Movie & Television Reviews

Director and co-writer Guy Ritchie’s adaptation of Damien Lewis’ 2014 history “Churchill’s Secret Warriors” showcases some clever ruses and innovative, spur-of-the-moment thinking on the part of the U.K.’s Special Operations Executive (SOE). But the mission on which the main characters embark also involves the enthusiastic slaughter of extras by the dozen.

Intense and erotically charged, the psychological drama “Challengers” (Amazon MGM) is, in a word, challenging. Yet, while it trespasses into territory many may not wish to visit, the serious artistic intent behind the production redeems some of its excesses, though only for a small group of mature moviegoers.

Moviegoers tempted by a title like “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” (Warner Bros.) are presumably not in search of Shakespearian levels of dramatic insight. Even so, the disparity between the reasonably impressive special effects on offer in the film and its low-grade human interaction remains noticeable.

This humorous spin on the genre features a clever premise and often witty dialogue. Yet any amusement to be derived from it is drowned in a flood of needless bloodletting.

Capsule reviews of theatrical movies available now for streaming or scheduled for broadcast on network or cable television as well as notes on TV programming for the same week.

The psychological and ethical complexities of front-line journalism are explored in depth in the dystopian drama “Civil War” (A24). The result is an engrossing but distressingly realistic film that’s fit for only a relatively small audience of grown viewers.

An inspiring but once little-known chapter of history provides the basis for the Holocaust drama “Irena’s Vow” (Quiver).

The movie is based on the real-life experiences of Catholic nurse Irene Gut Opdyke (1918-2003). Famed for her rescue of Jews, Opdyke was named Righteous Among the Nations by the Israeli Holocaust Commission.