The contentious relationship between renowned composer/conductor Leonard Bernstein and his wife Felicia is the focus of the biopic, “Maestro.” It’s in theaters now and on Netflix on December 20th. Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan will likely receive Oscar nominations for their impressive performances in this drama that deals with Bernstein’s musical obsessions and thinly veiled homosexuality. “Maestro” skims the surface in some respects, but it’s an impressive production, nonetheless.
Sharp acting from Thomasin McKenzie and Anne Hathaway almost provides enough reason to watch the disturbing psychological thriller, “Eileen.” Almost. McKenzie plays a young woman who becomes obsessed with a new psychologist at the prison where she works. The duo winds up engaging in a dark act of vigilantism. “Eileen” is very well made but excessively bleak.
And speaking of bleak, an impending disaster provides the background for the slow-burn Netflix drama, “Leave the World Behind.” Julia Roberts, Ethan Hawke and Mahershala Ali star in the tale of people on a weekend getaway who slowly begin to realize that something apocalyptic is occurring. It establishes a very creepy, uneasy tone but thematically “Leave the World Behind” tries to cover a bit too much ground.
The frenzied Amazon Prime animated farce “Merry Little Batman” is aimed squarely at preadolescent boys. When the Caped Crusader goes away on a mission at Christmastime, his 8-year-old son Damien tries to step in and battle The Joker, only to nearly ruin the holidays for everyone in Gotham. “Merry Little Batman” has a Saturday morning cartoon vibe that provides just what it aims for, a goofy good time for the tots.