Movies: New and Noteworthy

Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie

Two young pranksters hypnotize their principal into believing he is an absurd superhero in this animated family feature.

Churchill: The Untold Story of D-Day The British prime minister suffers doubts leading up to the Allied invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe.

I, Daniel Blake An aging carpenter and a struggling single mother unexpectedly come together as they both find themselves in need of state assistance to survive. Winner of Palme d'Or at Cannes last year.

My Cousin Rachel A young Englishman plots revenge against his cousin, believing she killed his guardian, but he falls under his charms. Adapted from the novel by Daphne Du Maurier.

Wonder Woman Gal Gadot stars in the title role in this new big screen adaptation of the legendary comic book heroine.

Reviewed by critics Tirdad Derakhshani (T.D.), Dan DeLuca (D.D.), Ellen Dunkel (E.D.), Molly Eichel (M.E.), and Gary Thompson (G.T.). W.S. denotes a wire-service review.

A Quiet Passion This tribute to the genius of poet Emily Dickinson (Cynthia Nixon) - who spent most of her days holed up inside her childhood home - is by turns funny, tragic, and thrilling. Its stilted formality works, especially in the context of a story about how suffocating customs can be for a woman who plans to avoid marriage and stay with her immediate family, where she feels safe. 2 hr. 6 PG-13 (images of war casualties, brief suggestive material) - W.S.

Their Finest Funny and moving period drama about a woman (Gemma Arterton) in wartime London who stumbles into a job as a screenwriter on a propaganda movie. Witty, borderline screwball feminist comedy, wrapped in an emotionally powerful look at the uses of art. With Sam Claflin. 1 hr. 57 PG-13 (violence) - G.T.

Alien: Covenant **

Katherine Waterston and Billy Crudup head up the latest

Alien

spacecraft to run into an invasive creature that wreaks havoc on their journey. Same-old, same-old. Too much backstory. Enough already. 2 hr. 2

R

(violence, gore)

- G.T.

Baywatch **1/2 Crude, comic remake of the original TV show, which was funny enough without trying for laughs. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is the boss lifeguard who makes fun of Zac Efron while beautiful women run around in bathing suits. Priyanka Chopra (Quantico) is the villain. 1 56 R (language throughout, crude sexual content, graphic nudity) - G.T.

Beauty and the Beast *** Live-action version of the 1991 animated classic, starring Emma Watson and Dan Stevens in the title roles. Competently staged by Bill Condon, but does not improve on the 2D Disney original. With Luke Evans and Josh Gad. 2 hrs. 9 PG (action violence, peril) - G.T.

Born in China *** Cuddly Disney documentary focusing on a year in the life of a number of animal species, most notably pandas. 1 hr. 16 G - G.T.

The Boss Baby *** Who needs a movie about a tyrannical infant - or an infantile tyrant? You might be surprised to learn that you do. Although advertisements seem to promise little more than an animated comedy about a bratty baby in a business suit (voiced by Alec Baldwin), this is a sweet adventure tale about sibling rivalry that becomes a tribute to family and brotherhood. 1 hr. 37 PG (potty humor) - W.S.

Buena Vista Social Club: Adios **1/2 Documentary offers a fresh look at the surviving original members of the Cuban music group that became a worldwide sensation nearly 20 years ago. 1 hr. 50 PG (historical smoking throughout, thematic elements, brief suggestive material) - D.D.

Chuck *** Funny, poignant, and true story of heavyweight boxer Chuck Wepner (Liev Schreiber), whose 15-round bout with Muhammad Ali became the inspiration for Sylvester Stallone's Rocky. With Jim Gaffigan, Naomi Watts, and Elisabeth Moss. 1 hr. 41 R (language) - G.T.

The Circle ** Technological thriller starring Emma Watson and Tom Hanks about a young woman coming to terms with privacy, ethics, and humanity while working at a Facebook-like company that develops a spherical camera that can be planted anywhere to capture anything and anyone at any time grows more overworked and plotty and less convincing as the story plays out. 1 hr. 50 PG-13 (sexual situation, brief strong language, some mature thematic elements) - W.S.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul * The "Wimpy Kid" gang is back for a third go-round that is by far the worst of the bunch. 1 hr. 33 PG (some rude humor) - W.S.

The Dinner * A gubernatorial candidate (Richard Gere) and his wife (Rebecca Hall) have a fraught dinner in a posh restaurant with his troubled younger brother (Steve Coogan) and the brother's wife (Laura Linney) to discuss a terrible crime committed by their teenage sons. The movie has plenty of dramatic potential, but the dish is all but inedible. Based on the Herman Koch novel. 2 hrs. R (strong language, violence, and projectile self-righteousness) - W.S.

Everything, Everything *1/2 Eighteen-year-old Maddy suffers from a severe immune system disorder and lives in a hermetically sealed mansion. She and the boy next door begin flirting by text and FaceTime. Nothing can vaccinate viewers against the plot development in this far-fetched story. 1 hr. 36 PG-13 (mature thematic material, brief sensuality, and brief coarse language) - W.S.

