As you decompress from a stacked semester and those grueling final exams, take a well-earned respite with one of America’s most cherished pastimes-filmgoing during the holiday season. Whether it is by yourself or with loved ones, cinema provides the perfect platform to escape, entertain and compel, and these movies are sure to be a great balm for a weary post-semester soul looking for rejuvenating seasonal fun. There’s a little something transportive for everyone here, ranging from family-friend fare to sprawling epics to smaller-scale adult dramas.
The following are the most notable winter film releases:
Nov. 23:
Strange World
Jake Gyllenhaal, Dennis Quaid (The Day After Tomorrow, A Dog’s Purpose), Gabrielle Union (Bring It On, Bad Boys II) and Lucy Liu (Charlie’s Angels series, Kill Bill films) lend their voices to Disney’s latest animated offering. A rollicking adventure and ode to classic pulp serials, the movie is about a legendary family of explorers who must overcome their differences for their most imperative mission yet, navigating an uncharted, fraught and mythical land.
(PG/Theaters)
The Fabelmans
After last year’s rapturous and acclaimed remake of West Side Story, legendary director Steven Spielberg helms his most personal film to date, a semi-autobiographical coming-of-age story set in post-World War II era Arkansas. The young Sammy Fabelman (the narrative conduit for Spielberg) utilizes his passion for filmmaking to grapple with a turbulent family life, including his relationships with his supportive mother (Michelle Wiliams, The Greatest Showman) and frigid father (Paul Dano, The Batman), who are on the brink of divorce.
(PG-13/Theaters)
Devotion
If you are looking to scratch that Top Gun: Maverick itch, Jonathan Majors (The Harder They Fall) and Glen Powell (Top Gun: Maverick) headline this period war actioner as a duo of U.S. Navy fighter pilots who endure the Korean War to become some of the military’s most lauded wingmen. Expect exhilarating aerial sequences and a classically compelling story of honor and duty.
(PG-13/Theaters)
Dec. 2:
Violent Night
In this bloody, raucous and grungy take on yuletide mythology, Santa Claus (David Harbour, Stranger Things) must battle a group of mercenaries to free a wealthy family from captivity and save Christmas. This graphically violent exploitation picture won’t be for families, but it may satiate adult audiences looking for a more unconventional holiday feature.
(R/Theaters)
Dec. 9:
Emancipation
After being entrenched in the cultural conversation for the entire year since his Oscars incident, Will Smith leads this historical thriller as a runaway slave who treads the treacherous Louisiana swamps to escape vile plantation owners. Antoine Fuqua (Training Day, The Equalizer) directs.
(Rating TBD/Apple TV+)
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinochio
Oscar-winning visionary filmmaker Guillermo del Toro (The Shape of Water, Pan’s Labyrinth) spearheads this darker gothic interpretation of the classic fairytale of a wooden puppet who yearns to be a real boy, changing the setting to fascist Italy and using stunning stop-motion animation. The voice cast includes Ewan McGregor, Cate Blanchett, Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things) and Tilda Swinton (Doctor Strange).
(PG/Netflix)
Dec. 16:
Avatar: The Way of Water
After a 13-year hiatus, legendary director James Cameron ushers audiences back into the world of Pandora for this long-belated sequel to the groundbreaking 2009 smash hit. The original Avatar revolutionized blockbuster filmmaking and visual effects craft, and the follow-up seems to push those boundaries even further with mesmerizing spectacle and expansive worldbuilding. The plot follows Jake Sully (Sam Worthington, returning) and his newfound family, including Neytiri (Zoe Zalndana, returning), as they and the rest of the Na’vi race protect their planet from a resurfaced foe.
(Rating TBD/Theaters)
Dec. 21:
I Wanna Dance With Somebody
Naomi Ackie (Star Wars: Episode IX- The Rise of Skywalker, Netflix’s Master of None) is sure to give a show-stopping performance as R&B pop legend Whitney Houston in this musical biopic. Kassi Lemmons (Harriet) directs and Anthony McCarten (Bohemian Rhapsody, The Theory of Everything) pens this devastating yet uplifting portrait of a vocal sensation.
(Rating TBD/Theaters)
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
In this animated sequel to the 2011 Shrek spinoff, the ferocious, pint-sized and Zorro-esque feline Puss in Boots (voiced by Antonio Banderas, returning) embarks on a dire mystical quest to restore his nine lives when realizes he has burned through eight of them. Salma Hayek, Florence Pugh (Don’t Worry Darling, Black Widow), John Mulaney, Ray Winstone (Black Widow) and Olivia Colman (The Favourite, Amazon’s Fleabag) round out the voice cast.
(PG/Theaters)
Dec. 23:
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
In another subversive, biting and stylish entry in the Knives Out saga, famed Southern debonair detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig, returning) travels to Greece for his next scandalous case. The star-studded ensemble includes Edward Norton, Kate Hudson, Dave Bautista, Janelle Monáe, Kathryn Hahn (WandaVision), Leslie Odom Jr., and Jessica Henwick (The Gray Man, The Matrix Resurrections). Netflix recently acquired the rights to the burgeoning franchise, so you can watch this next chapter at home instead of traipsing out to theaters during the holidays.
(PG-13/Netflix)
Babylon
La La Land director Damien Chazelle returns to tinseltown for this glitzy Old Hollywood epic, chronicling a colorful cast of ambitious characters, played by the likes of Margot Robbie, Brad Pitt, Tobey Maguire and Jean Smart (HBO Max’s Hacks), as they navigate the industry’s tumultuous transition from silent films to talkies in the late 1920s. The film serves as a sharply contrasting companion piece to the filmmaker’s whimsical musical, rendering a darkly comedic examination of the depravity and obscene excesses of the era.
(Rating TBD/Theaters)
Dec. 25:
Women Talking
This angry and timely parable, adapted from the widely lauded novel by Miriam Toews, follows a group of women in an isolated religious colony in 2010 as they struggle to reconcile their faith with the harsh realities of the patriarchy after a string of sexual assaults perpetrated by the men of the community. Anticipate an artful film with riveting dialogue sequences and awards-worthy performances from Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Social Network), Claire Foy (Netflix’s The Crown), Jessie Buckley (The Lost Daughter, Men) and Ben Whishaw (Paddington films, No Time to Die).
(PG-13/Theaters)
Matilda the Musical
Matilda, a gifted young girl with great acuity and a vivid imagination, takes a stand against her negligent family and militant school headmistress Miss Trunchbull (an unrecognizable Emma Thompson) to miraculous results, all with the guidance of her compassionate teacher Miss Honey (Lashana Lynch, The Woman King). This buoyant toe-tapper is a cinematic iteration of the Tony-winning musical, itself adapted from the beloved Roald Dahl book.
(PG/Netflix)
Jan. 6:
M3GAN
In this horrifying slasher film with a technological twist, a brilliant robotics engineer (Allison Williams, Get Out) at a toy company creates a marvel of artificial intelligence called M3GAN, a lifelike doll designed for child care and companionship, and gifts it to her recently orphaned niece Katie, who is now in her custody. But when M3GAN becomes self-aware, she takes drastic and violent measures to “protect” Katie.
(Rating TBD/Theaters)
Photo Credit/Disney-Universal-Netflix-20th Century Studios-Paramount-United Artists Releasing-Sony
