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Vice,

directed by Adam McKay

(R, 2 hours, 12 minutes)

Christian Bale, a master at physically and verbally transforming himself into characters he plays, absolutely becomes the country's consummate power broker who starts out as a blundering, unlikable bureaucrat then, with the influence of his strategically focused wife (Amy Adams) and an array of cynical Washington insiders, rises through the cutthroat hierarchy of D.C. to become the scheming and influential vice president to George W. Bush.

There's subtle comedy here, along with outright black humor (which can be experienced as horror as much as anything else), as a sleazy array of government hotshots double-cross, back-stab, overpower, cheat, and enrich themselves at the expense of their cohort and the American people.

With Steve Carell, Sam Rockwell, Tyler Perry, Justin Kirk; directed by Adam McKay.

Bumblebee (PG-13, 1 hour, 54 minutes) A nostalgic and family-friendly spinoff from the concept of Transformer films involves what appears to be a beat-up Volkswagen bug, found abandoned in a California beach-town junkyard, that is revived by a sullen 18-year-old (a nicely crafted turn by Hailee Steinfeld) determined to find her place in the world after suffering the loss of her dad. With John Cena, John Ortiz, Jason Drucker, Pamela Adlon; directed by Travis Knight.

The Mule (R, 1 hour, 56 minutes) Clint Eastwood inhabits the role of a grumpy old war veteran -- the sort of character he relishes as he ages -- whose life is closing in on him. In his 80s, he's detached from his family and and faces the impending foreclosure of his business. Then, just it time, his clean criminal record, age, and life experiences qualify him for a job as a drug courier for a Mexican cartel. With Laurence Fishburne, Michael Pena, Dianne Wiest, Alison Eastwood, Bradley Cooper, Taissa Farmiga; directed by Eastwood.

The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then the Bigfoot (not rated, 1 hour, 38 minutes) This film is for fans of Sam Elliott (a considerable number of filmgoers). He's the reason to watch this curious story in which he plays (with a straight face) Calvin Barr, a renowned World War II military man responsible for the assassination of Adolf Hitler who is talked out of small-town retirement to pursue the next potential destroyer of the world: Bigfoot, hiding out in the Canadian wilderness and infected with a deadly plague. With Aidan Turner, Ron Livingston; written and directed by Robert D. Krzykowski.

Rust Creek (R, 1 hour, 48 minutes) Small in scale with a taut focus on characters and imagery that almost makes up for sluggish pacing, this rural drama involves Sawyer (Hermione Corfield), an ambitious college senior with big plans for the future until, while on her way to a job interview, a wrong turn leaves her stranded in the frozen Kentucky woods, where weather and outlaws threaten her well-organized existence. With Jay Paulson, Sean O'Bryan; directed by Jen McGowan.

Pledge (not rated, 1 hour, 17 minutes) Outrageously overwrought, sometimes funny, always brutal and skillfully assembled, this torture tale examines what it takes to belong when three college friends are invited to join an elite fraternity, if they can survive the horrific hazing that's coming. With Zachery Byrd, Aaron Dalla VIlla, Cameron Cowperthwaite; directed by Daniel Robbins.

Patrick (TV-14, 1 hour, 34 minutes) We've all had bad dogs. This comedy, although it lacks enough spirit to hold the audience's attention, takes advantage of an adorable canine's cuteness to tell an underpowered tale of a spoiled pug named Patrick, which Sarah (Beattie Edmondson), already muddled in a messy life, inherits from her grandmother. With Ed Skrein, Jennifer Saunders, Emily Atack, Emilia Jones; directed by Mandie Fletcher.

Egg (not rated, 1 hour, 30 minutes) Brutally honest, this no-holds-barred black comedy pits two couples and a surrogate who get together for what's expected to be an agreeably social get-together but descends into a knock-down drag-out battle that forces each of them to face their ridiculous and sometimes heartbreaking shortcomings. With Christina Hendricks (Mad Men), Alysia Reiner (Orange Is the New Black), David Alan Basche, Gbenga Akinnagbe (The Deuce), Anna Camp; directed by Marianna Palka.

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Vice

MovieStyle on 04/05/2019

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