FREEZE FRAME: “Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie,” “Hunt for the Wilderpeople”

From 1991 to 2012, the hard drinking, hard partying fashionistas from British TV’s popular sitcom “Absolutely Fabulous” had worldwide audiences laughing at their narcissistic antics. Jennifer Saunders and Joanna Lumley have returned for “Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie,” a breezy farce that has Edina and Patsy fleeing to the South of France when they’re accused of drowning model Kate Moss. Fans of show will be happy to know that the girls are as amusingly clueless as ever as they enter their self-interested senior years. However, those unfamiliar with the original show will undoubtedly wonder what all of the fuss was about.

Sam Neill and newcomer Julian Dennison star in the wacky coming of age comedy from New Zealand, “Hunt for the Wilderpeople.” Dennison plays Ricky, a young delinquent brought up in foster care who is sent to live with an older couple in a rural bush area. When the woman suddenly dies, Ricky and the sixty-something Hec, played by Neill, run into the mountains to evade the authorities that want to remove the boy from the elderly man’s care. Writer/director Taika Waititi, known for his collaborations with the musical comedy group “Flight of the Conchords,” puts the emphasis on offbeat, eccentric humor instead of realism. As a result, the film isn’t as touching as it might have been. Still, “Hunt for the Wilderpeople” is a likable, lighthearted comedy that establishes a certain wacky charm.

Also opening this week, the crew from the rebooted “Star Trek” franchise returns for the third time with “Star Trek Beyond.” This time out, director Justin Lin of the “Fast and Furious” franchise puts his action stamp on the series. The prehistoric cartoon clan returns for their fifth outing, “Ice Age: Collision Course.” “Lights Out” is a horror entry about a homicidal supernatural entity that moves in and out of the shadows.

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