Check The Drop to see what’s new in theaters, disc and digital each week. Click below for theater showtimes. If you’d rather stay home, check out Armchair Smack, where we suggest alternatives to each week’s theatrical releases. Choose one or see both, and then Smack us in the comments section below and let us know how they compare.
What will you view this weekend?
New in Theaters:
Click for showtimes in your area.
The Grand Budapest Hotel
(Comedy)
Stars: A veritable who’s who of Oscar winners and nominees, plus director Wes Anderson’s usual suspects: Ralph Fiennes, F. Murray Abraham, Adrien Brody, Jeff Goldblum, Jason Schwartzman, Tilda Swinton, Willem Dafoe, Bill Murray, Edward Norton, Harvey Keitel, Jude Law, Owen Wilson, Tom Wilkinson and Bob Balaban.
Armchair Smack: Anderson fans have been eagerly awaiting his next quirk-fest and this Continental art caper looks like it will not disappoint. It is worth a look for its grand feats in make-up, alone. It might seem to have more in common with the director’s travel adventure from a different continent, The Darjeeling Limited, but if Hotel has not opened in your city, we recommend streaming Anderson’s endlessly endearing Moonrise Kingdom.
300: Rise of an Empire
(Action)
Stars: Sullivan Stapleton, Eva Green, Lena Headey
Armchair Smack: In this new chapter of Frank Miller’s graphic novel saga, Greek general Themistokles fights against invading Persian forces led by Xerxes and Artemisia. Given the low-wattage star-power of this prequel/sequel, why not reacquaint yourself with the original 300 starring Gerard Butler and Michael Fassbender, instead?
Mr. Peabody & Sherman
(Animation)
Stars: Ty Burrell, Max Charles, Ariel Winter, Stephen Colbert and Leslie Mann
Armchair Smack: The brilliant canine hero and his adopted boy from the 1960s The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show comes to the big screen. We prefer the ’60s cartoon dog hero in the hilarious live-action Underdog, starring Peter Dinklage, Jason Lee and Amy Adams.
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New on Disc and Digital:Â Â
Oscar-winner 12 Years a Slave
(Drama)
Stars: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender, Brad Pitt, Benedict Cumberbatch and Best Supporting Actress Oscar-winner Lupita Nyong’o
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
(SciFi/Fantasy)
Stars:Â Jennifer Lawrence, Liam Hemsworth, Elizabeth Banks, Stanley Tucci
Hours
(Drama)
Stars:Â Paul Walker, Nick Gomez
Oldboy
(Drama)
Director: Spike Lee
Stars:Â Josh Brolin, Elizabeth Olsen
Actually, Liam, the sentence reads “Stars: A veritable who’s who of Oscar winners and nominees, *PLUS* director Wes Anderson’s usual suspects.” So, I think I covered it. 😉
Wes Anderson has never worked with F. Murray Abraham, Jude Law, Tom Wilkinson or Ralph Fiennes. So you’re wrong to call them usual suspects.