#Middlebury
“Operation Red Sea” (NR) – Chinese director Dante Lam’s “Operation Red Sea” follows the heroic exploits of the Jiaolong Assault Team, China’s special forces brigade. Somali pirates threaten a cargo ship in the Red Sea, and with Chinese lives at stake, the eight-person strike force must swoop in and save the day. Then, as civil war destabilizes a country in the region, the force evacuates the embassy while foiling a weapons deal attempted by terrorists. Zhang Yi plays Yang Rui, the team leader of Jiaolong. OK, yes, this is a “Go, China!” military film, but if you get over that, you’ll realize it’s just soldiers doing their thing.
Ty Sheridan in “Ready Player One” (Warner Bros. Entertainment photo)
“Ready Player One” (PG-13) – Almost 30 years in the future, the real world has devolved into slums. Most residents take refuge in a communal virtual reality experience called the OASIS, a wonderland filled with unlimited possibility and hidden treats called Easter Eggs. The creator of this paradise designs a game to posthumously award control of the OASIS to his deserving successor. Ty Sheridan plays a gamer named Wade (aka Parzival) who manages, alongside a cadre of other rogue players, to capture the leaderboard in pursuit of the prize. It’s chock-a-block full of 1980s references. Although it’s based on the 2010 Ernest Cline novel, director Steven Spielberg made plenty of changes for the film – all with the author’s approval, of course.
“Little Pink House” (NR) – Ripped from the headlines, although maybe not the front page, “Little Pink House” follows the case of Susette Kelo (Catherine Keener), an ordinary Connecticut paramedic whose tiny slice of America – a little pink house with a river view in a working-class area – puts her in the David position to the Goliath that is big pharma and the statehouse. Real estate maven Charlotte Wells (Jeanne Tripplehorn) pilots a plan to snap up homes for redevelopment in a run-down area, including luxury condos and a new plant for Pfizer, but Kelo is a holdout. She organizes and petitions her case all the way to the Supreme Court. Callum Keith Rennie supports as Kelo’s boyfriend and handyman.
“The Con Is On” (R) – Harriet (Uma Thurman) and Peter (Tim Roth) are just a couple of sleek and interesting British con artists who owe a vicious gangster (Maggie Q) a ton of cash and are looking to score their restitution by stealing an expensive jewel from Peter’s ex-wife. The star power is impressive (along with Roth and Thurman, there’s Crispin Glover, Stephen Fry, Parker Posey, Sofia Vergara and Alice Eve), but the con is actually off, because something is just not working: too-cool characters with off-putting moral fiber, literal gallons of alcohol imbibed, eye-rolling or just inconsiderate comedic riffs and none of the good heist moments this genre is supposed to be offering.
New TV Releases
“Gravity Falls” The complete series
“When Calls the Heart: My Heart Is Yours” (Hallmark Channel)
“Spiral” Season 6
(c) 2018 King Features Synd. Inc.
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