Saturday Night Movie Recommendations with Abe

Welcome back to a weekly feature here at Movies With Abe. I'm going to be providing a handy guide to a few choice movies currently playing in theatres as well as several films newly released on DVD. I invite you to add in your thoughts on any films I haven’t seen in the comments below. Understandably, some weeks will have considerably fewer releases to address than others.

Now Playing in Theatres

Kidnapping Mr. Heineken (mixed bag): The story of the 1980s abduction of beer magnate Freddy Heineken by a group of criminals is an inherently fascinating tale, but it doesn’t translate to gripping cinema that way that it should despite a strong cast including Jim Sturgess, Sam Worthinton, Ryan Kwanten, and Anthony Hopkins. Now playing at Cinema Village. Read my review from yesterday.

New to DVD

The Better Angels (anti-recommended): The worst film I saw at Sundance this year was this heavily disappointing tale of Abraham Lincoln’s childhood, which fades into its black-and-white background and tells a deathly boring story, with no help from a theoretically strong cast led by Jason Clarke and Diane Kruger.

Foxcatcher (mixed bag): Bennett Miller’s third feature film, following “Moneyball” and “Capote,” is an intriguing look at an eccentric billionaire and the two wrestling champions he takes an interest in, but its story arc isn’t as compelling or fulfilling as it should be. Steve Carell’s transformative performance, on the other hand, is more worthwhile.

Life Partners (recommended): TV stars Leighton Meester and Gillian Jacobs star as best friends, one gay and one straight, who navigate through young adulthood together in this unexpectedly entertaining delight from Tribeca last year.