OPENING FRIDAY
“Hidden Figures”
“A Monster Calls”
“Master”
Not reviewed (Not rated, 2:23)
Korean action-adventure film about an investigation of a massive fraud case at a major network. In Korean with English subtitles.
“Railroad Tigers”
“Underworld: Blood Wars”
Not reviewed (R, 1:31)
Latest Kate Beckinsale film pits her deadly character, the vampire Selene, fighting to end a war between two clans of supernatural beings, including the vampire group that betrayed her.
NOW PLAYING
“Assassin’s Creed” **1/2
This film is stamped with director Justin Kurzel’s unique visual style, which makes for an exciting if strange ride. Callum Lynch (Michael Fassbender) is an inmate who is put to death by lethal injection but wakes up in a clinic at a shadowy corporation. The lead scientist, Dr. Sofia Rikkin (Marion Cotillard), claiming she’s researching “the cure to violence,” harnesses him to a device called the animus and sends him to 15th-century Spain, where he fights the Spanish Inquisition as his assassin ancestor, Aguilar. But it turns out to be a ploy to get Callum into a battle for “the Apple of Eden,” which has the code for free will. (PG-13, 1:48)
“Collateral Beauty” *1/2
“Collateral Beauty” misses its mark by a mile, stranding an impressive cast. Will Smith, Helen Mirren, Kate Winslet, Edward Norton, Naomie Harris and Keira Knightley star in this tale of grieving ad guy Howard (Smith) who can’t get past the death of his daughter. Pals at work, worried that his slacking is affecting the company’s bottom line, launch a plan that just might qualify for Worst Idea Ever: Hire actors (!) to pretend to be Love, Time and Death (!), three abstractions to whom Howard has been writing letters (!). (PG-13, 1:34)
“The Eagle Huntress” ***
The story of 13-year-old Mongolian girl Aisholpan, who becomes the first girl to join her father’s long line of eagle hunters in a harsh and beautiful landscape, is a thrilling fable of indomitability and father-daughter companionship. The film is crafted to be accessible, with subtitled dialogue supplemented by gently didactic voice-over narration by British actress Daisy Ridley (Rey of “Star Wars”). Aisholpan has the power to inspire girls (and not only girls) everywhere, and Otto Bell’s documentary may turn her into a pop-culture heroine. (G, 1:27) Kahala
“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” ***
Protagonist Newt Scamander, as played by Eddie Redmayne, is amiable, sheepish and surprisingly capable — as if he’s trying to channel Harry, Ron and Hermione from the “Harry Potter” series all at the same time. His allies are a trio of adults: comic relief Jacob (Dan Fogler), psychic Queenie (Alison Sudol) and overachieving witch Porpentia (Katherine Waterston). Scamander is sent to wrangle magical beasts, who are being spotted by the paranoid No-Maj crowd (American for “muggle,” or “humans with no special powers”). The plot is convoluted, but the movie feels like cramming for an exam from the coolest textbook, guided by the most engaging professor at the school. (PG-13, 2:13)
“Fences” ****
Director-star Denzel Washington captures the poetry of playwright August Wilson’s text, and the result is an experience of exuberance and richness. Washington portrays Troy, a scarred and formidable personality. He was a star in the Negro baseball league, but he was 40 when baseball integrated, so he never knew real money or fame. Instead, Troy works as a sanitation man, aware of his own magnificence while hiding his bitterness at the same time. He seems unconsciously to want to destroy his family, his wife (Viola Davis) and a teenage son (Jovan Adepo). He also has an older son, a struggling musician (Russell Hornsby) who craves his approval, but Troy won’t give it. Washington gives one of the best self-directed performances in cinematic history, and Davis is staggering, especially in a scene in which she lets loose her fury. (PG-13. 12:18)
“Jackie” ***1/2
