This time of the month comes with so many opportunities for entertainment that it's hard to pick just one. There's First Fridays, the Kansas City Ballet's Celebration of Dance, a footrace from Kansas City to Lawrence, even mixed martial arts and tribute-band blowout. So how do you pick what to do? We don't have the answer, but might suggest contemplating it all while watching a movie. Up To Date's always dependable Film Critics have plenty of indie, foreign and documentary films to recommend.
Cynthia Haines
"Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story," not rated
- You likely remember Hedy Lamarr as a glamorous Hollywood it-girl, but this documentary, written and directed by journalist Angela Dean, also explores the innovative and inventive legacy of "the most beautiful woman in the world," as she was often billed.
"1945," not rated
- In a Hungarian village shortly after World War II, a troubled clerk hopes his son's imminent wedding can help get the family back to normal. But an unexpected visit from two Jewish men with a mysterious trunk forces the town to worry over their wartime misdeeds.
"Leaning into the Wind," not rated
- This documentary explores the work of artist Andy Goldsworthy and the impact it's had on director Thomas Riedelsheimer's life. This film comes 16 years after "Rivers and Tides: Andy Goldsworthy Working with Time," another collaboration between this director and artist.
Steve Walker
"1945," not rated
- Shot in beautifully crisp black-and-white, this Hungarian film finds a microcosm of European tensions between nationalists, Russians and Jews in a small village on an important wedding day.
"Loveless," R
- Russia's bleak but captivating Oscar nominee for Best Foreign Language Film about a squabbling couple so self-absorbed with their phones and extra-marital affairs they don't notice their 12-year-old son has been missing for two days.
"The Death of Stalin," R
- The political satirist responsible for "Veep" and "In the Loop," Armando Iannucci, is at the helm of this morbidly entertaining comedy about Stalin's underlings jockeying for position after the leader's inconvenient, messy demise.
