Disney’s ongoing effort to create live-action versions of its animated classics continues with “Aladdin.” Will Smith steps into Robin Williams’ genie shoes for this eye-popping musical extravaganza.
Director Guy Ritchie is best known for his frenetic action movies and he brings that sensibility to this busy enterprise. It doesn’t capture the magic of the original, but this “Aladdin” is a likable family flick.
The teen comedy “Booksmart” is shamelessly raunchy but lives up to its lofty title. In this sharply written farce, Kaitlyn Dever and Beanie Feldstein play two well-behaved high school seniors who are at the top of their class. On the night before graduation, however, they decide to cut loose just once and enjoy a night of outrageous debauchery.
“Booksmart” plays like a female version of “Superbad.” The dialogue is clever, the performances are fresh and Olivia Wild shows real finesse in her directorial debut. You may feel guilty for laughing at this brazen entry, but laugh you will.
Also opening this week, “Brightburn” is a something of a bizarro upending of the Superman myth. Elizabeth Banks and David Denman star in the story of a boy from outer space whose ship lands on a Kansas farm. Instead of being altruistic, this superboy is evil. “The White Crow” is a drama inspired by the life of famed Russian ballet dancer Rudolph Nureyev who defected to the West in 1961. Olkeg Ivenko plays Nureyev. Ralph Fiennes directs and plays a supporting role as well. “Photograph” is a story set in India about a photographer who asks a stranger to pose as his fiancée in order to placate his relatives. “Non-Fiction” is a comedy romance from France about a writer who blurs the line between truth and fiction. Juliette Binoche stars. “Biggest Little Farm” is a documentary about the ups and downs of people who attempt to live off the land.