Natalie Portman portrays the elegant first lady in Chilean director Pablo Larrain’s daring psychological portrait of the wife and widow of President John F. Kennedy. Closely shot, with the camera never far from Portman’s face, “Jackie” is anything but a traditional biopic. Flashing back and forth in time, the film plays with history and memory, fact and speculation. It is a fever dream of a movie, tracking its subject as she tries to maintain her composure and her sanity, and as she tries to secure her husband’s legacy. While the casting is uneven, Portman carries the film, portraying Jackie with transfiguring intensity and focus. (R, 1:40)
“La La Land” ****
A musical with big numbers, intimate reveries and adult feelings, Damien Chazelle’s musical “La La Land” is a boy-meets-girl tale with early-21st-century rhythms. It grapples with love between equals in a story about an aspiring actress, Mia (Emma Stone), who meets an ambitious musician, Sebastian (Ryan Gosling), Los Angeles-style during a traffic jam: He honks at her; she flips him the bird. They end up swaying in that fading, soft-light time known as the magic hour, tapping and twirling. This must have been what it was like to see Astaire and Rogers dance for the first time, and one hopes it will appeal to contemporary moviegoers. While “La La Land” engages with nostalgia, it also passionately speaks to the present. (PG-13, 2:08)
“Lion” ***
“Lion” is the incredible true story of two remarkable journeys that Saroo Brierley took in his life — one far away from home, and his return trip. Based on his memoir, “A Long Way Home,” the film is split in two. The first half depicts the travels of young Saroo (Sunny Pawar), who is just 5 when he becomes separated from his brother in Khandwa and ends up 900 miles away in Kolkata. Two decades later, after he’s been taken from an orphanage and adopted by an Australian couple, he returns as the adult Saroo (Dev Patel) in the emotional journey, using modern technology to find his family. Both Pawar and Patel are impressive in their portrayal of Saroo young and old, and Nicole Kidman, as his adoptive mother, Sue, in a brief but juicy role, is luminous as a woman who demonstrates her boundless love in sharing a son with another mother. (PG-13, 2:00)
“Manchester by the Sea” ****
Dramatist-turned-filmmaker Kenneth Lonergan’s screenplay is character-driven, focusing on people the world normally doesn’t give much scrutiny to. Casey Affleck portrays a gruff Lee, who’s OK getting by on minimum wage as a custodian at a Boston condo complex. A family emergency concerning his brother Joe (Kyle Chandler) draws Lee back to his hometown, gradually unearthing a calamity in his own life. Joe’s son Patrick (Lucas Hedges), now a sarcastic high-schooler, is left in uncle Lee’s unwilling care, but Lee can’t stand remaining in Manchester, and Patrick refuses to leave his school, hockey team, rock band and two girlfriends. That strained relationship teaches both of them that amid harrowing disasters, life goes on. (R, 2:17)
“Moana” ***
Those fretting over the depiction of Polynesian cultures in “Moana” shouldn’t trouble themselves. The movie itself is not realistic. It’s fantasy, magical, with a cave of magic canoes and an anthropomorphic ocean. Kamehameha Schools student Auli‘i Cravalho does a wonderful job as the voice of Moana, bringing depth and heart to the character. Moana feels the ocean is calling to her, but her father, Chief Tui (Temuera Morrison), forbids her to set sail. Suddenly, her island has no fish, and coconuts become infected with a blight, so Moana jumps on a canoe and sets sail. Her quest includes finding the powerful Maui (Dwayne Johnson), returning a green stone heart to a creation goddess, learning wayfinding and stopping the blight. Maui, meanwhile, needs to get his magic fis**ook back, but what he really wants is for mortals to admire him for his wondrous feats. (PG, 1:53)
“Passengers” **
