Hank (Austin Butler), an NYC bartender who has a girlfriend, Yvonne (Zoë Kravitz), goes on the run from the mob when he steals a key that they hid inside his cat's litter box in Caught Stealing. The screenplay by Charlie Huston, based on his novel, feels like a cross between Go and Snatch, especially given how it blends dark comedy, action and suspense. There are shades of Tarantino, the Coen brothers, and Guy Ritchie. Even though its plot is uninspired, it's nonetheless an exhilarating, outrageously funny and wildly entertaining ride that has a few well-choreographed set pieces as well as a few twists that won't be spoiled here. The cat nearly steals the show just like the dog does in Superman, but Austin Butler's charisma stands out the most and anchors the film. The supporting actors are also superb, including Regina King, who plays a police detective, Liev Schreiber and Vincent D'Onofrio, who play Hasidic gangsters, Lipa and Shmully, who are brothers, and Carol Kane who briefly shows up as Lipa and Shmully's mother. Caught Stealing also serves as a love letter to late 90s NYC which becomes a character in itself. Blink and you'll miss a shot of Kim's Video.  At a running time of 1 hour and 47 minutes, Caught Stealing, directed by Darren Aronofsky, opens nationwide via Columbia Pictures.  

 

       Juan (Brays Efe) investigates why he witnessed his friend, David (David Menéndez), falling from a rooftop and breaking into pieces of porcelain when his body hits the pavement in The Fantastic Golem Affairs. Co-writers/directors Juan González and Nando Martínez have made a quirky, absurdist comedy that's low on laughs and runs out of steam too quickly. The screenplay doesn't quite know what to do with its imaginative premise. It barely fleshes out Juan and David's friendship before David dies in a very bizarre way. The aftermath as Juan has to explain what he saw is amusing, but where the plot goes from there becomes less and less surprising, funny or amusing, and the beats fail to land.  The Fantastic Golem Affairs does at least fully embrace its bizarreness and maintains its consistently off-beat tone. However, it's ultimately less than the sum of its parts and doesn't go far enough with its original concept. It's like a cross between a Terry Gilliam film, a Charlie Kaufman film and a Buñuel film without the brilliance, wit or emotional depth. At a running time of 1 hour and 35 minutes, The Fantastic Golem Affairs opens at Quad Cinema.  

Number of times I checked my watch: 3




 

      David (Will Pullen) and his wife, Tammy (Jane Levy), live with his father, Bill (David Strathairn) and mother, Venida (Celia Weston) in A Little Prayer. Bill must decide whether or not to meddle when he discovers that he's having an affair with his secretary, Narcedalia (Dascha Polanco). Meanwhile, his daughter, Patti (Anna Camp), moves in with her daughter, Hadley (Billie Roy), because she's stuck in a rocky marriage. Writer/director Angus MacLachlan bites off more than he could chew with a portrait of a dysfunctional family and a patriarch who tries to stabilize it before it completely falls apart. Bill, the patriarch, doesn't want his son to continue to cheat on his wife with his own secretary. What should he do if David continues to cheat? Should he tell Tammy? Or should he stay out of their business altogether? What would a good parent do? Kudos to MacLachlan for not asking the audience to judge Bill or David. There are no villains here nor does anyone get stabbed, shot, punched or kicked.

      The drama remains understated without any melodramatic scenes that would turn it into a soap opera. It's also interesting how Bill bonds with his daughter-in-law, Tammy. Their scenes are well-written and organic. However, there's a lot going on beneath the characters' surfaces, though, that the screenplay doesn't manage to fully explore as though the film were afraid to be too dark and unflinching. More scenes with Bill and Venida would've been helpful to allow the audience to understand a little bit more what their marriage has been like throughout the years. The film's poignancy derives from the moving, natural performances of the talented ensemble cast who breathe life into their roles. At a running time of 1 hour and 31 minutes, A Little Prayer is undercooked and sugar-coated, but well-acted, tender and quietly moving. It opens at Angelika Film Center via Music Box Films.  

