Nothing's better than spending the weekend holed up in a movie theater, devouring the latest big-screen debuts. But how do you choose what to see? Well, that's where we come in. Obviously, there will be certain movies throughout the year that feel like must-sees just because everyone is talking about them. (You've likely already run down the list of Oscar nominees. If not, get to it!) But if you want to be a more discerning cinephile, you can visit this cheat sheet. Here we'll give you the lowdown on new releases — and the critics' verdicts on them. Then you'll be able to determine which one is right for you.
This post will be continually updated, so don't forget to check back!
The Witch
Starring: Anya Taylor-Joy, Ralph Ineson, Kate Dickie
Rated: R
Tomatometer:89%
Synopsis: A witch and a goat torment a family in Puritan New England.
What's The Word: You are going to want to get freaked out by this one. The New York Times' Manohla Dargis called it "a finely calibrated shiver of a movie," while Time's Stephanie Zacharek went for the phrase a "triumph of tone." According to Slate's David Ehrlich, it's "one of the best tricks the devil has ever pulled."
Race
Starring: Stephan James, Jason Sudeikis, Shanice Banton
Rated: PG-13
Tomatometer: 60%
Synopsis: Jesse Owens' Olympic tale put on screen.
What's The Word: Sheri Linden of The Hollywood Reporter praised Stephan James' performance as Owens, but wrote that the movie is "still largely a boilerplate affair that takes far too long to hit its stride." Brian Truittwrote in USA Today:"A couple surprising star turns in Race give justice to Jesse Owens' running glory in the 1930s while also feeling timely with modern racial issues in the news."Variety's Andrew Barker argued that the movie "is better than it has to be, but not by too much."
Deadpool
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Morena Baccarin, T.J. Miller
Rated: R
Tomatometer:81%
Synopsis: This superhero says bad words.
What's The Word: People like how this movie shakes up an overplayed genre, though it's not for everyone. New York's David Edelstein called it an "agreeable, unprecedentedly R-rated romp with in-jokes, dirty words, and splatter." Refinery29's own Lauren Le Vine explained that the movie is "deeply satisfying because it’s extremely sexually progressive, and while it’s ostensibly Wade Wilson’s story, the film’s female characters are actually its entire raison d’être." ScreenCrush's Matt Singer was not sold. "Gleefully puerile and deeply immature, it has tons of what the MPAA calls 'adult content,' but no actual content for adults," he wrote.
Zoolander 2
Starring: Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Penélope Cruz
Rated: PG-13
Tomatometer:23%
Synopsis: The perils of being really, really ridiculously good looking, round two.
What's The Word: Time has not done any favors for Derek and the gang. Richard Lawson summed it up viciously in Vanity Fair, saying it's a "deeply depressing mess of a movie whose antic busyness drains at the center, all snap and energy sucked into a howling void where a decent joke used to be." At NPR, Scott Tobias wrote that the "experience of watching Zoolander 2 is like being the plus-one at a Hollywood party where the guests are all blasted on synthetics. It's loud, garish, and distracted, and doesn't care much about showing you a good time." UPROXX's Mike Ryan compared the movie to "a turd with a smattering of celebrity Speed Stick plastered all over it."
How to Be Single
Starring: Dakota Johnson, Rebel Wilson, Leslie Mann
Rated: R
Tomatometer: 50%
Synopsis: City ladies hook up, learn about life.
What's The Word: Though its not getting raves, this rom-com has its moments.The Hollywood Reporter's Frank Scheck declared that it "offers enough fresh, off-kilter humor to provide amusing comfort to those afflicted with the titular condition on its opening Valentine's Day weekend." Perri Nemiroff at Collider said director Christian Ditter "actually manages to deliver a film that both embraces and subverts genre tropes, keeping the film firmly afloat through narrative highs and lows, and also leaving you with something to think about after it wraps up."Variety's Nick Schager was not on board, comparing it unfavorably to Sex and the City.
Hail, Caesar!
Starring: Josh Brolin, George Clooney, Scarlett Johansson
Rated: PG-13
Tomatometer:77%
Synopsis: The Coen brothers do Old Hollywood.
What's The Word: There are some who adore this movie. Slate's David Ehrlich deemed it one of the Coens' "very best." Peter Travers of Rolling Stone called it "a wild whoosh of Coen brothers wizardry that left me laughing helplessly and filled with spiritual dread." Others were not quite as sold. Melissa Anderson wrote in TheVillage Voice that "the fizziness, though, proves fleeting, and Hail, Caesar! too often goes flat."
Pride And Prejudice And Zombies
Starring: Lily James, Sam Riley, Bella Heathcote
Rated: PG-13
Tomatometer:43%
Synopsis: What it sounds like: Jane Austen's classic story with added zombies.
