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PW OPINION PW NEWS PW LIFE PW ARTS FLICK FINDER SHOWTIMES Friday Nov. 30 to Thursday Dec. 6 Note: Times are p.m., and daily, unless otherwise indicated. All times are subject to change without notice. PASADENA ACADEMY 6 1003 E Colorado Bl, (626) 229-9400. Bad Times at the El RoyaleFri.-Thurs., 3:40, 9:45 p.m. Crazy Rich AsiansFri.-Thurs., 1, 4, 7:30, 10:10 p.m. Goosebumps 2: Haunted HalloweenFri.-Thurs., 12:10, 2:30, 4:50 p.m. HalloweenFri.-Thurs., 12 noon, 2:40, 5:15, 7:50, 10:20 p.m. The Hate U GiveFri.-Thurs., 7:10, 10:05 p.m. The House With a Clock in Its WallsFri.-Thurs., 3:20, 10:15 p.m. Incredibles 2Fri.-Thurs., 12:45, 6:50 p.m. Night SchoolFri.-Thurs., 12:30, 7:40 p.m. SmallfootFri.-Thurs., 11:50 a.m., 2:15, 4:40, 7, 9:30 p.m. IPIC THEATERS AT ONE COLORADO PASADENA 42 Miller Alley, (626) 639-2260. Bohemian RhapsodyFri.-Mon., 12 noon, 3:30, 7, 10:15 p.m.;Tues. 12 noon, 3:15, 6:45, 10 p.m.;Wed. 12 noon, 3:30, 7, 10:15 p.m. Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of GrindelwaldFri.-Wed., 12:15, 3:45, 7:15, 10:30 p.m. Green BookFri.-Mon., 12 noon, 3:15, 6:45, 10 p.m.;Tues. 12 noon, 3:15, 6:30, 9:45 p.m.;Wed. 12 noon, 3:15, 6:45, 10 p.m. Instant FamilyFri.-Mon., 1, 4:15, 7:30, 10:45 p.m.;Tues. 12:30, 3:45, 10:50 p.m.;Wed. 1, 4:15, 7:30, 10:45 p.m. The King and ITues. only, 7 p.m. Ralph Breaks the InternetFri.-Mon., 12:30, 3:30, 6:30, 9:30 p.m.;Tues. 12:30, 3:15, 6:15, 9:15 p.m.;Wed. 12:30, 3:30, 6:30, 9:30 p.m. Robin HoodFri.-Mon., 1:15, 4:30, 7:45, 10:45 p.m.;Tues. 1, 4:15, 7:30, 10:30 p.m.;Wed. 1:15, 4:30, 7:45, 10:45 p.m. LAEMMLE’S PLAYHOUSE 7 673 E Colorado Bl, (626) 844-6500. Bolshoi Ballet: La SylphideMon. 7:30 p.m.;Tues. 1 p.m. The King and ITues. only, 7:30 p.m. The LeopardWed. only, 7 p.m. The MercyThurs. only, 7 p.m. Met Summer Encore: The Magic FluteSat. only, 12:55 p.m. NT Live: Antony & CleopatraThurs. only, 7 p.m. ARCLIGHT PASADENA 14 280 E Colorado Bl, (626) 568-8888. Miracle on 34th StreetMon. only, 7:30 p.m. GLENDALE PACIFIC GLENDALE 18 The Americana at Brand,322 Americana Way, Glendale (818) 551-0218. Call theater for showtimes UA LA CANADA FLINTRIDGE 1919 Verdugo Bl, (818) 952-1940. The King and I: LiveTues. only, 7 p.m. MiraiWed. only, 7 p.m. PokÈmon the Movie: The Power of UsSat. only, 12:55 p.m. ARCADIA AMC SANTA ANITA 16 Westfield Shoppingtown Mall,400 Baldwin Ave, (888) 262-4386. Allegiance to BroadwayTues. only, 7:30 p.m. A Bad Moms Christmas EventThurs. only, 7:30 p.m. Bolshoi Ballet: Don Quixote (2018)Sun. only, 12:55 p.m. Burn the Stage: The MovieWed.-Thurs., 7 p.m. The Metropolitan Opera: The Magic Flute Special EncoreSat. only, 12:55 p.m. MiraiWed. only, 7 p.m. NT Live: Antony & CleopatraThurs. only, 7 p.m. PokÈmon the Movie: The Power of UsSat. only, 12:55 p.m. Sleepless in Seattle 25th AnniversarySun. 1, 7 p.m.;Wed. 4, 7 p.m. Wilder vs FurySat. only, 6 p.m. ALHAMBRA EDWARDS ALHAMBRA RENAISSANCE STADIUM 14 & IMAX 1 E. Main Street, (626) 300-0107. Allegiance to BroadwayTues. only, 7:30 p.m. Burn the Stage: The MovieWed.-Thurs., 7 p.m. The Metropolitan Opera: The Magic Flute Special EncoreSat. only, 12:55 p.m. MiraiWed. only, 7 p.m. NT Live: Antony & CleopatraThurs. only, 7 p.m. PokÈmon the Movie: The Power of UsSat. only, 12:55 p.m. The Polar ExpressSat. only, 12 noon Schindler’s ListThurs. only, 7 p.m. Superman 40th AnniversaryMon. only, 7 p.m. Wilder vs FurySat. only, 6 p.m. n Enjoy the show. For more reviews, check out pasadenaweekly.com 28 PASADENA WEEKLY | <strong>11.29.18</strong>
