “live-action remakes” (elements of which are often just photo-realistically animated retreads) of their classics have tended to insist on literal translation, to an almost perverse degree. Of all of them, “Moana” might be the most pointless, and perhaps not accidentally, the worst.
In theaters. Read the full review.
Demonic distractions.
‘Evil Dead Burn’
In the latest installment in this horror franchise, a demonic spirit with a proclivity for heat torments an unhappy family. Sébastien Vanicek directed.
From our review:
Vanicek’s version, for all the tricks up its sleeve, never feels in control of its chaos. Individual face-offs in which the violence is contained in cramped quarters — such as the inside of a car and a bathroom — stand out, whereas more sprawling set pieces often feel like we’re in a haunted house playing Whac-a-Mole. In any case, the film’s vibes are convincingly, impressively rotten to match its grim ideas about the false promises of the nuclear family.
In theaters. Read the full review.
Experimental yet earnest.
‘Barrio Triste’
Set in 1980s Medellín, this found-footage film directed by the photographer and music video director Stillz sees a group of wayward boys run wild with a stolen TV camera.
From our review:
Here is a film that is at once self-consciously experimental and intensely, almost uncomfortably earnest. It really, really wants to tell us that the boys’ wild cries of defiance are also a cry for help — but that was clear from the start.
In theaters. Read the full review.
We’ll pass.
‘Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass’
The latest from David Wain and Ken Marino (“The Ten”), follows the title character (Zoey Deutch), a bride-to-be who travels to Hollywood on a mission to sleep with Jon Hamm.
From our review:
“Gail Daughtry” (directed by Wain, who wrote the script with Marino) delivers absurdist, mostly fond jabs at Hollywood sanctities. The visuals are bright and tacky, the jokes broad and often overcooked (how many times can a door be slammed on a foot before the audience is as numb as the abused appendage?), and the clichés shamelessly emphatic.
In theaters. Read the full review.
Putting the ‘take’ in caretaking.
‘Night Nurse’
In a luxury retirement community, the new nurse, Eleni (Cemre Paksoy), gets wrapped up in a scam in this drama directed by Georgia Bernstein.
From our review:
When all is said, and the oddly amusing has turned dangerous, you may still be wondering what shaped Eleni’s desires? “Night Nurse” leaves that and other questions nudged, but not nailed down.
In theaters. Read the full review.
By-the-book adaptation.
‘Reading Lolita in Tehran’
Based on the memoir of the same title, this drama directed by Eran Riklis follows the story of Azar Nafisi, who teaches literature in repressive Iran.
From our review:
Nafisi’s insights are better served by her own writing; the screenplay by Marjorie David tends to flatten the connections between the literary and the personal.
In theaters. Read the full review.
Hate the character, love the performance.
‘Westhampton’
Finn Wittrock plays Thomas, a filmmaker who faces contempt when he returns to his hometown for a screening of his new movie in this meta-drama directed by Christian Nilsson.
From our review:
Wittrock’s performance as the rather hard-to-like Thomas is acute; he’s a callow guy who mistakenly wagers that art can exorcise his demons even as he desperately skirts the prospect of making amends.
In theaters. Read the full review.
Compiled by Kellina Moore.