Number of times I checked my watch: 2




 

      Roger (André Holland) spends time with Nicole (DeWanda Wise), a single mother, while remaining friends with his ex-girlfriend, Casey (Nicole Beharie), in Love, Brooklyn.  Director Rachael Abigail Holder and screenwriter Paul Zimmerman have made a lethargic, contrived and underwhelming romantic drama. The characters are underwritten and forgettable, and the dialogue ranges from stilted to just plain dull. Is it too much to ask for a little wit or comic relief? Unfortunately, Roger has barely any chemistry with both Nicole and Casey, so the beats don't land when he picks one over the other. Love, Brooklyn has nothing interesting to say about love or friendship, so it often feels shallow. The cinematography is decent and the performances are fine without being exceptional because the actors and actresses are undermined by the weak screenplay. At a running time of 1 hour and 37 minutes, Love, Brooklyn opens at Angelika Film Center via Greenwich Entertainment.  

Number of times I checked my watch: 3




 

       Heraldo (Iago Xavier) seeks refuge at a sleazy motel run by Elias (Fabio Assuncao) and his wife, Dayana (Nataly Rocha), while running from a mobster, Bambina (Fabiola Liper), who's searching for him in Motel Destino.  He has an affair with Dayana who's stuck in an unhappy marriage with her domineering, alcoholic husband. Writer/director Karim Aïnouz and his co-writers, Wislan Esmeraldo and Mauricio Zacharias have made a mildly engaging and well-shot crime thriller that suffers from style over substance and not enough surprises or palpable thrills. What do you think might happen when Elias finds out that his wife is having an affair with Heraldo? Obviously, he won't take it lightly nor does he like that Heraldo isn't interested in him when he hits on him. The beautiful setting on the coast of Brazil provides a sharp contrast when juxtaposed with the film's dark themes. Beyond that, though, Motel Destino doesn't have much to offer to hook the audience. The plot just goes through the motions with barely any emotional depth and doesn't give any of its characters much of an interesting backstory that would humanize them. The third act, in particular, feels underwhelming and fails to pack an emotional punch. Moreover, the film has issues with uneven pacing and occasionally drags while overstaying its welcome. At a running time of 1 hour and 55 minutes, Motel Destino opens at IFC Center via Strand Releasing.  

Number of times I checked my watch: 3

      Kennedy (Odessa A'zion) pool-hops with her friends and classmates while taking summer college classes in Pools. She risks losing her scholarship if she doesn't pass her classes or fails to attend them. The screenplay by writer/director Sam Hayes is just as aimless and meandering as its protagonist. Kennedy chills with her roommate, Shane (Francesca Noel), who's also her good friend. Reed (Mason Gooding) has a crush on her ex-friend, Delaney (Ariel Winter). Oh, and Kennedy also happens to be grieving the death of her father. Unfortunately, Pools has nothing profound to say about grief, friendship or coming-of-age. None of the subplots or supporting characters do much to enliven the film, even the one involving Michael (Michael Vlamis), an HVAC technician. It's yet another undercooked, vapid, sugar-coated and forgettable drama that barely scratches the surface of its complex themes. Moreover, it neglects to design enough of a window into any character's heart, mind and soul. How introspective and emotionally mature is Kennedy? How has she grown and what has she learned throughout the course of the film? Her character arc doesn't feel organic and, Odessa A'zion isn't given enough of an opportunity to truly shine or to rise above the shallow screenplay. At a running time of 1 hour and 39 minutes, Pools opens at Quad Cinema via Utopia.

Number of times I checked my watch: 3




 

       Theo (Benedict Cumberbatch), an architect, and his wife, Ivy (Olivia Colman), a chef struggle to get along after she becomes more successful at her job than he does in The Roses. The screenplay by Tony McNamara, based on the novel by Warren Adler, doesn't really get more complex than that, although it does have supporting characters, Amy (Kate McKinnon), and her husband, Barry (Andy Samberg), and Rory (Jamie Demetriou) and his wife, Sally (Zoë Chao), who are friends with Theo and Ivy. Unfortunately, The Roses falls flat as a dark comedy because the gags are rarely funny and the dialogue tries to be witty and pith, but ends up making Theo and Ivy very grating characters. Watching them bicker and banter while behind childishly without any filter becomes tiresome after a while as the plot goes around in circles with very little forward momentum. Even some of the jokes, like when Amy hits on Theo, get repeated even though they're not funny to begin with---in that particular case, Amy's aggressive flirtations with Theo feel more creepy and awkward than funny or amusing.

      The editing feels choppy, the pace moves too quickly, and the only scene that stands out with laughs is the one with Allison Janney who shows up as Ivy's lawyer. The costume designer should be commended for the stylish outfits that Ivy wears. The only glue that somewhat holds The Roses together is Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman's lively, over-the-top performances that are almost campy enough to elevate the film above mediocrity. At a running time of 1 hour and 45 minutes, The Roses, directed by Jay Roach, is exhausting, tedious and only intermittently funny despite a fine ensemble cast. It opens nationwide via Searchlight Films.  