What's The Word: The concept doesn't quite work. Manohla Dargis wrote in The New York Times that "the story’s lone joke and its grinding literalness grow dull." At NPR, Scott Tobias claimed that the movie does a disservice to both Austen and zombie movies. "Combining a classic novel of manners with a subgenre rooted in modern political metaphor feasts on the brains of both hosts, reducing Pride and Prejudice to a glib assortment of bullet points and losing the editorial relevancy that has always distinguished zombie pictures from other monster movies," he wrote. Variety's Andrew Barker was slightly more positive, saying it's a "a moderately entertaining film, not deficient in old-fashioned costume drama when it pleases, nor in the power of being clever where it chooses, but awkward and unsatisfying."
The Choice
Starring: Benjamin Walker, Teresa Palmer, Alexandra Daddario
Rated: PG-13
Tomatometer: 9%
Synopsis: Pretty people fall in love, jerk tears out of you in a Nicholas Sparks adaptation.
What's The Word: Could this be the "worst" Nicholas Sparks adaptation? That's the proposition floated out by Andrew Barker at Variety. Jordan Hoffman at The Guardian called the big twist "a cheap, gratuitous and manipulative way to con people into leaving the theater thinking they’ve had a thorough emotional workout." According to The New York Times' Jeannette Catsoulis, the movie is "repellently synthetic."
Kung Fu Panda 3
Starring: Jack Black, Bryan Cranston, J.K. Simmons
Rated: PG
Tomatometer: 78%
Synopsis: Po returns and meets his dad.
What's The Word: This franchise apparently still has steam. Writing for TheNew York Times, Neil Genzlinger explained that the movie has "a darker feel" than the earlier installments, and that the animation is "simply gorgeous."Variety's Justin Chang was effusive: "Emotionally, dramatically and perhaps most of all visually (it’s worth seeing in 3-D), this delightful trilogy capper is almost as generously proportioned as its cuddly warrior hero, restoring a winning lightness of touch to the saga while bringing its long-running themes of perseverance and self-knowledge to satisfying fruition."USA Today's Brian Truitt was less enthusiastic, saying, "While it lacks the wonder and nuance of earlier Pandas, there are enough new faces and wowing, Asian-influenced style to also keep parents amused for an hour and a half."
The Finest Hours
Starring: Chris Pine, Ben Foster, Eric Bana, Casey Affleck
Rated: PG-13
Tomatometer: 58%
Synopsis: Men with accents save lives on the sea.
What's The Word: Reviews are middling. TheNew York Times' Stephen Holden called it "moderately gripping." It "gets the job done," according to Rolling Stone. Tasha Robinson at The Verge argues that it needs subtitles: "Incomprehensibility is frequently a problem in this true-life adventure, which devotes an astonishing number of scenes to quiet men with comically impenetrable faux New England drawls muttering technical jargon through the ear-splitting roar of a struggling engine room or a raging sea."
Jane Got a Gun
Starring: Natalie Portman, Ewan McGregor, Noah Emmerich
Rated: R
Tomatometer: N/A
Synopsis: Natalie Portman's doomed Western.
What's The Word: This movie is already legendary for its troubled production. But is it any good? Apparently, no. TheNew Yorker's Anthony Lane, in addition to making a hilarious Friends reference, wrote: "Put the evidence together, and it’s no surprise that this poor little movie fires blanks." At The Hollywood Reporter, Jordan Mintzer explained that the movie is "not quite the calamity that some may have feared," but it "does not really bring enough excitement to such a well-tread genre, even if the idea of centering its story around a woman under siege gives the film a certain novelty factor." Writing for R29, Casey Cipriani argued that the "movie manages to make [Jane], the protagonist, a supporting character in her own story."
Dirty Grandpa
Starring: Zac Efron, Robert De Niro, Julianne Hough
Rated: R
Tomatometer:6%
Synopsis: Zac Efron's pecs get into hijinks with Zac Efron's grandpa, played by Robert De Niro, making some questionable choices.
What's The Word: Efron may be beautiful, but even that shouldn't convince you to go see this one. Variety's Nick Schager called it "brutally unfunny" and said that "the film’s incessant verbal diarrhea is less shocking than merely embarrassing." Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter wrote: "It can be definitively stated that Dirty Grandpa is utterly unfunny. Or, you could say it's as funny as child molestation, a subject which, incidentally, inspires one of its least tasteful gags." Mike Ryan of UPROXX called it"The Most Important Movie Ever Made," and we highly recommend reading his full (hilarious) critique. At risk of ruining Ryan's punchline, we'll let his own TL;DR version of the review speak for itself: "Dirty Grandpa is the worst movie I’ve ever seen in a movie theater. Burn it."
The 5th Wave
Starring: Chloë Grace Moretz, Nick Robinson, Alex Roe
Rated: PG-13
Tomatometer: 20%
Synopsis: Aliens invade; teens fight.
What's The Word: The fading YA craze sludges along with this lackluster entry. EW's Clark Collis wrote that the film has a "very small amount of grit, either emotional or literal." Peter Bradshaw at The Guardian argued that "Moretz is a strong presence, but without the Katniss factor." Alonso Duralde at The Wrap compared it to a "bad orange," saying it "lacks both juice and flavor."