The Fate of the Furious **1/2 In this stunt-filled sequel, a hacker (Charlize Theron) blackmails Gino (Vin Diesel) while his buddies (Michelle Rodriguez, Dwayne Johnson) try to extricate and exonerate him. Also starring Tyrese, Ludacris, Helen Mirren, and Jason Statham. 2 hr 15 PG-13 (violence) - G.T.

Ghost in the Shell *** A live-action remake of the Japanese anime classic stars Scarlett Johansson as an antiterror cyborg with escalating questions about her latest mission and her own identity. Conventional action and story, but some interesting and sometimes dazzling visual ideas. With Juliette Binoche, Michael Pitt. 1 hr. 44 PG-13 (violence) - G.T.

Gifted **1/2 A custody drama featuring Chris Evans as a bachelor assigned to raise his late sister's math genius daughter (McKenna Grace). A nice performance by Evans, who elevates the so-so material. With Octavia Spencer, Jenny Slate. 1 hr. 41 PG-13 (language) - G.T.

Going in Style ** Three retired steelworkers (Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and Alan Arkin) plot to rob the bank complicit in getting rid of their pensions. Good-natured slapstick, but almost infallibly unfunny. With Ann-Margret. Directed by Zach Braff. 1 hr. 37 PG-13 (drug use, language) - G.T.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. **1/2 The gang's all here in this somewhat bloated, self-serious sequel, but the irreverent energy of the original is in short supply. 2 hrs. 17 min. PG-13 - G.T.

The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Mäki *** A Finnish boxing movie based on a true story about a fighter who didn't care that much about fighting or winning, but who still enjoyed a shot at a title. The anti-Rocky. 1 hr. 32 No MPAA rating - G.T.

King Arthur: Legend of the Sword ** Guy Ritchie attempts a radically modernized and uptempo version of the classic story, though ultimately he manages to strip the characters of the mythic stature while offering the small consolation of wisecracks and video game visuals. With Charlie Hunnam, Jude Law, and Djimon Hounsou. 2 hrs. 3 PG-13 (violence) - G.T.

The Lovers *** Debra Winger beds a young lover (Aidan Gillen) and her old husband (Tracy Letts), who's also having an affair, in this offbeat romantic comedy featuring. 1 hr. 34 R (sexual situations, adult themes) - G.T.

Norman *** Richard Gere gives the most annoying performance of his career - by design - in this offbeat movie about a New York nebbish swept up in big-time finance and Israeli politics. Saves its narrative surprises for the very end. 1 hr. 58 R (language) - G.T.

Obit *** Documentary about the obituary writers at the New York Times, where some of the liveliest prose is about the recently deceased. 1 hr. 33 No MPAA rating (adult themes) - G.T.

Paris Can Wait **1/2 While her filmmaker husband (Alec Baldwin) works, Diane Lane takes a tour of France with his friend (Arnaud Viard), who takes her to great restaurants and hits on her. 1 hr. 32 PG (thematic elements, smoking, some language) - G.T.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales ** Johnny Depp returns as Capt. Jack Sparrow in a new version of the same movie we've seen numerous times already. 2 hr. 9 PG-13 (sequences of adventure violence, some suggestive content) - W.S.

Smurfs: The Lost Village *1/2 The third theatrical feature centering on a tiny blue humanoid forest has enough bright colors and slapstick humor to enchant its target audience of small children, but anyone much taller than a Smurf may turn blue long before the final credits. 1 hr. 21 PG (Contains mild action, rude humor, a color palette offensive to the eye) - W.S.

Snatched **1/2 Party girl (Amy Schumer) drags her straitlaced mother (Goldie Hawn) on a trip to Ecuador, where they are kidnapped. Decent star chemistry gives way to standard action-comedy material, and gross-out laughs that are more gross than funny. 1 hr. 30. R (Language) - G.T.

Stalker (Not previewed) A new digital restoration of Andrei Tarkovsky's 1979 sci-fi classic follows three Russian men on a metaphysical journey through a shifting postapocalyptic landscape, on their way to a room purported to fulfill deeply held desires. Tarkovsky's final feature, restored by Mosfilm from the original negative. In Russian with subtitles. 2 hr. 41 No MPAA rating

Wakefield ** A Manhattan lawyer (Bryan Cranston) decides one night to put his life on hold for a time and secretly goes to live in his attic. The movie feels more like a strange thought experiment than something a reasonable person might actually do. 1 hr. 49 R (language, sensuality, brief nudity) - W.S.

The Wall **1/2 Taut action gives way to an increasingly far-fetched plot in Doug Liman's movie about a pinned-down American soldier (Aaron-Taylor Johnson) matching wits with an Iraqi sniper. 1 hr. 21 R (Violence) - G.T.

The Wedding Plan (Not previewed) In Israel, an Orthodox Jewish woman (Noa Kooler) jilted by her fiancé decides to proceed with her plans, enlisting the help of matchmakers in hopes of finding a suitable groom who will appear before the wedding day. 1 hr. 50 PG In Hebrew with subtitles. (thematic elements)