BLOCKBUSTER OF THE MONTH
Kong: Skull Island
(Warner Brothers/Legendary) Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, John C. Reilly, John Goodman. A joint expedition of military and scientists explore a mysterious and uncharted island in the Pacific, only to discover that it is full of impossible creatures as deadly as they are unknown. Trapped on the island, cut off from any chance of rescue, they must fight their way through a primeval hostile world ruled over by the biggest and baddest of them all – the mighty King Kong. March 10
INDEPENDENT PICKS
Contemporary Color
(Oscilloscope Laboratories) David Byrne, Mike Hartsock, Nelly Furtado, Adam Horovitz. Color guards have long been staples at football games but of late they have been bursting out into their own scene. Legendary Talking Head and musician David Byrne gathered ten color guard teams and paired them with ten composers, staging all ten of the performances in one incredible night in Brooklyn. This is that show – and the stories leading up to it. March 1
The Freedom to Marry
(Argot) Evan Wolfson, Mary Bonauto, April DeBoer, Jayne Rowse. One of the landmark decisions of the Supreme Court in the past decade was the one that struck down the Defense of Marriage act and in effect gave LGBTQ couples the right to get married legally. This wasn’t a fight that occurred overnight; it took decades of hard work and often despair to win this victory. Through it all, the tireless efforts of one man never wavered in the face of insurmountable odds. This is the story of how justice happened. March 3
My Scientology Movie
(Magnolia) Louis Theroux, Paz de la Huerta, Marty Rathbun, Andrew Perez. Documentary filmmaker and gadfly Louis Theroux (who in the interest of transparency is someone I worked with at the Metro back in the 90s) investigates one of the most controversial institutions of our day – the Church of Scientology. Just what is it that makes them so secretive and what is it that scares people about them? Plenty, as it turns out. March 10
The Sense of an Ending
(CBS) Jim Broadbent, Charlotte Rampling, Matthew Goode, Emily Mortimer. A lonely old man receives news of the passing of an old lover who had willed him one item – her diary. His view of what happened between them which led to a tragic series of events is changed as he reads her point of view which is very different than what he remembers. Suddenly confronted by his past, he begins to rethink his position in life – and whether it isn’t too late to change it. March 10
Burning Sands
(Netflix) Alfre Woodard, Trevor Jackson, DeRon Horton, Octavius J. Johnson. An African-American college freshman seeks to pledge at a prestigious fraternity. As he gets deeper into Hell Week, he is horrified to discover that the hazing is getting progressively more violent and dangerous. He is caught between his code of silence and standing up to the hazing which may just be out of control. March 10
Song to Song
(Broad Green) Michael Fassbender, Ryan Gosling, Rooney Mara, Natalie Portman. Austin, Texas, has long had one of the most dynamic music scenes in the country. Two struggling songwriters, a music mogul and a waitress become entangled in love affairs that are both the potential source of their salvation – or their destruction. This is the latest from Terrence Malick who has over the past six or seven years become prolific. March 17
Bokeh
(Screen Media) Maika Monroe, Matt O’Leary, Arnar Jónsson, Gunnar Helgason. A young couple goes to Iceland on a romantic getaway. At first they love the volcanic hot springs, the food, the culture – everything. One morning however they wake up and everyone on Earth has disappeared. Frantic at first, eventually they begin to revel in absolute freedom – until the realization sets in that there will be no rescue if they get in trouble – nobody to fly them back home to the United States, nobody to talk to except each other. March 24
Carrie Pilby
(The Orchard) Bel Powley, Nathan Lane, Gabriel Byrne, Jason Ritter. A prodigal girl who graduated from Harvard at the age of 18 finds life in the real world an enormous challenge by the time another year has passed. Despite her enormous intellect, interpersonal relationships seem a bit beyond her so she finds herself a therapist who might help her join the human race after all. March 31
MARCH 1, 2017
Cinema365 