Marvel’s "Thor: Ragnarok" may overshadow all other films opening this weekend, but if the lines are too long there are plenty more films to choose from.
Although I was unable to preview “Thor: Ragnorak” in order to write a review (Halloween home haunting distracted me), I do want to give a shout out to Marvel for thinking outside the Hollywood box and hiring Kiwi director Taika Waititi to direct the action blockbuster.
I can't wait to check out the film with the inventive Waititi at the helm. He gave us the wickedly funny mockumentary “What We Do In The Shadows” in 2014 and I am looking forward to what he will bring to the Marvel franchise. Score one for the little guy who's loaded with talent. What's next, Edgar Wright directing James Bond?
Action of a very different kind can be found in “Blade of the Immortal,” the 100th film from Japan’s deliciously twisted Takashi Miike. The film follows a samurai cursed with immortality and his attempt to win back his soul. The action is fast and ferocious and the film is riveting in ways only Miike can mastermind.
You can also find work from another master craftsman this weekend with the opening of Yorgos Lanthimos’ “The Killing of a Sacred Deer.” The Greek director has little concern for convention or the comfort of the viewer. His latest film is a creepily unnerving morality tale.
And finally something lighter and unexpectedly sweet from director Todd Haynes, "Wonderstruck." The film follows two protagonists separated by decades but both set in New York and linked by the fact that both young characters cannot hear. Haynes' choices in depicting their silent worlds will leave you wonderstruck.
So plenty to choose from this weekend besides superheroes.
