Movies: ‘Manchester by the Sea,’ ‘Mifune,’ ‘Moana’

OPENING FRIDAY

“Befikre”

Not reviewed. (Not rated, 2:30)

In search of adventure, an Indian man (Ranveer Singh) goes to Paris and meets an intriguing woman (Vaani Kapoor). In Hindi with English subtitles. Dole Cannery

“The Bounce Back”

Not reviewed. (PG-13, 1:44)

Romantic comedy about a man on a book tour (Matthew Taylor) who encounters an outspoken therapist (Kristin Peralta) who suspects he’s a fake. Dole Cannery

“Dhruva”

Not reviewed. (Not rated, 2:45)

An Indian police officer takes on a criminal in cahoots with industrialists and politicians who have conspired to raise the cost of medicines. Dole Cannery

“Manchester by the Sea”

“Mifune”

“Miss Sloane”

“Office Christmas Party”

NOW PLAYING

“Allied” ***

Loosely based on real events, “Allied” has 1940s spies Max and Marianne (Brad Pitt and Marion Cotillard, generating heat) first on a mission in Casablanca, then assuming a normal married life in London. When British intelligence informs Max that Marianne is suspected of being a German double agent, he sets out to prove her innocent. (R, 2:04)

“Almost Christmas” **1/2

Besides a craving for Christmas cheer, the major reason to see “Almost Christmas” is Mo’Nique as the eccentric Aunt May of the Meyers clan, which has gathered for the holidays in the wake of a matriarch’s passing. (PG, 1:52)

“Arrival” ****

Amy Adams portrays linguistics professor Louise Banks, recruited by the military to establish a conversation with aliens who have landed on Earth. She teams with mathematician Ian Donnelly, played by Jeremy Renner. Both are excellent throughout, while addressing topics such as the challenge of communicating with beings whose language is a mystery, and the way international politics can create pressure to cut short scientific problem-solving. (PG-13, 1:56)

“Bad Santa 2” *

Sometimes being sophomoric, transgressive and unimaginative isn’t enough. That’s the problem with “Bad Santa 2,” the dismal sequel to the 2003 hit “Bad Santa,” which merrily trashed the holiday season. The three principals are back: Billy Bob Thornton as the drunken, ne’er-do-well Willie Soke, a department store Santa; Tony Cox as hot-tempered Marcus; and Brett Kelly as the adult bully victim. The main addition to the cast, Kathy Bates as Willie’s down-and-dirty mom, provides the movie’s only spark. (R, 1:32)

“Believe”

Not reviewed (PG, 2:00)

When a man meets a boy who believes in miracles, he must choose between selfish goals and opening his heart. Dole Cannery

“Bleed for This” *** 1/2

“Bleed for This” recounts the story of Vinny Pazienza, a tough Italian-American kid from Providence, R.I., played by Miles Teller, who completely convinces us of Vinny’s affability, flaws and steely determination. After getting whipped, he turns to a hard-drinking trainer (a very good Aaron Eckhart) for help. Vinny’s future looks good until an accident puts him in a metal neck brace. In a superhuman display of will, he begins training again, securing a title match against the legendary Roberto Duran. (R, 1:56)

“Doctor Strange” ****

Dr. Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) is the world’s most accomplished and egotistical surgeon when an accident mangles his hands and ends his career. Traditional medicine to fix the problem falls short, leaving Strange searching for unorthodox ways of healing. Those efforts unlock mystical powers that turn the man of medicine into a force to protect Earth from supernatural assaults. (PG-13, 2:10)

“The Eagle Huntress” ***

The story of 13-year-old Mongolian girl Aisholpan, who becomes the first girl to join her father’s long line of eagle hunters in a harsh and beautiful landscape, is a thrilling fable of indomitability and father-daughter companionship, crafted to be accessible, with subtitled dialogue supplemented by gently didactic voice-over narration, read by the British actress Daisy Ridley (Rey of “Star Wars” ). Aisholpan has the power to inspire girls (and not only girls) everywhere, and Otto Bell’s documentary may turn her into a pop-culture heroine. (G, 1:27) Kahala

“The Edge of Seventeen” ***

Nadine (Hailee Steinfeld), a sarcastic and perpetually aggrieved young woman, exists on the peripheries of the high school ecosystem. It’s been this way since childhood, and hasn’t been helped by the fact that her brother Darian (Blake Jenner) is a popular athlete and a decent person. When her best friend, Krista (Haley Lu Richardson), takes up with him, Nadine is sent into a spiral of action and self-discovery. (R, 1:24)

