FREEZE FRAME: “The Boss,” “Midnight Special,” “Mr. Right”

After viewing Melissa McCarthy’s goofy comedy “The Boss,” you may be tempted to say, “You’re fired!” McCarthy plays a self-centered business tycoon who gets busted for insider trading and attempts a comeback after her jail stint. The language is foul and the humor is as crass as it is broad. McCarthy’s comic skill is the movie’s only saving grace. To say “The Boss” is a slight improvement over McCarthy’s “Tammy” is damning with faint praise.

If you like “The X-Files,” then the involving sci-fi opus “Midnight Special” might be right up your alley. Michael Shannon, Joel Edgerton, Kirsten Dunst and Sam Shepard are part of a terrific cast that breathes life into the tale of a strange child whose supernatural gifts bring about conflict between a religious cult and the federal government. You probably won’t know where this strange tale is headed, and that’s a good thing.

Sam Rockwell and Anna Kendrick are charismatic actors but their considerable charms aren’t quite enough to save the overly wacky screwball comedy “Mr. Right.” Sam is a super skillful hitman who falls for the eccentric Anna who, it turns out, has some violent talents of her own. The bloody mayhem and quirky humor make for an uneasy mix and “Mr. Right” is never quite as clever as it thinks it is.

Also opening this week, Jake Gyllenhaal stars in the drama, “Demolition,” the story of a man who struggles to keep it together after his wife’s death. “Krisha” is an award-winning, low budget drama about an eccentric Texas woman who has family troubles at a Thanksgiving reunion. “Hardcore Henry” is a violent action flick where all of the action is seen through the eyes of a cyborg soldier. “Marguerite” is a French drama about a talentless, tone-deaf socialite who tries to break out as a singer. “Baskin” is a grisly cop horror flick.


Share This Episode