In Morten Tyldum’s “Passengers,” stars Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt have been handed a faulty flight log. Pratt plays Jim Preston, one of a few thousand people in suspended animation on a starship on autopilot for a distant colonized planet. A big asteroid dings the ship, opening Preston’s pod 30 years into a 120-year trip, like a bear awakened from hibernation too soon. He goes through various stages reconciling himself to his fate, but eventually his gaze turns toward one of the sleeping passengers, Aurora Lane, played by Lawrence. His decision to wake her is a cosmic mix of creepy, amoral and understandable. A courtship follows. Tyldum fails to reconcile the central twist of Jon Spaihts’ screenplay with the lighter tone he’s seeking. (PG-13, 1:42)
“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” ***1/2
The Force is strong with this spinoff, which provides a solid prequel to the original, taking us to a galaxy of new planets shrouded by ice or cloud-capped fog, drenched in rain or adorned by towering palm trees, all property of the evil Empire. At the center is rebel Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones) and her allies, whose goal is to capture the blueprints for the Imperial Death Star, designed by her father (Mads Mikkelsen), or perhaps to assassinate him for aiding the totalitarians. As in every “Star Wars” film, the focus is the little guy fighting the big guy. This time the combat leaves palpable scars coated in filth; you experience them and wince. Of course, authoritarians are still entirely evil. Australian actor Ben Mendelsohn is the gold standard of personified malice as the main villain, Krennic. (PG-13 2:13)
“Sing” ***
What “Sing” might lack in originality of concept — “American Idol” with animated animals — it more than makes up for in execution. The story revolves around Buster Moon (a koala voiced by Matthew McConaughey), a theater owner who’s run into tough times. Buster scrapes together $1,000 for a singing contest, but a typo on the fliers raises it to $100,000. Hordes show up to audition, giving voice to characters like Rosita (Reese Witherspoon), an overworked mama pig; Johnny (Taron Egerton), a gorilla trying to break free of his father’s criminal gang; Ash (Scarlett Johansson), a talented teen porcupine with a jerky boyfriend; and Mike (Seth MacFarlane), a spendthrift rat with a Sinatra-esque croon. A series of inappropriate animal/pop song mash-ups, like a snail singing “Ride Like the Wind,” makes the film sing. (PG, 1:48)
“Why Him?” zero stars
Bryan Cranston, so good at being comically annoyed, plays Midwestern businessman Ned, who takes his family to Palo Alto, Calif., to visit their daughter. She springs the news that she expects them to stay with her at the home of her boyfriend (James Franco), who turns out to be a very successful developer of apps worth millions. His big faults are that he curses a lot and has lots of tattoos. (R, 1:51)
SPECIAL SCREENINGS
The Metropolitan Opera: “Nabucco”
12:55 p.m. Jan. 7 and 6:30 p.m. Jan. 11, Regal Dole Cannery Stadium 18. $18.85-$25.13
Placido Domingo stars in the title role in this filmed, live presentation of Verdi’s opera about the persecution of the Jews by Nebuchadnezzar (Nabucco).
“Carousel” 60th Anniversary
2 and 7 p.m. Jan. 8, Regal Dole Cannery Stadium 18. $13.09
Rodgers and Hammerstein classic about a carnival barker gone bad who gets a chance at redemption.
“The Bowden Dynasty”
6 p.m. Jan. 8, Regal Dole Cannery Stadium 18. $13.09-$15.70
A documentary about Florida State football coach Bobby Bowden.
National Theatre Live: “No Man’s Land”
7 p.m. Jan. 10, Consolidated Kahala; 7 p.m. Jan. 11 and 2 p.m. Jan. 12, Consolidated Kapolei 16. $20
Encore screening of this Harold Pinter drama about two writers whose night of drunken storytelling takes a sinister turn, staged in London with Ian McKellan and Patrick Stewart.
“One Piece Film: Gold”
7:30 p.m. Jan. 10 and 12; and 11 a.m., Jan. 14, Consolidated Kapolei 16. $11.50
Anime film about an emperor who tries to take over the world’s greatest entertainment center, threatening the world in general.
DORIS DUKE THEATRE
Honolulu Museum of Art
10th Annual Bollywood Film Festival, Saturday through Jan. 22; honolulumuseum.org or 532-6097
Opening night reception 6 p.m. Saturday with food from India Cafe and Bollywood dance performances preceding “Dear Zindagi,” $30-$35; other screenings, $8-$10. All films in Hindi with English subtitles.
