4 films to see on the week of April 7-April 14, 2017
The Case for Christ
A HARD-DRIVING journalist, Lee Strobel finds that his wife Leslie’s newfound faith in Christ goes against everything he believes in as an avowed atheist. Utilizing his journalistic and legal training, Lee begins a quest to debunk the claims of Christianity in order to save his crumbling marriage and comes face-to-face with unexpected results that could change everything he knows to be true. Based on Strobel’s award-winning best-selling book. Directed by Jon Gunn, it stars Mike Vogel, Erika Christensen, Faye Dunaway, and Robert Forster.
MTRCB Rating: PG
Anguish
A NEW GIRL in a quiet town finds herself overwhelmed by hallucinations of a hit-and-run victim and starts to question her sanity. Written and directed by Sonny Mallhi, it stars Ryan Simpkins, Annika Marks, and Karina Logue. “There’s not much to be said about Sonny Mallhi’s languid psychological drama — moonlighting as a possession-centered horror film — that hasn’t already been said by the title,” writes Abby Garnett of the Village Voice.
MTRCB Rating: R-13
Bling
AN ANIMATED movie, Bling asks whether a ring or the courage to save his city from an army of evil robots win the heart of Sam’s childhood sweetheart? Directed by Kyung Ho Lee, it features the voices of James Woods, Jennette McCurdy, and Taylor Kitsch. “It’s a sweet film yet it feels underdeveloped, in the wake of the sophistication of Kung Fu Panda 3 and the charm of Zootopia,” writes Louise Keller of Urban Cinefile.
MTRCB Rating: PG
Going In Style
A REBOOT of the 1979 Martin Brest movie that featured George Burns, Art Carney, and Lee Strasberg, director Zach Braff’s comedy Going in Style has Alan Arkin, Michael Caine, and Morgan Freeman play lifelong friends who decide to rob the bank that absconded with their pensions.
MTRCB Rating: PG
American Pastoral
BASED on the Philip Roth novel, American Pastoral follows Swede, a legendary high school athlete, who grows up to marry a former beauty queen and inherits his father’s business. Swede’s seemingly perfect life shatters when his daughter rebels by becoming a revolutionary and committing a deadly act of political terrorism during the Vietnam War. It stars Ewan McGregor (who also directs), Dakota Fanning, and Jennifer Connelly. Very unpopular with the critics on review aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes, which gave it a measly 23%. “The better the book, the worse the movie is a sad-but-true rule of thumb. And first-time director Ewan McGregor’s calamitous take on Phillip Roth’s Pulitzer-winning 1997 novel is awful enough to cement the rule in stone,” writes Peter Travers of Rolling Stone.
MTRCB Rating: R-16
