Blue Beetle Credit: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

new in theaters

A HAUNTING IN VENICE: Kenneth Branagh returns as detective Hercule Poirot in this Agatha Christie adaptation, set after World War II. With Michelle Yeoh, Jamie Dornan and Tina Fey; Branagh directed. (103 min, PG-13. Essex, Majestic, Palace, Paramount, Star, Sunset)

THE INVENTOR: Stephen Fry voices Leonardo da Vinci in this animation about the Renaissance innovator, also featuring Daisy Ridley and Marion Cotillard. Jim Capobianco and Pierre-Luc Granjon directed. (92 min, PG. Palace)

THE RETIREMENT PLAN: Nicolas Cage plays a tough guy turned beach bum who comes out of retirement to get his daughter out of a jam in Tim Brown’s action comedy. (103 min, R. Palace, Star)

currently playing

ARISTOTLE AND DANTE DISCOVER THE SECRETS OF THE UNIVERSE ★★★1/2 Two Mexican American teens find friendship in this adaptation of Benjamin Alire Sáenz’s novel. (96 min, PG-13. Palace)

BARBIE ★★★★ Margot Robbie plays the Mattel toy as she experiences her first-ever existential crisis. (114 min, PG-13. Bijou, Essex, Majestic, Palace, Roxy, Savoy, Stowe, Sunset, Welden; reviewed 7/26)

BLUE BEETLE ★★★ An alien scarab transforms a teenager (Xolo Maridueña) into a superhero in this action adventure. (127 min, PG-13. Majestic, Welden)

BOTTOMS ★★★★ Superbad but make it sapphic? Rachel Sennott and Ayo Edebiri play lovelorn high school friends who hatch a wild scheme to get close to their crushes in this comedy from Emma Seligman (Shiva Baby). (91 min, R. Essex, Majestic, Roxy; reviewed 9/13)

THE EQUALIZER 3 ★★★ Denzel Washington is back as the former government assassin in Antoine Fuqua’s action thriller. (109 min, R. Bijou, Essex, Majestic, Palace, Roxy, Stowe, Sunset, Welden)

GOLDA ★★1/2 Helen Mirren plays Golda Meir, former prime minister of Israel, in this drama about the Yom Kippur War. (100 min, PG-13. Palace)

GRAN TURISMO ★★1/2 A teen (Archie Madekwe) transfers his video game prowess to professional car racing in this fact-inspired action drama from Neill Blomkamp. (135 min, PG-13. Majestic, Welden)

JAWAN: Atlee directed this Hindi action thriller about a man seeking justice, starring Shah Rukh Khan. (169 min, NR, Majestic)

MEG 2: THE TRENCH ★★ Jason Statham aids deep-sea researchers as they battle various menaces, including prehistoric sharks. (116 min, PG-13. Majestic, Sunset)

MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE — DEAD RECKONING PART ONE ★★★★ Tom Cruise returns as secret agent Ethan Hunt in the seventh installment of the action franchise. (163 min, PG-13. Palace)

MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING 3 ★★ Nia Vardalos (who also directed) and John Corbett return as a couple bringing their grown daughter to Greece for a family reunion. (91 min, PG-13. Bijou, Essex, Majestic, Palace, Paramount, Roxy, Star, Stowe)

NO HARD FEELINGS ★★★ A down-on-her-luck woman (Jennifer Lawrence) is hired by a 19-year-old’s parents to bring him out of his shell in this comedy. (103 min, R. Sunset)

THE NUN II ★★1/2 Taissa Farmiga is back as a plucky nun chasing down a veil-wearing demon in this belated horror sequel. Michael Chaves directed. (110 min, R. Bijou, Essex, Majestic, Palace, Roxy, Star, Sunset)

OPPENHEIMER ★★★★★ Director Christopher Nolan tells the story of the man (Cillian Murphy) who played a key role in creating the atomic bomb. (180 min, R. Essex, Majestic, Palace, Roxy; reviewed 8/2)

STRAYS ★★1/2 Will Ferrell and Jamie Foxx voice candid canines in this not-for-kids comedy. (93 min, R. Essex, Sunset)

TALK TO ME ★★★1/2 A group of friends uses an embalmed hand to conjure spirits in this horror thriller. (94 min, R. Sunset; reviewed 8/9)

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: MUTANT MAYHEM ★★★1/2 Cowriter Seth Rogen and directors Jeff Rowe and Kyler Spears reboot the comic-based series. (99 min, PG. Essex, Majestic, Palace, Welden)

older films and special screenings

ASTEROID CITY (Playhouse)

CHRISTINE 40TH ANNIVERSARY (Essex, Wed 13 only)

FATHOM’S BIG SCREEN CLASSICS: RAIN MAN 35TH ANNIVERSARY (Essex, Sun & Wed 20 only)

RENEE FLEMING’S CITIES THAT SING: VENICE (Essex, Sat only)

open theaters

The Capitol Showplace and Catamount Arts are currently closed until further notice. The Marquis Theater is closed with a reopening date of September 15. (* = upcoming schedule for theater was not available at press time)

Note: These capsule descriptions are not intended as reviews. Star ratings come from Metacritic unless we reviewed the film (noted at the end of the description). Find reviews written by Seven Days critic Margot Harrison at sevendaysvt.com/onscreen-reviews.

This article appears in The Performing Arts Preview 2023.

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Margot Harrison is a consulting editor and film critic at Seven Days. Her film reviews appear every week in the paper and online. In 2024, she won the Jim Ridley Award for arts criticism from the Association of Alternative Newsmedia. Her book reviews...