An old-school World War II drama, a quietly powerful Irish drama, a Christmas story and a fantasy anime arrive in movie theaters this week.
Also in theaters this week is the brilliantly creepy horror effort ‘Heretic.’
Here’s our roundup.
“Blitz”: Award-winning filmmaker Steve McQueen goes old school, in a way, with his breathtakingly filmed World War II adventure story set around a 9-year-old boy, George (impressive newcomer Elliott Heffernan), who courts disaster one day during the blitz of London so he can reunite with his mom Rita (Saoirse Ronan) and grandfather (Paul Weller). True to McQueen’s standards, “Blitz” is polished and crafted to perfection. It also richly evokes the ‘40s in Britain — the clothes, the streets, the homes, the hairstyles, the racism and the fallout of war — which is strikingly captured in the shadowy cinematography of Yorick Le Saux.
“Blitz” isn’t revolutionary and tells an old-fashioned story of the sort that many of us have seen before. But it does so differently and features another tremendous acting turn from Ronan, who conveys the love and panic a mother feels once she discovers that her son is not where he is supposed to be — in this case a country home where he can be out of harm’s way.
Overly precocious George jumps from the train to the countryside and, in true Dickensian fashion, encounters some helpful people as well as some unsavory types on his treacherous trek back home.
While fans might crave a more edgy McQueen, a la “12 Years a Slave,” “Shame” or “Hunger,” there’s no mistaking that the auteur is helming this epic film and still thinking outside of the box.
His story addresses the era’s racism (George is mixed race) and the fate that his father suffered partially due to that. But the film distinguishes itself more around its impressively set action scenes, one in a subway that recalls elements of James Cameron’s “Titanic” and the other a haunting bit of brilliance that contrasts the gaiety of a big party and jazz performance with the destruction and death left in the rubble after an air attack.
Both scenes are memorable and stunning in a solid, not remarkable, film that warmly celebrates the unbending love shared between a mother and a son and the courage and bravery of Londoners during The Blitz. Expect anything more than that, and you’ll be disappointed. Details: 3 stars out of 4; in theaters Nov. 8 and available to stream Nov. 22 on Apple TV+. (Note: it would be a shame not to see this on a big screen).
“Small Things Like These”: Cillian Murphy delivers what deserves to be one of 2024’s most celebrated performances. He’s perfect in every scene. The awards likely won’t come, though, since the consummate actor snagged an Oscar last year for the much more visible “Oppenheimer.” In this small but major in every other way Irish indie based on another wistful and accomplished novella from Claire Keegan, Murphy tears your heart out as compassionate, low-wage-earning Irish coal merchant Bill Furlong, an insomniac with five daughters and a hard-working wife (Eileen Walsh) wishing to rise up from their meager existence. Bill undergoes a moral crisis when his path crosses with a wretched head nun (Emily Watson) at a convent that’s part of the notorious Magdalene Laundries — a place of severe abuse of women. Dead-tired in most every waking moment and suffering from labored breathing due to his work, Bill wrestles in the lean days leading up to Christmas about what to do after he encounters a desperate, mistreated woman at the convent. The horrific implicated events occurring behind the convent walls trigger memories of Bill’s past and how altruistic actions of another influenced his life. Irish playwright Enda Walsh adapts Keegan’s honed-down work with grace while director Tim Mielants draws out first-rate performances from his cast. But it is Murphy’s sensitive and impeccable performance and Bill’s weathered countenance and those small yet significant gestures that make “Small Things Like These” such a quietly major film about extending a helping hand for those in need. It’s a message for all seasons. Details: 3½ stars; in theaters Nov. 8.
“The Best Christmas Pageant Ever”: Seeking to become an annual holiday watch tradition, Dallas Jenkins’ amiable faith-infused adaptation of Barbara Robinson’s true-meaning-of-Christmast chestnut takes more than a few cues from Bob Clark’s 1983 classic “A Christmas Story,” right down to the nostalgic-dipped narration from “The Gilmore Girls” actor Lauren Graham. The screenplay from Ryan Swanson, Platte F. Clark and Darin McDaniel could have used a bit more eggnog-like spice when cataloging the rude and rowdy behavior of the six poor Herdman children as they insinuate themselves into a snoozer of a community church holiday pageant and then turn it inside out. That said, its earnest messages that churches need to be more inclusive so we can create healthy communities couldn’t be more worthy during these intense times. Of the cast, Judy Greer stands out as the flustered but patient substitute pageant director and mom who learns to raise her voice in support of the kids the church wants to avoid and leave behind. Details: 3 stars; opens Nov. 8 in theaters.
“Overlord: The Sacred Kingdom”: It’s with trepidation that anyone uninitiated into the intricacies of a multi-episode anime series — let alone one that led to four popular seasons — would jump into an already existing world and hope to understand what the heck is going on. For the most part, I got it, even if I knew nothing about the backstory of the character Momonga, the protagonist who gets sucked into a video gam. In this film’s world where demi-gods, power struggles and hidden traitors lurk, Momonga has transformed into Ainz Ooal Gown, a sorcerer king who plays a critical role in battling the Demon Emperor Jaldabaoth, a power-mad entity who wants to rule everything and everybody — living or dead — within the Sacred Kingdom. Director Naoyuki Itô obviously relishes classic world-building elements and oversees some rather astonishing visual set pieces. All the staples are there, too: bloody battles, surprising revelations and dormant powers within unlikely sources. I might not have caught all the references, but I’m dead-set on seeing what happens next after this film’s cliffhanger ending. Guess you could say I’m hooked. I think you will be too. Details: 3 stars; in theaters Nov. 8.
“A Weekend in Taipei”: Luc Besson can be counted on for belting out unhinged time wasters that defy logic but look fantastic and draw power from tongue-in-cheek action sequences. You get all of that in this full blast of popcorn fun that the French filmmaker co-wrote and co-produced. Luke Evans is a smooth fit to play brazen Minneapolis DEA agent John Lawler, who goes rogue after a bloody bust and hops a flight to Taipei so he can bring down a mega heroin ring run by sinfully wealthy businessman Kwang (Sung Kang). Fifteen years prior, Lawler worked an undercover gig in Taiwan and fell for feisty Joey (Gwei Lun-mei), now mom to an ecologically concerned 13-year-old Raymond (Wyatt Yang). Oh, yeah, she just so happens to be Mrs. Kwang. The plot gets more ridiculous from there but everyone in the cast — especially Evans — sells it with a wink while director/co-screenwriter George Huang stages martial-arts brawls and gunfights. There are two stunning sequences — one that starts in a restaurant’s kitchen and spills out into the front of the house, and another in a Marriott hotel room that gets destroyed. “A Weekend in Taipei” loses its nonstop mojo near the end but there’s more than enough going on — including a humorous reference to Audrey Hepburn and “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” — that make it worth a trip to theaters. Check your brain at the door. Details: 3 stars; in theaters Nov. 8.
“Black Cab”: Most can relate to having had a bad ride-share experience. Not-so-happy couple Anne (Synnøve Karlsen) and Patrick (Luke Norris) go on the ultimate hell ride with a gregarious, over-sharing driver (Nick Frost, living it up here). He has ulterior motivations that lead to them being held hostage in his cab. Director Bruce Goodison applies the tension well in the first two thirds of this efficient Shudder release, but then the plot smacks into a dead-end in its final act. There’s some good stuff here; foggy-thick England backroads atmosphere and a serving of bloody comeuppance but the story just runs out of gas, leaving us stranded by the side of the road. Details: 2½ stars; available Nov. 8 on Shudder.
Contact Randy Myers at soitsrandy@gmail.com.