No, this is not a good Friday. But we’re going to make the most of it.
Best Worst Thing That Ever Could Have Happened: Glenn says this documentary on the fall and rise of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth’s 1981 musical Merrily We Roll Along is essential viewing for Broadway devotees, and I am inclined to agree.
The Founder: Robert Siegel’s take on the Ray Kroc story wants to be The Social Network with cheeseburgers; instead, you can watch John Lee Hancock miss the point almost in real time. But Michael Keaton is totally watchable, and John Carroll Lynch and Nick Offerman are quietly brilliant. Check it out with your expectations safely lowered.
Nerdland: Paul Rudd and Patton Oswalt voice a pair of Hollywood losers desperate to make it big in this turgid, one-note animated satire. Andrew Kevin Walker wrote it, probably not long after Seven made him bankable. It’s bad. Don’t go.
Searchers: Zacharias Kunuk transposes the story of John Ford’s iconic Western to a very different frontier, and a very different context; the result is an intense, minimalist thriller that works both as cinema and commentary.
The Skyjacker’s Tale: Jamie Kastner’s documentary unpacks a 1974 hijacking to reveal a story of radicalization, racism and abuse of authority that’s sadly entirely relevant to present-day America.
Split: Feeling his oats after the success of The Visit, M. Night Shyamalan crafts a thriller that offers strong performances and an actual pulse — but still stuffers from Shyamalan’s standard bag of tics.
xXx: The Return of Xander Cage: Vin Diesel will be 50 this year and he’s still skiing down exploding oil rigs and shit. Give the kids what they want, I guess. Rad couldn’t get into it.
That’s everything! And now for a quick trip to the store to stock up on canned food and potable water before the Trump inauguration. The clock is ticking, in so many ways.