â
Bubba Ho-Tep
Throughout history, cinema has told many great storiesâstories that revolutionize cultures, that meditate upon emotion and philosophy, that attempt to define what it means to be this thing we call âhuman.â All of those stories are shit compared to Bubba Ho-Tep, a film in which Elvis (Bruce Campbell) and JFK (Ossie Davis) fight an evil mummy in a retirement home. ERIK HENRIKSEN Hollywood Theatre.
The Dark Crystal
Following The Empire Strikes Back (specifically the realization of Yoda, who gave the best performance in that film), creative genius Jim Henson saw his chance to go for broke and realize one of his biggest dreams: a big budget, straight-faced, pseudo-realistic muppet epic. Unfortunately, The Dark Crystal falls short as a storyâitâs dumb and boring, two things a fantasy film should never be. But it excels as a testament to the unparalleled levels of craft and care Hensonâs crew put into making the film. You donât watch because of its quality as a fairy tale. You watch because itâs Henson at his visual peak. BOBBY ROBERTS Academy Theater.
Good Time
See review, this issue. Various Theaters.
Ingrid Goes West
See review, this issue. Fox Tower 10.
â
Jules and Jim
In honor of Jeanne Moreauâs passing, the Hollywood screens François Truffautâs 1962 classic named for the two male sides of a World War I-era love triangle, but the film completely belongs to Moreau, achieving its place in film history because of her arresting performance, and Truffautâs then-innovative (and still engrossing) means of documenting it. Hollywood Theatre.
â
Landline
If movies about benignly dysfunctional families are a fast-track to crying for you, prepare yourself for Gillian Robespierreâs Landline, which stars Edie Falco and Jenny Slate. This thing reduced me to a puddleâbut as any enthusiastic movie crier can attest, while it may have looked horrible from the outside, I was actually having a really good time. And you will too, especially if you also loved Robespierreâs last film, Obvious Child. MEGAN BURBANK Various Theaters.
Leap!
Carly Rae Jepsen is in this movie. Well, her voice is. Nobodyâs in the movie because itâs yet another rubbery looking CG animated things for kids, although this oneâs from France, so maybe thereâll be something visually interesting about it. Anyway, my point is: Carly Rae Jepsen is a nice person. She makes great pop music. She should be a monster star. But no, here she is, third banana in some anonymous cartoon turtleheading out the ass-end of an August wasteland. If you care about your kid, skip this shit and make âem really listen to Eâ˘MOâ˘TION instead. Itâs good, and good for them. BOBBY ROBERTS Various Theaters.
â
Logan Lucky
âI just donât think movies matter as much anymore, culturally,â infamously unpredictable filmmaker Steven Soderbergh told the Guardian in 2013âone of the many legit reasons he gave when he announced he was quitting movies forever. So naturally, four years later, the infamously unpredictable Soderbergh has a new comedyâLogan Lucky, a movie that aims to undermine Hollywoodâs traditional distribution model, a movie whose screenwriter may or may not exist, and, most importantly, a movie thatâs a goddamn delight. ERIK HENRIKSEN Various Theaters.
The Only Living Boy in New York
See review, this issue. Various Theaters.
Patti Cake$
Opens Wed, Aug 30. See review in next weekâs Mercury. Various Theaters.
Repressed Cinema: Little Shop of Horrors
This isnât the Rick Moranis and Steve Martin musical version of Little Shopâthis is a rare 16mm print of the 1960 Roger Corman original, which is cheaper and darker. Itâs still a comedy, of courseâthereâs no way this works as legitimate horrorâbut know that itâs a little meaner, and a lot less melodic, before you purchase that ticket. BOBBY ROBERTS Hollywood Theatre.
â
Spring Breakers
Here are some of the problems you may have with director Harmony Korineâs Spring Breakers: (1) The young college gals depicted in the film invite degradation upon themselves with voracious, proud abandon. (2) Plotwise, thereâs probably less here than meets the eye. (3) Spring Breakers may make you come to the sudden, surprising realization you have a big stick up your ass. This is one hell of a polarizing film, and as someone whoâs sick of stale Hollywood product, I loved it. Part of NW Filmâs Top Down: Rooftop Cinema series, preceded by a local short film. WM. STEVEN HUMPHREY Hotel DeLuxe.
â
Stand by Me
I never understood why Oregonians built an entire cottage industry around worshipping the annoyingly shrill and hyperactive â80s âclassicâ The Goonies when just one year after that cloying mess of a film opened, Stand by Me was releasedÂâa smaller-scale Oregon adventure with a much better story, starring much better actors, playing much deeper characters, striking emotional notes much more varied than Gooniesâ two-tone dirge of âAAAAAHâ and âEWWWWW!â But if I had to guess why Stand by Meâdespite being a better film than The Goonies in every measurable aspectâdoesnât have annual festivals in its name, itâs probably because Lard-Ass hosting tours of the barf-o-rama tent and the watering hole where Wil Wheaton had leeches stuck to his balls doesnât make for a great tourist trap. BOBBY ROBERTS Clinton Street Theater.
â
The Trip to Spain
See Film, this issue. Cinema 21.
MEANS WE RECOMMEND IT. Theater locations are accurate Friday, August 25-Thursday, August 31, unless otherwise noted. Movie times are updated daily and are available here.