“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” ***

Protagonist Newt Scamander, as played by Eddie Redmayne, is amiable, sheepish and surprisingly capable — as if he’s trying to channel Harry, Ron and Hermione from the “Harry Potter” series all at the same time. His allies are a trio of adults: comic relief Jacob (Dan Fogler), psychic Queenie (Alison Sudol) and overachieving witch Porpentia (Katherine Waterston). Scamander is sent to wrangle magical beasts, who are being spotted by the paranoid No-Maj crowd (American for “muggle,” or “humans with no special powers” ). The plot is convoluted, but the movie feels like cramming for an exam from the coolest textbook, guided by the most engaging professor at the school. (PG-13, 2:13)

“Hacksaw Ridge” ***

Starring Andrew Garfield as real-life soldier Desmond Doss, Mel Gibson’s “Hacksaw Ridge” strikes an unusual balance. It’s a violent film whose hero espouses nonviolence, and a war film that will appeal to a religious audience. Doss experienced beatings, harassment and ultimately a court-martial over his beliefs before being thrust into the brutal battle at Hacksaw Ridge on Okinawa and becomes a hero. (R, 2:18)

“Incarnate”

Not reviewed.

An exorcist (Aaron Eckhart) encounters a boy possessed by a demon. (PG-13, 1:27)

“Loving” ***

Filmmaker Jeff Nichols displays his talent for telling stories from fresh perspectives in “Loving,” a deeply affecting drama about the 1967 U.S. Supreme Court decision that invalidated state laws prohibiting interracial marriage. Joel Edgerton (“Warrior” ) and Ruth Negga (“Preacher” ) burn intensely on screen as Richard and Mildred Loving, the celebrated couple — he was white, she African-American — who were arrested in 1958 at their Virginia home shortly after they drove up to Washington to get married. (PG-13, 2:03)

“Moana” ***

Those fretting over the depiction of Polynesian cultures in “Moana” shouldn’t trouble themselves. The movie itself is not realistic. It’s fantasy, magical, with a cave of magic canoes and an anthropomorphic ocean. Kamehameha Schools student Auli‘i Cravalho does a wonderful job as the voice of Moana, bringing depth and heart to the character. Moana feels the ocean is calling to her, but her father, Chief Tui (Temuera Morrison), forbids her to set sail. Suddenly, her island has no fish, and coconuts become infected with a blight, so Moana jumps on a canoe and sets sail. Her quest includes finding the powerful Maui (Dwayne Johnson), returning a green stone heart to a creation goddess, learning wayfinding and stopping the blight. Maui, meanwhile, needs to get his magic fis**ook back, but what he really wants is for mortals to admire him for his wondrous feats. (PG, 1:53)

“Man Down” **

Is this science fiction? Psychological drama? War thriller? All of the above? Competing storylines are meant to give “Man Down” a teasing tension, but they all play out so laboriously that interest is drained long before all the dots are connected. To his credit, a beefed-up Shia LaBeouf throws himself into the starring role with fervor, and Clint Mansell’s score bears a haunting beauty. But it’s not enough to save “Man Down.”(R, 1:32)

“Nocturnal Animals” ***

Adapter-director Tom Ford sets up three distinct narratives, interweaving the life of unhappy art dealer Susan (Amy Adams) in the present with grad-school flashbacks depicting her time with a promising, dreamy novelist (Jake Gyllenhaal). Then there’s his new novel, which plays out in “Nocturnal Animals” as a violent, vindictive movie within a movie. Gyllenhaal and Isla Fisher are the city couple, traveling by car with their teenage daughter (Ellie Bamber) one dark West Texas night. They’re terrorized by a group of thugs led by Aaron Taylor-Johnson. Rape, murder and retribution all get their due in this nightmare yarn, which has the primary benefit of giving Michael Shannon, in one of his very best performances, the role of a laconic police detective who, as he says, “looks into things around here.” But where is “here,” exactly? Ford’s critique of this world is dicey; as a director, he’s a bit of a hypocrite, damning the tragic glamour even as he’s drooling over it. (R, 1:57)

“Trolls” **1/2

Justin Timberlake voices Branch, a misanthropic troll who just doesn’t fit in with his dancing, singing brethren. His foil, Princess Poppy (Anna Kendrick), bursts with a weaponized sense of joy, forcing her subjects into an oppressive regime of glittery glee, replete with Top 40 hits. When they team up to save some of their troll friends plucked out of the rave by the evil Bergen Chef (Christine Baranski), they have to meet in the middle. (PG, 1:32)

“The Unmarried Wife”

Not reviewed

Filipino film follows the story of Anne (Angelica Panganiban), who finds that her husband, Geoff (Dingdong Dantes), cheated and finds solace with Bryan (Paulo Avelino). (Not rated, 2:10)

SPECIAL SCREENINGS

“The Polar Express”

12:20 p.m. today in Imax 3D, Dole Cannery, $15/$18; 10 a.m. Saturday, “pajama party” at Olino and Ward, $10 (G, 1:40)

A young boy is whisked away on the Polar Express to meet Santa.

