Jonah Hill, Ben Stiller, Richard Ayoade and Vince Vaughn star in “The Watch.”
A number of new movies will hit theaters this week, including Step Up: Revolution and The Watch, opening in wide release.
Step Up: Revolution Genre: Drama Cast: Ryan Guzman, Kathryn McCormick, Misha Gabriel and Peter Gallagher Director: Scott Speer Rated: PG-13
“Step Up: Revolution” is the next installment in the worldwide smash “Step Up” franchise, which sets the dancing against the vibrant backdrop of Miami.
Emily (Kathryn McCormick) arrives in Miami with aspirations of becoming a professional dancer and soon falls in love with Sean (Ryan Guzman), a young man who leads a dance crew in elaborate, cutting-edge flash mobs, called "The Mob." When a wealthy businessman threatens to develop The Mob's historic neighborhood and displace thousands of people, Emily must band together with Sean and The Mob to turn their performance art into protest art, and risk losing their dreams to fight for a greater cause.
The Watch Genre: Comedy and science fiction Cast: Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Rosemarie DeWitt, Jonah Hill, Richard Ayoade, Will Forte and Billy Crudup Director: Akiva Schaffer Rated: R
Four everyday suburban guys come together as an excuse to escape their humdrum lives one night a week.
But when they accidentally discover that their town has become overrun with aliens posing as ordinary suburbanites, they have no choice but to save their neighborhood – and the world – from total extermination.
The following will open in limited release. It may be several weeks before these films appear in local movie theaters.
Ruby Sparks Genre: Comedy and romance Cast: Paul Dano, Zoe Kazan, Annette Bening, Antonio Banderas, Steve Coogan, Elliott Gould, Chris Messina and Deborah Ann Woll Director: Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris Rated: R
Calvin (Dano) is a young novelist who achieved phenomenal success early in his career but is now struggling with his writing – as well as his romantic life.
Finally, he makes a breakthrough and creates a character named Ruby who inspires him. When Calvin finds Ruby (Kazan), in the flesh, sitting on his couch about a week later, he is completely flabbergasted that his words have turned into a living, breathing person.
Killer Joe Genre: Comedy and drama Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Emile Hirsch, Juno Temple, Thomas Haden Church and Gina Gershon Director: William Friedkin Rated: NC-17
When 22-year-old Chris (Emile Hirsch) finds himself in debt to a drug lord, he hires a hit man to dispatch his mother, whose $50,000 life insurance policy benefits his sister Dottie (Juno Temple).
Chris finds Joe Cooper (Matthew McConaughey), a creepy, crazy Dallas cop who moonlights as a contract killer. When Chris can't pay Joe upfront, Joe sets his sight on Dottie as collateral for the job. The contract killer and his hostage develop an unusual bond. Like from a modern-day, twisted fairy tale, "Killer Joe" Cooper becomes the prince to Dottie's Cinderella.
Based on the play by Pulitzer and Tony Award winner Tracy Letts, "Killer Joe" is a garish, provocative black comedy from Academy Award-winning director William Friedkin.
Sacrifice Genre: Drama Cast: Ge You and Wang Xue Qi Director: Kaige Chen Rated: R
Written and directed by master filmmaker Chen Kaige and set during the opulent Yuan Dynasty in the 5th century B.C., “Sacrifice” is the story of a newborn prince whose entire family, the Zhao clan, is wiped out by a rival general who ruthlessly seizes the throne.
An ordinary man, the doctor who delivers the baby, gives up everything dearest to him to save the last young survivor in the bloodline of the noble Zhao, and secretly raises the child as his own. But the doctor, played impeccably by acclaimed actor Ge You, has devised his own plot for revenge and makes the cold-blooded General, Tu Angu, the boy’s godfather, allowing the would-be-King to infiltrate the royal palace as a guest. When the boy becomes a man, he must choose between two fathers, while the destiny of a nation rests with his decision.
Searching for Sugar Man Genre: Documentary Director: Malik Bendjelloul Rated: PG-13
In the late ’60s, two celebrated producers, who were struck by his soulful melodies and prophetic lyrics, discovered a musician in a Detroit bar.
They recorded an album that they believed was going to secure his reputation as one of the greatest recording artists of his generation. In fact, the album bombed and the singer disappeared into obscurity amid rumors of a gruesome on-stage suicide.
But a bootleg recording found its way into apartheid South Africa and, over the next two decades, it became a phenomenon. Two South African fans then set out to find out what really happened to their hero. Their investigation led them to a story more extraordinary than any of the existing myths about the artist known as Rodriguez. “Searching for Sugar Man” is a film about hope, inspiration and the resonating power of music.
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