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Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Mufasa: The Lion King, Homestead, The Six Triple Eight
Homestead **
Perhaps it's on me that I didn't realize the full story behind this faith-based apocalyptic drama, but it’s hard to overstate the bitterness one can feel when you’re watching what you think is a movie, but instead is the pilot for series. Ben Kasica and Jason Ross created this tale set in the aftermath of a terrorist attack on the United States, as various characters—including military veteran Jeff Eriksson (Bailey Chase) and his family—converge on the Rocky Mountain compound owned by Ian Ross (Neal McDonough), one of the few places in the region with a secure food supply.
Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, Kraven the Hunter, Queer, Carry-On, The End
Carry-On ***1/2
It’s pretty nervy for anyone to try to horn in on Die Hard’s territory as “kick-ass action thriller that’s also a Christmas movie,” but director Jaume Collet-Serra and screenwriters T. J. Fixman & Michael Green craft a ripping good yarn. Set at LAX on Christmas Eve, it follows a TSA agent named Ethan (Taron Egerton) blackmailed by a mercenary (Jason Bateman) to allow a bag through security that decidedly should not be allowed through security.
On Wednesday, The Sundance Film Festival announced its slate of features and episodic selections for the 2025 edition of the festival, scheduled to begin Jan. 23, 2025 and run through Feb. 2 in Park City and Salt Lake City, with online "virtual festival" access for select titles during the second half of the festival. Here are the titles.
Finding the gentle humanity in falling short of a perfect artistic vision
Florence Foster Jenkins—the Depression-era New York socialite who became famous-slash-infamous for her legendarily tone-deaf operatic recitals—is a fascinating enough character that she’s been the subject of multiple theatrical studies, documentaries and feature films. At the core of that fascination is speculation about the intersection between genuine artistic expression and self-delusion, in much the same way that the filmmaking career of Plan 9 from Outer Space’s Ed Wood remains so compelling.
Play for young audiences opens this weekend at Salt Lake Acting Company
Composer Deborah Wicks LaPuma has collaborated on the creation of several theater works for young audiences, including adapting author Mo Willems' Elephant & Piggie's 'We Are in a Play' (which Salt Lake Acting Company staged in 2021 and 2023) and Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!
Y2K, Nightbitch, Flow, The Return, The Order, Werewolves, Get Away
Flow ***1/2
We live in an age of ever-advancing filmmaking technology, but I’ll gladly sacrifice state-of-the-art for something that feels dedicated to basic, engaging storytelling principles. This minimalist, wordless animated feature from Latvian director Gints Zibalodis is set in a post-human world, where a solitary cat attempts to survive in the midst of an apocalyptic flood, eventually requiring the assistance of other animals like a capybara, a lemur and a previously-antagonistic dog.
Gladiator II, Wicked, The Piano Lesson, Blitz, Bonhoeffer, Black Box Diaries and more
Black Box Diaries ***1/2
"Issue documentaries” sometimes feel like they can only take you so far emotionally; this one packs a real wallop because it’s also such a powerful character study. That character is Shiori Itô, a Japanese journalist who here chronicles her long battle for justice after accusing Noriyuki Yamaguchi—a high-powered journalist with connections to then-prime-minister Shinzo Abe—of drugging and raping her in 2015.
Ghost Cat Anzu ***
The predictability of so much American feature animation certainly gets a bracing counterpoint in this anime adventure that feels both vaguely familiar and somehow also its own weird thing. Based on the manga by Takashi Imashiro, it’s the story of an adolescent girl named Karin (Noa Gotō) who’s left by her widowed, gambling-debt-ridden father Tetsuya (Munetaka Aoki) at the temple run by her grandfather.
Aquarium Lantern Festival, ILLUMINATE Festival, SALT Dance, Natalie D. Richards
There's always so much more to do in the local arts, culture and entertainment scene than any print issue can hold. Here are just a few more ways you can spend your weekend.
