The first weekend of the new year can be a bit rough for moviegoers after the holidays and a harsh winter storm. But luckily, there are plenty of new movies hitting theaters. Tina Fey’s riotous Mean Girls is getting the musical remake treatment. Meanwhile, Kumail Nanjiani stars in a raunchy teen comedy about female fight club members. Timothee Chalamet is Willy Wonka in a prequel that shows how he met the Oompa-Loompas.
She Said
Director Maria Schrader and a remarkably talented cast — Carey Mulligan and Zoe Kazan in particular — keep She Said from becoming another exploitive movie about girlboss culture. She Said isn’t content to celebrate a victory so easily, either; it depicts Twohey and Kantor as exhausted women navigating their personal lives while reporting on the Weinstein story.
This riveting drama follows the New York Times reporters Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey as they work tirelessly to uncover decades of sexual abuse in Hollywood. In the tradition of All The President’s Men and Spotlight, She Said offers a testament to the importance of investigative journalism and a portrait of women who won’t let up.
The Woman King
From director Gina Prince-Bythewood (Love & Basketball, Beyond the Lights) comes this all-female army film about protecting the kingdom of Dahomey in the 19th century. The film stars Viola Davis as General Nanisca, who leads an all-woman unit of warriors called the Agojie.
The หนังใหม่ชนโรง has received kudos for its casting alone, but it also does not shy away from tackling difficult topics like the role of some African peoples in the enslavement of other Africans. It is a powerful, restorative picture that deserves to be seen on the biggest screen possible. It stars John Boyega, Viola Davis, Sheila Atim, Jayme Lawson and Hero Fiennes Tiffin.
Don’t Worry Darling
After 2019’s witty girls-on-a-bender comedy Booksmart, Olivia Wilde followed it up with the chilly, psychological thriller Don’t Worry Darling. With its A-list cast, buzzy director and tasty dream visuals, this movie had all the makings of a juicy watch. Florence Pugh stars as Alice, a picture-perfect 1950s housewife with a trophy husband played by Harry Styles. But when she starts to question her idyllic life in sun-dappled desert town Victory, she runs into trouble with its svelte and sinister leader Frank (Chris Pine).
Offscreen drama between the film’s director and lead actor only added to the intrigue. But despite some contrived plotting, this is a solid effort from an ambitious debutant director trying out her directorial voice.
Devotion
Jesse Brown and Tom Hudner are the real-life heroes of Devotion, a polished double biopic from director JD Dillard. While the movie adheres to the formulas of such a film (exciting displays of aerial combat, a rousing patriotic score) it has an understated social dynamic that keeps it afloat. For all his heroic feats, Brown is also a lonely man. He writes down every insult and epithet hurled at him, and then reads them aloud as a way to keep himself motivated. Powell’s wide-eyed flyboy gradually develops a thousand-yard stare of his own, and their bond grows into something more sober than the kind of cocky loyalty celebrated in Top Gun.
The Fabelmans
In The Fabelmans, which /Film calls “another beautifully crafted semi-autobiographical film by Steven Spielberg and Tony Kushner,” the young Sammy (Mateo Zoryan Francis-DeFord in earlier scenes, Gabriel LaBelle in the teen edition) steps into a movie theater for the first time. He’s afraid of the big people and blaring sound, but his gentle parents, computer engineer Burt (Paul Dano) and piano teacher Mitzi (Michelle Williams), assure him that moving images are safe.
Judd Hirsch and Jeannie Berlin round out the ensemble cast in this story of familial angst, dashed dreams and the thresholds of revelation that make us who we are. A genuinely heartfelt family drama with a little bit of magic.
Lyle Lyle Crocodile
In this charming live-action adaptation of Bernard Waber’s beloved children’s books, a singing reptile helps a family rediscover their joy. Shawn Mendes croons the title character, who lives in the attic of an Upper East Side brownstone with a math teacher (Scoot McNairy), cookbook author (Constance Wu), and her middle school-age son Josh (Winslow Fegley).
Javier Bardem, sporting a thinning comb-over, delivers a delectable turn as failed showman Hector P. Valenti, who buys a baby crocodile and trains it to sing. But when Hector and Lyle’s debut musical show flops, the croc is left to fend for himself. The Primms take him in and find new meaning to family.
Conclusion
A fresh crop of movies hits theaters this month. Cillian Murphy reunites with director Christopher Nolan for a fascinating biopic of J. Robert Oppenheimer, creator of the atomic bomb. A decorated U.S. veteran tries to pay off his wife’s medical bills by teaming up with his brother in this surprisingly effective modern-day heist thriller. Rosario Dawson, Kiernan Shipka and Judson Mills star.