Number of times I checked my watch: 3




 

       A son travels  by train to Galician Sanatorium to find his dying father in Sanatorium Under the Sign of the Hourglass. Co-writers/directors Stephen and Timothy Quay, a.k.a. The Quay Brothers have made a bold and atmospheric, but tedious, frustrating and dull experimental film that blends live action and stop-motion animation. The screenplay, based on the novel by Bruno Schulz, unfolds non-linearly and remains with a very thin plot that keeps exposition to a bare minimum. A lot of time and effort has clearly been spent on the production design, cinematography, editing and animation which combine to create an often hypnotic and surreal experience. That surrealism alone, though, isn't enough to be engaging from start to finish, and it comes with diminishing returns as it tedium begins to seep in around the 30-minute mark. Sanatorium Under the Sign of the Hourglass is ultimately less than the sum of its parts and suffers from excessive style over substance. At a running time of 1 hour and 16 minutes, which feels more like 2 hours, Sanatorium Under the Sign of the Hourglass opens at Film Forum via Kimstim.  

Number of times I checked my watch: 4

      Melissa (Annie Ngosi Ilonzeh) has cold feet on the day of her wedding and leaves Andre (Marques Houston), her fiancé, at the altar before heading to a cabin in the woods with her friends in Run. Little do they know that they'll be fighting for their lives when aliens invade the planet. Writer/director Chris Stokes and co-writer Marques Houston have made a mildly engaging and surprisingly heartfelt, but unimaginative and undercooked sci-fi drama with ephemeral thrills and scares. The plot has two conflicts: one, Melissa's reluctance to get married to Andre, and two, the threat of aliens that suddenly invade Earth. Exposition is kept to a minimum which is fine for the alien subplot, but not for the relationship between Melissa and Andre. The audience doesn't learn what Melissa and Andre had fought about the night before their wedding day that caused her to get cold feet. Where did they meet? What was their relationship like until then? The little that's known about the aliens is that they don't like electronic light, so all anyone has to do when they encounter them is to simply shine a cell phone light on them. Or to kill them, they must be shot in the head. The CGI effects are pretty decent and the design of the alien creatures make them look creepy which leads to a few briefly intense scenes, especially toward the end. That said, the filmmakers should be commended for an un-Hollywood ending that isn't afraid to be bleak, for having pretty good command of tone without unevenness, and for grounding the film in some humanity and little bit of poignancy in the heartfelt scenes with Melissa and Andre. At a running time of 1 hour and 35 minutes, Run opens in select theaters nationwide via Footage Films.

Number of times I checked my watch: 3




 

       Winston Gooze (Peter Dinklage), a terminally ill single father living with his stepson, Wade (Jacob Tremblay), works as a janitor at a factory that spills toxic waste in The Toxic Avenger. After falling into the toxic waste, he transforms into a mutant with superpower, a.k.a. the Toxic Avenger, and seeks revenge against the company's greedy CEO, Bob (Kevin Bacon), while teaming up with J.J. (Taylour Paige), a whistleblower. Writer/director Macon Blair has made a wickedly funny, campy and thrilling sci-fi comedy. The plot doesn't take itself too seriously, but also isn't afraid to spend some time with expositional scenes to allow the audience to care about Winston's struggles with his illness, with his son and with his dehumanizing and condescending bosses at work. So, when he transforms into the Toxic Avenger, you'll root for him to successfully exact revenge on his superiors. The Toxic Avenger manages to be an exciting underdog story and a gripping revenge thriller concurrently. There's plenty of gore and hilarious kills without going over-the-top or grossing out the audience too much. In other words, it's not a non-stop splatterfest. Everyone has a lot of fun in the roles, even those in the supporting cast like Elijah Wood who plays Bob's brother, Fritz. Peter Dinklage is the film's MVP, though, because he helps to ground the film in a surprising dose of humanity that's rare to find in a B-movie. The pace moves briskly, the editing is smooth without being too choppy, the CGI and practical effects are impressive, and there's never a dull moment from start to finish. Please be sure to stay through the end credits for a stinger. At a running time of 1 hour and 42 minutes, The Toxic Avenger opens nationwide via Cineverse and Iconic Events Releasing. It would be an interesting double feature with The Substance. 

Number of times I checked my watch: 1