It’s a brand new Thursday and a brand new slate of movies coming out this weekend! While January is not always the best month for new movies and box office numbers, usually there are a fair number of movies to look forward to in the down months of January and February. So bundle up, slip some of those warmers into your boots and gloves and if you’re braving the cold weather to make it to a theater, then check out these movies that are coming out this weekend.
OPENING IN WIDE RELEASE
Selma – This is what I will be seeing this weekend. Following the events of the Selma Civil Rights marches and Martin Luther King Jr, this movie opened in select theaters on Christmas and now is opening to a wider release. This looks like a shoe-in for being incredibly culturally significant, given the recent events in man big cities surrounding racial relations, as well as garnering a ton of awards on the awards circuit. I am really excited about the performance of David Oyelowo as Martin Luther King Jr. He is an up and coming actor that has had some great performances in small roles in big movies (Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Interstellar, and the forthcoming A Most Violent Year). If you have a chance to see this movie don’t pass it up!
Taken 3 – Liam Neeson returns as Bryan Mills, ex-CIA operative and all around butt kicker and name taker. Setting up shop on top of the box office success of the first two, critical success being harder to come by, Taken 3 has Liam Neeson on the run from authorities trying to apprehend him for a murder he did not commit. Since this is the only big budget, big name release this weekend, if you have seen everything else or are a fan of Liam Neeson (I am), then get out to the theater this weekend to see Taken 3. The initial reviews are pretty horrible, so I am not holding out hope for this one, but it will probably be a solid action movie.
OPENING IN LIMITED RELEASE
Beloved Sisters – As the Academy Awards get closer and closer, more foreign-language films will get picked up to show in the US if they make the best foreign film short-list. Beloved Sisters is Germany’s submission to the Academy Awards this year, however, it did not make the short-list of nine films for Best Foreign Language Film. It has been getting some critical buzz, despite a slightly creepy premise, so if you are in a major urban area (New York, Chicago, LA) you can check it out this weekend.
It’s All So Quiet – Another foreign language film, this one from the Netherlands, it has made a lot of noise at European film festivals, however in the US it has gotten mixed reviews from critics. What looks to be a typical art house, cottage drama, it has been praised for the powerful performance of the lead actor, Jeroen Willems. Again, a limited release only to select metro markets, you can check this one out if Taken 3 or Selma are not on your radar.
Josh Crabb (@HeyItsThatJosh) is an editor, writer, and sometimes talker for Reel World Theology. Every Thursday he previews new movies releasing in theaters so you know what to see. So now you know and knowing is half the battle.
