In the age of streaming entertainment, it can be hard to leave the couch. But movie theaters still offer a special experience for those willing to get out of the house. Want to see what's out there? Read on for this week's lineup of acclaimed movies showing on the big screen in and around Phoenix.
Here are the highest rated films to catch, based on critical scores sourced from review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. (Movie descriptions courtesy The Movie Database; showtimes via Fandango.)
Can You Ever Forgive Me?
When bestselling celebrity biographer Lee Israel is no longer able to get published because she has fallen out of step with current tastes, she turns her art form to deception, and abetted by her loyal friend Jack.
Boasting a critical approval rating of 98 percent and an audience score of 85 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, "Can You Ever Forgive Me?" has gotten stellar reviews since its release on October 19. The site's critical consensus indicates that "deftly directed and laced with dark wit, 'Can You Ever Forgive Me?' proves a compelling showcase for deeply affecting work from Richard E. Grant and Melissa McCarthy."
It's playing at AMC Arizona Center 24 (565 N. Third St.) through Thursday, Dec. 6 and AMC Ahwatukee 24 (4915 E. Ray Road) through Wednesday, Dec. 5. Click here for showtimes and tickets.
Schindler's List
The true story of how businessman Oskar Schindler saved over a thousand Jewish lives from the Nazis while they worked as slaves in his factory during World War II.
With a 97 percent critical approval rating and an audience score of 85 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, this 1993 release is a critical darling. According to the site's critical consensus, "'Schindler's List' blends the abject horror of the Holocaust with Steven Spielberg's signature tender humanism to create the director's dramatic masterpiece."
Catch it on the big screen at Harkins Norterra 14 (2550 W. Happy Valley Road) through Monday, Dec. 10. Click here for showtimes and tickets.
The Hate U Give
Raised in a poverty-stricken slum, a 16-year-old girl named Starr now attends a suburban prep school. After she witnesses a police officer shoot her unarmed best friend, and she's torn between her two very different worlds as she tries to speak her truth.
With a 97 percent critical approval rating and an audience score of 78 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, "The Hate U Give" has proven to be a critical darling since its release on October 19. The site's critical consensus notes that "Led by a breakout turn from Amandla Stenberg, the hard-hitting 'The Hate U Give' emphatically proves the YA genre has room for much more than magic and romance."
It's screening at AMC Arizona Center 24 (565 N. Third St.) through Wednesday, Dec. 5. Click here for showtimes and tickets.
A Woman Under the Influence
Mabel Longhetti, desperate and lonely, is married to a Los Angeles municipal construction worker, Nick. Increasingly unstable, especially in the company of others, she craves happiness, but her extremely volatile behavior convinces Nick that she poses a danger to their family and decides to commit her to an institution for six months. Alone with a trio of kids to raise on his own, he awaits her return, which holds more than a few surprises.
With a critical approval rating of 95 percent and an audience score of 92 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, this '70s throwback has become a favorite. The site's critical consensus notes that "electrified by searing performances from Gena Rowlands and Peter Falk, 'A Woman Under the Influence' finds pioneering independent filmmaker John Cassavetes working at his artistic peak."
Get a piece of the action at FilmBar (815 N. Second St.) on Sunday, Dec. 9. Click here for showtimes and tickets.
Heathers
A girl who halfheartedly tries to be part of the "in crowd" of her school meets a rebel who teaches her a more devious way to play social politics: by killing the popular kids.
With a 94 percent critical approval rating and an audience score of 84 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, this '80s throwback is not to be missed. The site's critical consensus has it that "Dark, cynical, and subversive, Heathers gently applies a chainsaw to the conventions of the high school movie -- changing the game for teen comedies to follow."
It's screening at FilmBar (815 N. Second St.) through Thursday, Dec. 6. Click here for showtimes and tickets.