The Boy
Starring: Lauren Cohan, Rupert Evans, Jim Norton
Rated: PG-13
Tomatometer:N/A
Synopsis: A woman becomes the nanny for a seriously creepy doll charge.
What's The Word: The Boy isn't must-see horror. The A.V. Club's Katie Rife explained that "moments of inspiration, or craftsmanship, or whatever you want to call them, are ultimately seasoning sprinkled onto a mushy, microwaved platter of lukewarm horror clichés." Joe Leydon, writing for Variety, said that "the movie never fully distracts its audience from the inherent silliness of its premise — a young woman is hired by an elderly couple as a nanny for a life-sized doll — and, as a result, is more likely to elicit laughs and rude remarks rather than screams and rooting interest. "
Ride Along 2
Starring: Kevin Hart, Ice Cube, Olivia Munn
Rated: PG-13
Tomatometer:17%
Synopsis: Remember the first Ride Along? This is the sequel.
What's The Word: Look, it’s not like Ride Along was a masterpiece, so don’t get your hopes up. Entertainment Weekly’s Kevin P. Sullivan wrote that there was really no attempt to distinguish the sequel from its predecessor: “The films are so note-for-note similar that it’s easy to visualize a split-screen YouTube comparison video, if you can imagine such a horror.” Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporterhad a great burn for the film, calling the “storyline less challenging than that of a typical CBS crime procedural.” At least The Guardian’s Jordan Hoffman had some kind words for the actors, writing: “Though some of the jokes land, that’s entirely due to the performances; there’s not one example of clever writing in the entire picture.”
13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi
Starring: John Krasinski, James Badge Dale, Pablo Schreiber
Rated: R
Tomatometer:57%
Synopsis: Michael Bay does Benghazi. Do you need to know anymore?
What's The Word: Given the subject matter, the film was bound to elicit a complicated reaction.Variety's Justin Chang explained that 13 Hours"largely avoid[s] the political firestorm in favor of a harrowing minute-by-minute procedural," describing the movie as an "experiential tour de force but a contextual blur, a shrewdly dumb movie that captures, and perhaps too readily embraces, the extreme confusion of the events as they unfolded on the ground." Stephanie Zacharek of Timesaid that it "comes so close to being action entertainment that it made me a little queasy. It’s violent, but also weirdly detached from all-too-recent history." Still, Slate's David Ehrlich had an unexpected reaction to the movie: "Imagine my surprise that, more than anything, 13 Hours almost feels … humanistic? Almost," he wrote. "Bay has stated that his intentions were simply to honor the heroism of the guys on the ground, and 13 Hours bears that out. The result, much to my surprise, is one of the most politically astute films about America’s foreign politics in years, purely on the strength of what it’s willing to ignore."
The Revenant
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy, Domhnall Gleeson
Rated: R
Tomatometer:78%
Synopsis: Leo plays a fur trapper who must fight for survival after being attacked by a bear.
What's The Word: Go see this movie if you're interested in seeing Leonardo DiCaprio suffer for about two-and-a-half hours. Though deemed the actor's Oscar movie, critics have been mixed. Peter Travers of Rolling Stone hailed it, but declared, "Note to movie pussies: The Revenant is not for you," and called it "one brutal, badass epic." In Peter Bradshaw's five-star review for The Guardian, he wrote: "This is not an immersion that feels like a sensual surrender; it's closer to having your skin peeled."Vanity Fair's Richard Lawson wasn't as sold, writing, "The gore is unflinching and realistic, but it tends to overwhelm, or outright preclude, any deeper thought, any more complex idea than 'Pain is real.'"
The Hateful Eight
Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Walton Goggins
Rated: R
Tomatometer:75%
Synopsis: Quentin Tarantino maroons a bunch of questionable characters together during a late-19th-century blizzard. It gets bloody.
What's The Word: If you have some time on your hands, you may want to check out Tarantino's lengthy Western. (If you're a film buff, you should check out the Roadshow version screened in 70mm.) It's controversial, of course, because it's Tarantino. "Mr. Tarantino doesn’t make films that are 'about race' so much as he tries to burrow into the bowels of American racism with his camera and his pen. There is no way to do that and stay clean," A.O. Scott wrote for The New York Times. He continued, "Some of the film’s ugliness is therefore a sign of integrity, and of relevance. But much of it seems dumb and ill considered, as if Mr. Tarantino’s intellectual ambition and his storytelling discipline had failed him at the same time."New York's David Edelstein was harsher: "It seems perversely crabbed, nihilistic, and shot through with cruelty for cruelty’s sake." The movie does have its fans, though. Variety's Peter Debruge noted: "Familiarity aside, however, the movie absolutely delivers on the sheer moment-to-moment pleasures fans have come to expect, from dynamite dialogue to powder-keg confrontations."
Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?
What It's Really Like To Fight For Diversity In Hollywood
There Was A Mini Love Actually Reunion In Hugh Grant's Honor
This Movie Starring A Real-Life Couple Will Be A Complete Cryfest