By Michael O'Sullivan
"Argentina, 1985"
Despite a tone that's tidier and more deliberate than the average courtroom drama, Santiago Mitre's fact-based drama "Argentina, 1985" - which relates the civilian trial of the leaders of Argentina's military junta - manages to be a rousing crowd-pleaser.
Ricardo Darín plays Julio Strassera, the federal prosecutor whose methodical ways belie his nickname: "Loco."
Maybe Strassera was considered crazy for even taking the case, not to mention prosecuting it with a staff of young and untested assistants. And who would blame him for hesitating?
There were bomb and death threats at the time, and many in the conservative Catholic country were initially on the side of the defendants.
But slowly, over the course of the film, Strassera prevails in holding the officers to account for crimes that include extrajudicial kidnapping, torture and murder. (If there are fireworks here, they're the subdued but emotional statements of some of the junta's victims.)
It's a stirring if subtle true story: one whose outcome left the Strassera we meet in the film - and are rooting for throughout - somewhat disappointed. But that's only because this is a tale of justice, not vengeance.
As a member of Strassera's team puts it, "We'll give [the defendants] what they didn't give their victims: a fair trial."
"Dangerous Game: The Legacy Murders“
Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Jon Voight star in "Dangerous Game: The Legacy Murders," a suspense thriller about members of a family whose reunion at a remote mansion turns less festive when they find themselves trapped inside and are forced to play a deadly survival game.
"The Loneliest Boy in the World"
After the death of his mother, a sheltered boy (Max Harwood) creates a makeshift family by digging up corpses in the 1980s-set zombie comedy "The Loneliest Boy in the World“.
Except for a couple of brief throwaway moments, and some very welcome gore," RogerEbert.com says, the film never establishes a tone. Emilio Estevez also stars.
"The Pez Outlaw"
The documentary "The Pez Outlaw" follows the adventures of Steve Glew, a Michigan man who tried to make a killing by trafficking in rare European Pez dispensers until he ran afoul of the company bureaucracy.
The Hollywood Reporter says: "It's a hoot with a bit of heart, and if you can accept that the main character's actions ultimately hurt nobody - with the possible exception of a few Pez executives - its fizzy pleasures and compact running time are easy to enjoy."
"Raymond & Ray"
In "Raymond & Ray," Ethan Hawke and Ewan McGregor play very different half-brothers brought together by the death of their father, whose will directs them to dig his grave together.
Slant magazine calls the family dramedy "fastidious, tidy and lifeless." Unrated.
"Year One: A Political Odyssey"
The documentary "Year One: A Political Odyssey" looks at the art of diplomacy during the first year of the Biden administration.
According to the New York Times, "The film's skimping on economic and social issues echoes one description of Biden's own messaging by some pundits: low-key to the point of obscuring the full picture of his efforts."