Movie & Television Reviews

Partly a conversion story, partly a study in the triumph of friendship over isolation, the moving comedy-tinged drama “The Holdovers” (Focus) is an intimate, beautifully crafted film.

Back when Stan Lee created him in 1962, everybody’s favorite web-slinger was one of the first superheroes to whom adolescents could relate. More than six decades later, that theme continues to be highlighted in “Marvel’s Spider-Man 2”

Families don’t have to achieve perfection in order to live in harmony. Along with a lesson about the breaking down of fear-based barriers, that’s the basic theme of “Trolls Band Together” (Universal), a pleasant third animated adventure for the music-loving, doll-derived beings of the title who first arrived on the big screen in 2016.

Set in an imaginary kingdom ruled by a sorcerer called Magnifico (voice of Chris Pine), this is the story of one of his younger subjects, 17-year-old Asha (voice of Ariana DeBose).

The soul-deadening platter of splatter “Thanksgiving” (Sony) is intended as a comedic homage to exploitation horror films of the past.

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.

Viewers out for sweeping spectacle will likely come away from director Ridley Scott’s historical epic satisfied. But those seeking insight into the conquering French emperor’s personality will find there’s a hollow ring to star Joaquin Phoenix’s portrayal of him.

Though it includes some gory interludes, “Assassin’s Creed Mirage” (Ubisoft) is also educational insofar as it explores – and celebrates – the Golden Age of Islam.