Coming Attractions.

On Selma And This Weekend's Wide And Special Releases.

Inherent Vice.
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson.
Writer: Paul Thomas Anderson (screenplay), Thomas Pynchon (novel).
Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Josh Brolin, Owen Wilson, Katherine Waterston, Benicio Del Toro, Jena Malone, Reese Witherspoon, Martin Short, Michael Kenneth Williams, Eric Roberts, Joanna Newsom.
Playing At: Wide.

Paul Thomas Anderson's Inherent Vice is wild, clownish and unpredictable. And I mean all of these things as the grooviest compliment possible. Check out my full review here.

Mr. Turner.
Director: Mike Leigh.
Writer: Mike Leigh.
Cast: Timothy Spall, Paul Jesson, Dorothy Atkinson.
Playing At: Landmark Magnolia, Angelika Film Center (Plano).

There are two major selling points for Mr. Turner. First, it stars Timothy Spall (from the Harry Potter series) and, second, it's written and directed by Mike Leigh (Topsy-Turvy, Vera Drake). Mr. Turner is about the legacy that curmudgeon painter J.M.W. Turner left in the last years of his life. It’s a bit long, but it's a fine film.

Predestination.
Director: The Spierig Brothers.
Writer: The Spierig Brothers.
Cast: Ethan Hawke, Sarah Snook, Noah Taylor.
Playing At: Texas Theatre.

I feel like Predestination should have been a March release. Allow me to explain by pointing out something you may not know about why a film releasing in a certain month is important: Studios dump films that they don't think will perform well or that are worthy of any awards in January and February. This is hilarious to me because, ust last year, Warner Bros. released The Lego Movie in February and it ended up being not only a critical success, but the third-highest-grossing movie of 2014, and it will probably win the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. This brings me back to Predestination, the second feature by the The Spierig Brothers, whose first film is the super cool unique take on vampire lore called Daybreakers. Predestination is a time-travel movie, and it takes a little to kick into gear, but the third act is pretty damn cool.

Selma.
Director: Ava DuVernay.
Writer: Paul Webb.
Cast: David Oyelowo, Carmen Ejogo, Tim Roth.
Playing At: Wide.

This happens to be the most important film in the film industry right now. It's a biopic on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., his dream and his timeless march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama. I haven't seen it yet, but I can tell you it's on my most-anticipated list. It's being praised almost universally.

Taken 3.
Director: Olivier Megaton.
Writer: Luc Besson, Robert Mark Kamen.
Cast: Liam Neeson, Forest Whitaker, Maggie Grace.
Playing At: Wide.

Once again, Liam Neeson is using his very particular set of skills to kick a lot of ass and save the day. To be honest, I really hope the Nees calms it with this action hoopla — he's got range, depth and can pump out some great cinema outside of karate kicks.