Photo © Paramount Pictures
Mean Girls film still
‘Mean Girls’
The Beekeeper
(In Theaters Jan. 12)
Jason Statham appears in this R-rated, pulpy actioner as retired black ops beekeeper, Adam Clay. He’s obliged to bring his skill set out of mothballs after an innocent woman Clay cares for, falls prey to a reprehensible scam. It’s a sophisticated ring of con artists run by Derek (Josh Hutcherson) and operating freely because Derek is the son of the U.S. President (Jemma Redgrave). Jeremy Irons portrays former CIA director Wallace and the president’s fixer. With Clay systematically eliminating Derek’s underlings, Wallace calls in a small army of mercenaries to stop Clay’s rampage. Clay’s comically brutal means of punishing the deserving entertain and contrast Wallace’s shadowy silhouette, as Iron’s velvety voice issues kill orders. Following the good-guy, bad-guy wish-fulfillment formula, this one calls for a large popcorn. (Lisa Miller)
The Book of Clarence
(In Theaters Jan. 12)
Mixing satire and faith into the schemes of a wanna-be Messiah, writer-director Jeymes Samuel’s Biblical epic features a nearly all-black cast. LaKeith Stanfield appears as Clarence, a non-believing, Christ-envier, who seizes the opportunity for enriching himself by posing as a proselytizing preacher. Along the way, Clarence comes to believe in his mission of faith, despite being dropped into a disco-dancing sketch and other anachronistic musical events. Marianne Jean-Baptiste portrays his wise mother, while LaKeith also takes on the role of Clarence’s twin brother Thomas, one of Christ’s apostles. James McAvoy appears as Pontius Pilate, while Benedict Cumberbatch is all but disguised as a homeless beggar, repeatedly attacked and robbed. Sermonizing takes a back seat to Christian values and the satisfaction derived from helping others. (Lisa Miller)
Into the Weeds
(Film Movement DVD)
In the 1970s, Monsanto, a transnational chemical corporation, introduced Roundup, a widely used weed killer. Turns out it killed more than weeds by triggering cancer. Into the Weeds follows the class action suit led by a committee of U.S. attorneys to sue the chemical giant for damages. We hear from a number of Roundup victims, but the documentary focuses on Dewayne “Lee” Johnson, who became a lead plaintiff. Canadian director Jennifer Baichwal composed the film with an eye toward the widest relevance, tying Roundup’s human victims to the environmental damage caused by toxins. One of the film’s points: why was this case pursued by activist attorneys, not the U.S. Justice. Department? (David Luhrssen)
Mean Girls
(In Theaters & Streaming on VUDU, Jan. 12)
This version of Mean Girls retools the film into a musical. A 2004 film was adapted from Rosalind Wiseman’s 2002 book Queen Bees and Wannabes. That film was adapted into a Broadway musical which in turn, is adapted here, with a script by Tina Fey, for the screen. Some songs are cut, and a few are added, while Fey and Tim Meadows reprise their roles from the earlier film. Amid all this mixing and matching, the story is updated to reflect the social-media age. Cady Heron (Angourie Rice) is a new girl at school when she abandons her first friends to join the popular girl clique. They are ruled by Regina (Reneé Rapp), with Gretchen (Bebe Wood) and Karen (Avantika) as minions. After Cady falls for Regina’s ex-boyfriend Aaron (Christopher Briney), she is jettisoned from the popular-girl group and targeted by them for humiliation. Cady sets out to expose the popular girls as conniving and mean, with help from her original friends Janis (Auli’i Cravalho) and Damian (Jaquel Spivey). Directed by Samantha Jayne and Arturo Perez Jr. in their feature film debut, the PG-13 rating appropriately reflects its teen demographic while giving those who survived high school, reasons to be grateful. (Lisa Miller)