PW OPINION PW NEWS PW LIFE PW ARTS •FILM• BY CARL KOZLOWSKI Nicole Kidman and Lucas Hedges in Boy Erased CAPSULE REVIEWS BY CARL KOZLOWSKI Wiping Out Hate ‘BOY ERASED’ REVEALS A HARROWING TRUE-LIFE TALE OF ABUSE IN GAY CONVERSION THERAPY Garrard Conley was an all-American teenager with a deep secret while growing up in small-town Arkansas as the son of a Baptist pastor and his obedient wife. Conley was gay and terrified of his parents discovering and disowning him as a result, and when he was outed against his will as a 19-year-old college student, he was forced to choose between being utterly abandoned by all his friends and family or entering gay conversion therapy that would ostensibly turn him straight. The resulting bizarre experiences in the therapy program and the incredible twists that followed inspired Conley to write the memoir “Boy Erased,” which became an instant bestseller and has now become a great new film by the talented rising writer-director Joel Edgerton. Starring three Oscar-caliber actors in Lucas Hedges (nominated for “Manchester by the Sea”), Nicole Kidman (winner for “The Hours”) and Russell Crowe (a two-time winner for “Gladiator” and “A Beautiful Mind”), it is a movie that explores faith and sexuality as well as the ways in which a belief system can threaten familial bonds if it’s applied too rigidly. The movie renames Conley as Jared Eamons and follows him at a small Christian college shortly after he breaks up with his longtime girlfriend due to their new long-distance status. Jared has always steered clear of anything more sexual than kissing her, ostensibly because as a preacher’s kid he’s determined to save sex for marriage, but in reality because he’s actually attracted to men. He forms an extremely close friendship with another guy at school, until one night when his friend asks if he can just crash on the other bunk bed in Jared’s dorm room. After they exchange lingering looks, Jared wills himself to sleep, but is shocked in the middle of the night to find that his friend rapes him and then breaks down crying and saying he has to turn himself in for the incident and another same-sex rape he committed. Already confused and afraid, Jared’s world falls apart when the other boy indeed turns himself in but claims that he had a consensual, long-running affair with Jared. Jared tries to deny the allegation of an affair but can’t find a way to articulate the fact he was raped by a man he was drawn to. With his highly conservative father threatening him to either accept a conversion-therapy program or risk losing his home, family and the right to inherit the family’s successful auto dealership, Jared hopes for the best and enters the program. Run by a seemingly compassionate man named Victor Sykes (played by writer-director Edgerton), the program starts out with Sykes telling his charges they are flawed but still loved by God, and that he can help them break their homosexual attractions. But as the days roll on, Jared starts to notice all sorts of insidious aspects to the program and starts making a desperate effort to convince his parents to get him out. The truly impressive thing about “Boy Erased” is that Edgerton has not stacked the deck like most issue-oriented films by depicting the religious conservative parents of Jared as over-the-top wrathful caricatures. Having grown up in Arkansas myself with plenty of friends from that kind of philosophical background, I can attest that Edgerton has done a masterful, thoughtful job of making Jared’s parents simply people who have had one way of thinking their entire lives and are having difficulty changing deep-rooted mindsets. This sense of subtlety and respect is a much more powerful means of imparting the film’s touching message of tolerance than a pointed polemic ever could. Crowe and Kidman nail their performances, giving Jared’s parents a deeply conflicted yet caring