“Dear Zindagi”
7:30 p.m. Saturday (opening night), 1 p.m. Sunday, 1 and 7 p.m. Wednesday
Kaira (Alia Bhatt) is a promising cinematographer living in Mumbai. When her love life gets complicated and the building association kicks her out of her apartment, she finds herself moving back to her affluent family home in Goa. There she meets the eccentric Dr. Jehangir Khan (Shah Rukh Khan), who helps her gain a new perspective on life. (2016, 2:30)
“Banjo”
7 p.m. Sunday, 1 and 7 p.m. Wednesday
Tarrat is on a mission: to put the spotlight on the Indian banjo in Mumbai. Together with his band-mates Grease, Paper and Vaajya, they play music that reaches Chris, a talented musician in New York who is drawn to Mumbai to join Tarrat and create a whole new sound. (2016, 2:20)
“Baar Baar Dekho”
1 p.m. Thursday
Math genius Jai has a promising career and the perfect girlfriend in Diya. But when marriage enters into the mix, Jai’s life is thrown into chaos, and he starts time-traveling into the future. As he sees his future life with Diya start to disintegrate, Jai formulates a plan to travel back in time to fix the mistakes he was about to make. (2016, 2:21)
“Ae Dil Hai Mushkil”
7 p.m. Thursday
In this story of unrequited love, a sweet, quirky son of an industrialist, who nurtures a hidden passion for singing; a charming and funny — but neglected— youngest daughter in a family of aristocrats; and a stunningly beautiful divorcee who pours her pain into her poetry have lives that intertwine and connect. (2016, 2:27)
MOVIE MUSEUM
3566 Harding Ave. (735-8771); $5, $4 members
“The Dressmaker”
11:45 a.m. and 2, 4:15 and 8:45 p.m. today
This campy, award-winning adaptation of Rosalie Ham’s novel stars Kate Winslet as Tilly Dunnage, a fashionista who returns to her outback home town in 1951 to settle a score, with style, while toting her sewing machine, golf clubs and a killer wardrobe. Directed by Jocelyn Moorhouse (R, 2015, Australia, 1:59)
“Una Famiglia Perfetta”
6:30 p.m. Friday
It is the perfect Christmas for the perfect family. The women are beautiful, the children are well behaved and every detail is impeccable — or no one gets paid. For ages 15 and older. In Italian with English subtitles (2012, Italy, 1:51)
“American Honey”
12:30, 3:15, 6 and 8:45 p.m. Saturday
This remarkable film traces an 18-year-old girl’s reckless odyssey through America’s Midwest selling magazine subscriptions to scrape out a living. Star (Sasha Lane) has little to lose; she dumpster-dives to eat. Sensual and visually dazzling, this drama captures the precarious, fiery passions of youth. (R, 2016, U.K.-U.S., 2:03)
“A Man Called Ove”
11 a.m., 3, 5 and 9 p.m. Sunday
This funny, award-winning moving adaptation of Frederick Backman’s Swedish best-seller concerns Ove, a crabby widower who wants to commit suicide to join his beloved wife but is saved by his obsession with orderliness. In Swedish with English subtitles. (PG-13, 2015, Sweden, 1:56)
“Love Is My Profession”
1 and 7 p.m. Sunday; 1, 5 and 9 p.m. Monday
Yvette (Brigitte Bardot), a curvaceous young vixen accused of robbery, convinces respectable attorney Andre to defend her in this well-observed film noir adapted from Georges Simenon’s novel. Bardot’s performance is considered one of her best. For ages 15 and older. In French with English subtitles. (1958, France/Italy 1:55)
“Crime and Punishment”
11 a.m., 3 and 7 p.m. Monday
In this very French adaptation of Dostoevsky’s novel, disillusioned student Rene is about to do something desperate. Meanwhile, his sister Nicole is planning to marry corrupt antiques dealer Monestier for his money. Rene, however, will have to watch his step: Police chief Gallet doesn’t miss a detail. Great noirish cinematography by Claude Renoir. (1956, France, 1:47)
“What No One Knows”
12:30, 3:45, 7 and 8:45 p.m. Thursday
Children’s entertainer Thomas’ life is threatened when his sister Charlotte tries to tell him secrets about their late father, an intelligence officer. When Charlotte drowns under suspicious circumstances, Thomas desperately searches for the truth. In Swedish with English subtitles. (2008, Denmark/Sweden, 1:39)
“A Pig Across Paris”
2:15 and 5:30 p.m. Thursday
In Nazi-occupied Paris during World War II, ex-cabbie Martin persuades ex-painter Grandgil to help him haul four suitcases full of black-market pork through the blackout. (1956, France/Italy. 1:20)