It’s Friday! Let’s Head to the Movies

Now that the weekend is finally upon us, let’s take a look at the what’s playing in theaters right now.

A Good Day to Die Hard
-Stars: Bruce Willis, Jai Courtney, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Sebastian Koch
-Rating: R
-Genre: Action (It’s a Bruce Willis film!)
-The gist: Bruce Willis returns as butt-kicker John McClane in the fifth (yeah, there have been that many) installment in the Die Hard film series. This time he heads to Russia to help his son Jack (up-and-comer Jai Courtney) who he think needs some direction in his life. John has no idea his son is highly-trained CIA operative trying to stop a nuclear weapons heist. Two McClanes? How did we get to lucky?

Beautiful Creatures
-Stars: Alden Ehrenreich, Alice Englert, Jeremy Irons, Viola Davis, Emmy Rossum
-Rating: PG-13
-Genre: Romance with a side of supernatural/fantasy thrown in
-The gist: This Twilight-esque film does have a few similarities to the powerhouse franchise: New girl falls for cute small town native and they have “interesting” families that try to keep them apart, but let’s let it stand on its own. Based on the novel of the same name – Beautiful Creatures tells the story of Ethan Wate and Lena Duchannes, who meet when she moves to Ethan’s small town. As he finds himself inexplicably drawn to Lena, the two learn their families have rather interesting pasts.

Escape From Planet Earth
-Stars: Brendan Fraser (voice), Jessica Alba (voice), Sarah Jessica Parker (voice), Rob Corddry (voice), William Shatner (voice)
-Rating: PG
-Genre: Animated space comedy (3D)
-The gist: This animated family comedy begins on planet Baab where admired astronaut Scorch Supernova (Fraser) is a national hero to the blue alien population. A master of daring rescues, Scorch pulls off astonishing feats with the quiet aid of his nerdy, by-the-rules brother, Gary (Corddry), head of mission control at BASA. When BASA’s no-nonsense chief Lena (Alba) informs the brothers of an SOS from a notoriously dangerous planet, Scorch rejects Gary’s warnings and bounds off for yet another exciting mission. But when Scorch finds himself caught in a fiendish trap set by the evil Shanker (Shatner) it’s up to scrawny, risk-adverse Gary to do the real rescuing.

Side Effects
-Stars: Jude Law, Rooney Mara, Channing Tatum, Catherine Zeta-Jones
-Rating: R
-Genre: Drama, Thriller
-The gist: After her husband (Tatum) is released from prison, Emily Taylor (Mara) has serious emotional episodes and is prescribed drugs. The side effects, however, prove increasingly serious, and both her life and that of the doctor who prescribed the drugs (Law) take a dark very turn.

Safe Haven
-Stars: Julanne Hough, Josh Duhamel, Cobie Smulders, David Lyons
-Rating: PG-13
-Genre- Romance, Drama, Thriller
-The gist: This is based on a Nicholas Sparks novel, so be sure to bring tissues and prepare for feelings of “I want a love like that.” Katie (Hough) arrives in Southport, North Carolina looking to escape her mysterious past. She soon meets widower Alex (Duhamel). She soon finds she must choose to confront the frightening past that sent her running across the country or take off again, losing a once-in-a-lifetime chance at love.

Identity Thief
-Stars: Jason Bateman, Melissa McCarthy, John Cho, Amanda Peet, Jon Favreau
-Rating: R
-Genre: Comedy
-The gist: Think a Planes, Trains and Automobiles-type comedy duo with more cursing, and a less believable story. Still, this film will make you laugh simply because Bateman and McCarthy are too good not to laugh at. Identity Thief follows mild-mannered businessman Sandy Patterson (Bateman) as he travels from Denver to Miami to confront the deceptively harmless-looking woman, Diana (McCarthy), who has been living it up after stealing his identity.

Coming soon…

Yet to hit theaters is the film adaptation of Rudulfo Anaya’s controversial novel “Bless Me, Ultima.” Bless Me, Ultima is a turbulent coming-of-age story about Antonio Marez (Luke Ganalon), a young boy growing up in New Mexico during World War II. When a mysterious medicine woman named Ultima (Miriam Colon) comes to live with his family, she teaches him about the power of the spiritual world. As their relationship grows, Antonio begins to question the strict Catholic doctrine that he has been taught by his parents (Dolores Heredia and Benito Martinez). Through a series of mysterious and at times terrifying events Antonio must grapple with questions about his own destiny, the relationship between good vs. evil and ultimately how to reconcile Ultima’s powers with those of the God of his church.

Watch the trailer for Bless Me, Ultima below.

Opening on February 22 and also starring Dolores Heredia and Benito Martinez as Antonio’s parents, Bless Me, Ultima looks to be an original story among predictable story lines and sequels.

Published in Latino Daily News