Bolshoi Ballet: “The Nutcracker”

12:30 p.m. Sunday, Kahala, $20 (PG, 2:15)

Moscow troupe’s performance of the holiday-themed ballet.

“Labyrinth”

7 and 10 p.m. Wednesday, Olino and Ward, $10 (PG, 1:41)

The 1986 film starring David Bowie as a goblin king and Jennifer Connelly as the teen who tries to rescue her baby brother from his lair.

ARTHOUSE

DORIS DUKE THEATRE

Honolulu Museum of Art, 900 S. Beretania St. (532-8768, honolulu­museum.org); $10, $8 members

Honolulu Surf Film Festival: Winter Break 2016

>> “Shorebreak: The Clark Little Story”

1 p.m. Friday

Renowned water photographer Clark Little shares insider tips and techniques as he takes on dangerous shorebreaks across Oahu in his efforts to capture the perfect photographs, some of which have been displayed in the Smithsonian. (2016, 0:55)

>> “Axi Muniain: El Nino”

7:30 p.m. today and Wednesday

Two surfers in search of El Nino action join fellow big-wave riders as they attempt to surf some of the most famous spots in the world. In Spanish with English subtitles. (2016, Spain, 0:40)

>> “Sorria”

1 p.m. Sunday and Wednesday

Brazilian filmmaker Gabriel Novis showcases a new generation of Brazilian surfers as they take on waves in Indonesia, Mexico, Hawaii and California. In Portuguese with English subtitles. (2016, Brazil, 0:42)

Screens with: “Com Amor, Yago”

Join Brazilian surfer Yago Dora during an adventure in Venice Beach, Calif., with director Novis. (2016, Brazil, 0:11)

>> “Saltwater Buddha”

4 p.m. Sunday

Air Force brat Jaimal Yogis escapes his frustrating teen life in the suburbs of Sacramento, Calif., and heads to Hawaii with only a copy of Hermann Hesse’s “Siddhartha” and just enough cash for a surfboard. Based on Yogis’ internationally acclaimed memoir. (2015, 1:00)

>> “Gaza Surf Club”

7:30 p.m. Sunday; and 1 and 7:30 p.m. Tuesday

On the Gaza strip of land along the Mediterranean coastline, a small movement in Gaza City is stirring within the surf community as approximately 40 surfboards are brought into the country over the years. The boards provide the city folk with a slice of freedom despite Gaza’s strict sanctions and the depressing reality of being surrounded by an Israeli-controlled marine border. In English and Arabic with English subtitles. (2016, Germany/Palestine, 1:27)

>> “View From a Blue Moon”

7:30 p.m. Monday

Director Blake Vincent Kueny showcases Hawaii’s John John Florence and his friends over a three-year period in which he surfs the world’s best waves. (2015, 0:59)

“The Curious World of Hieronymus Bosch”

1 and 7:30 p.m. Thursday

Director David Bickerstaff explores the exhibition “Jheronimus Bosch: Visions of Genius” in the Het Noordbrabants Museum in the Netherlands, which brought most of Bosch’s paintings and drawings together for the first time to his hometown and attracted nearly half a million art lovers from all over the world. (2016, U.K./Netherlands, 1:30)

MOVIE MUSEUM

3566 Harding Ave. (735-8771); $5, $4 members

“The Little House” (“Chiisai Ouchi”)

11:15 a.m., and 3:45 and 6:15 p.m. today. For ages 12 and older. In Japanese with English subtitles. (2014, Japan, 2:17)

“Avis De Mistral” (“Our Summer in Provence”)

1:45 and 8:45 p.m. today; and 1:30 and 6:45 p.m. Saturday. For ages 12 and older. In French with English subtitles. (2014, France, 1:44)

“Don’t Breathe”

11:45 a.m., and 3:30, 5 and 8:45 p.m. Saturday. Rated R. (2016, 1:28)

“After the Flowers”

11:30 a.m., and 3:15 and 7 p.m. Sunday. For ages 12 and older. In Japanese with English titles. (2010, Japan, 1:49)

“After the Rain” (“Ame Agaru”)

1:30, 5:15 and 9 p.m. Sunday. For ages 12 and older. In Japanese with English subtitles. (1999, Japan, 1:31)

“Yoyo”

11:30 a.m., and 3:15 and 7 p.m. Monday. For all ages. In French with English subtitles. (1965, France, 1:38)

“Postman to Heaven”

1:15, 5 and 8:45 p.m. Monday. For ages 12 and older. In Korean with English subtitles. (2009, South Korea/Japan, 1:47)

“Patisserie Coin De Rue” (“Yougashiten koandoru”)

11 a.m., and 3, 5 and 9 p.m. Thursday. For ages 12 and older. In Japanese with English subtitles. (2011, Japan, 1:56)

“Chonmage Purin”

1 and 7 p.m. Thursday. For ages 10 and older. In Japanese with English subtitles. (2010, Japan, 1:48)