Capsule reviews for Dec. 11

Archenemy

Some ambitious visual and narrative concepts are buried beneath the genre conventions of this low-budget thriller from director Adam Egypt Mortimer (Daniel Isn’t Real). It centers an alcoholic drifter (Joe Manganiello) claiming to be a superhero from another dimension, whose escape to Earth has robbed him of all his powers. Everyone dismisses his story except for Hamster (Skylan Brooks), a teenage journalist looking for a viral scoop. As they try to offer proof, they become entangled with drug dealers threatening Hamster’s sister (Zolee Griggs). Mortimer imaginatively weaves together a gritty urban milieu with comic-style animation, but his predictable story isn’t nearly as edgy or bold. (Not rated, 90 minutes).

Assassins

Even if it raises more questions than it ultimately answers, this documentary offers a captivating deep-dive into the brazen 2017 murder of the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Executed in broad daylight in a crowded Malaysian airport with a deadly chemical weapon, the killing is pinned on two young women caught on security footage. But their subsequent trial reveals they may have been pawns in an elaborate assassination plot perpetrated by Kim himself. We’ll likely never know the definitive truth, but director Ryan White (Ask Dr. Ruth) compiles evidence and fresh interview footage into a slick exploration of motives, suspicions, and geopolitical ramifications. (Not rated, 104 minutes).

Farewell Amor

An incisive examination of the African immigrant experience, this tender low-budget drama also offers an intimate look at how tradition and distance strain already fragile family bonds. Taxi driver Walter (Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine) has been living in New York for 17 years by the time his wife, Esther (Zainab Jah), and teenage daughter, Sylvia (Jayme Lawson), join him from Angola. Cramped inside a tiny apartment, the trio’s reunion is threatened by financial hardships, Esther struggles with maintaining religious customs, and Sylvia adapting her love of dance to new surroundings. Rookie director Ekwa Msangi overcomes some formulaic tendencies with rich character details both specific and universal. (Not rated, 101 minutes).

Finding Yingying

While it can’t decide what type of documentary it wants to be, this glimpse into a missing-persons case involving a Chinese scholar and her desperate family remains emotionally captivating. Rookie filmmaker Jenny Shi was a former classmate of Yingying before she disappeared suddenly in 2017 while studying at the University of Illinois. Shi’s movie starts as a procedural about the case before pivoting to more of a portrait of Yingying’s family and legacy. The details are powerful, although Shi misses an opportunity to dive deeper into the cultural and sociopolitical ramifications of the story, or into the legal fallout. Still, it carries a haunting resonance. (Not rated, 95 minutes).

Minari

Specific in its time and place, yet universally resonant in its portrayal of a family in flux, this autobiographical drama from director Lee Isaac Chung (Abigail Harm) is both authentic and heartwarming. Jacob (Steven Yeun) is a Korean immigrant who moves family to rural Arkansas during the early 1980s follow his American Dream of starting a farm. Between the culture shock and the socioeconomic struggles, Jacob’s wife (Yeri Han), two small children, and eccentric mother-in-law (Yuh-jung Youn) struggle to adjust. A terrific ensemble cast lends depth to characters who are charming but flawed. Meanwhile, Chung’s compassionate and richly textured screenplay doesn’t settle for stereotypes or sentimentality. (Rated PG-13, 115 minutes).

Parallel

Genre aficionados will best appreciate this ambitious journey into the science-fiction “multiverse” from Mexican director Isaac Ezban. It chronicles aspiring tech entrepreneurs Devin (Aml Ameen) and Noel (Martin Wallstrom), who discover the house they share with roommates contains a hidden mirror, behind which is a portal to parallel universes, and thus clones of themselves. Danger ensues when they try to exploit their new discovery for personal and financial gain. The film brings stylish conviction to its futuristic landscape, although the screenplay muddles its concept with a series of twists that becomes progressively more convoluted. While the characters might leap between dimensions, our emotional involvement doesn’t follow. (Not rated, 104 minutes).

Safety

Despite its crowd-pleasing strategy, this inspirational true-life football saga from director Reginald Hudlin (Marshall) doesn’t make enough winning plays. It chronicles Ray McElrathbey (Jay Reeves), a talented Clemson freshman fighting to earn playing time when suddenly he’s forced to care for his preteen brother (Thaddeus Mixson) after their drug-addicted mother is sent to rehab. Trying to hide the youngster from coaches and teammates, the resilient Ray risks his future for his family. The well-acted film carries a heartfelt message, although the script is too sanitized and commercialized for its darker underlying themes to carry the desired emotional impact. The result falls short of the goal line. (Rated PG, 119 minutes).

Songbird

When you take away the topicality of the premise, this dystopian thriller is neither provocative nor harrowing. It’s set a few years into the future, when the coronavirus has mutated and turned American cities into barren wastelands. Most survivors are permanently quarantined, either in their homes or in group camps for the infected. The film tells intertwining stories of those trying to cope or capitalize on the desperation, including a courier (K.J. Apa) who is immune but will do anything to see his girlfriend (Sofia Carson) again. Trying to prey upon contemporary paranoia, the result remains so detached from reality that it plays as cheap exploitation. (Rated PG-13, 85 minutes).

The Stand In

With sitcom-level depth and labored jokes, this comedy squanders a charismatic dual performance by Drew Barrymore and a premise ripe for self-aware satire. Barrymore plays a pampered Hollywood comedy icon whose on-set meltdown leads to backlash, prompting her to drink heavily and withdraw from public life. When she’s required to attend court-ordered rehab, however, she arranges a deal with her long-suffering stand-in, who winds up taking the arrangement too far when she gets her own taste of fame. Although director Jamie Babbit (But I’m a Cheerleader) brings some visual flair to the lackluster material, it never remains grounded enough to manage consistent laughs or charm. (Rated R, 101 minutes).

Wander Darkly

Straddling a line between clever and manipulative, this chronologically jumbled relationship drama ultimately isn’t a puzzle worth solving. It follows Adrienne (Sienna Miller), a troubled Los Angeles artist and mother of a newborn who gets involved in a serious car crash with her husband (Diego Luna). That sends Adrienne on a downward spiral blending past and present, during which she walks around like a ghost and otherwise hallucinates about death. The performances are audacious and the visual approach is striking. However, as the fragmented screenplay by director Tara Miele jumps between fantasy and reality, it attempts to confront weighty topics without establishing a sufficient emotional foothold. (Rated R, 97 minutes).