relationship with their son that ultimately is transformative and loving. But Hedges is a revelation, marking himself as a true talent who should stick around for many years to come, and all three actors might be contenders for Oscars this season. The film continues Edgerton’s impressive run as a director, which began in 2015 with the outstanding thriller “The Gift” and continued in 2017 with the moving historical drama “Loving,” about the interracial couple who convinced the US Supreme Court to allow mixed-race marriages. Edgerton has a powerfully empathetic approach to his topics and characters, even imbuing the insidious Sykes with a level of sympathy for a good portion of the film. Amid an era in which Americans are too often divided by rigid beliefs on either side of the sociopolitical spectrum, “Boy Erased” sets an example of the power of film to create understanding and increase acceptance of those with whom we differ. It’s highly recommended for those looking for a thoughtful alternative to the bombast of most overhyped holiday fare. n “BOY ERASED” GRADE: A GREEN BOOK Stars: Viggo Mortensen, Mahershala Ali Length: 130 minutes Directed by: Peter Farrelly Rating: PG13 This terrific true-life dramedy deserves to sweep the Oscar nominations, and has already claimed the first Best Picture critics prize of 2018 from the National Board of Review. Mortensen and Ali make magic in the story of an ill-educated white bouncer who helps drive and protect a highly cultured black pianist on a concert tour of the early 1960s Deep South. Simply terrific. Grade: A CREED II Stars: Michael B. Jordan, Sylvester Stallone, Dolph Lundgren, Tessa Thompson Length: 130 minutes Directed by: Stephen Caple, Jr. Rating: PG13 The eighth "Rocky"-related movie and sequel to the superb series spinoff "Creed" finds plenty of fire from Jordan as world champion boxer Adonis Creed but Stallone running on autopilot. Bringing back supervillain Ivan Drago from "Rocky IV" to have his son challenge Adonis after he killed his father Apollo adds nostalgic fun to the predictable yet exciting proceedings. Grade: B WIDOWS Stars: Viola Davis, Colin Farrell, Liam Neeson Length: 130 minutes Directed by: Steve McQueen Rating: R Four career thieves die in a $2 million robbery of a gang leader, and their widows are expected to come up with the money within a month or be killed. Viola Davis plays the furious leader of the foursome, who leads a revenge heist that spills into all manner of unexpected situations. Well-acted, but so brooding it becomes the arthouse version of a heist thriller and is too slow and heavy-handed at points. Grade: B THE BALLAD OF BUSTER SCRUGGS Stars: Tim Blake Nelson, Liam Neeson, James Franco Length: 132 minutes Directed by: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen Rating: R The latest film by the Coen Brothers is an anthology of six Old West tales, packed with stars, grand dialogue, beautiful scenery and a wondrous score. Each tale ends with unexpected death, but the Coens serve it up with either dark humor, profound meaning or both. Streaming on Netflix starting Friday while playing a handful of theatres. Grade: A THE FRONT RUNNER Stars: Hugh Jackman, Vera Farmiga, J.K. Simmons Length: 113 minutes Directed by: Jason Reitman Rating: R This historical political drama stars Hugh Jackman as 1988 Democratic presidential candidate Gary Hart, who torpedoed his candidacy with a reckless fling that he challenged the press to prove happened. Reitman directs in such low-energy fashion that it's a slog to endure, not helped by the fact that Hart is utterly impossible to root for. Grade: D <strong>11.29.18</strong> | PASADENA WEEKLY 29
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