Reel to reel | Week of Jan. 9

Movies showing in Boulder the week of January 9.

0

The Act of Killing

A documentary that challenges former Indonesian death squad leaders to reenact their real-life mass killings in whichever cinematic genres they wish, including classic Hollywood crime scenarios and lavish musical numbers. NR, treat as R. At Boedecker. — Boedecker Theater

All is Lost

Robert Redford is brilliant in his role as a nameless man who must survive after his sailboat sinks, leaving him lost at sea. Rated PG-13. At Boedecker and SIE Film Center.

American Hustle

When the FBI decides to recruit con artists to infiltrate the Jersey mob and crooked powerbrokers, things get interesting in a hurry in this well-acted film starring Christian Bale, Amy Adams and Bradley Cooper. Rated R. At Twin Peaks, Colony Square and Century.

Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues

Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell) has traded his old anchor job in for a modern cable news position. He is joined by his original team: Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate), weatherman Brick Tamland (Steve Carell), street reporter Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd) and sports reporter Champ Kind (David Koechner). If you laughed at the original, you’ll laugh at this one as well. Rated PG-13. At Twin Peaks, Colony Square and Century.

August: Osage County

Oscar regulars Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts and Sam Shepard lead an extraordinary cast in this play turned film about a family reunion in Oklahoma that none of us will ever forget. Don’t miss it. Rated R. At Twin Peaks, Colony Square and Century.

Blue Is the Warmest Color (La vie d’Adèle)

Adèle (Adèle Exarchopoulos) is a young woman whose longings and ecstasies and losses are charted across a span of several years. At 15, she is approaching adulthood and dreams of experiencing her first love. A handsome male classmate falls hard for her, but an unsettling erotic reverie upsets the romance before it begins. Adèle imagines that the mysterious, blue-haired girl she encountered in the street slips into her bed and possesses her with overwhelming pleasure. That bluehaired girl is a confident older art student named Emma (Léa Seydoux), who will soon enter Adèle’s life for real, making way for an intense and complicated love story. Rated NC-17. At SIE Film Center.

The Book Thief

This film tells the story of a spirited and courageous young girl who transforms the lives of everyone around her when she is sent to live with a new family in World War II Germany. Young Liesel (Sophie Nélisse) embarks upon a journey marked by discovery, courage, friendship — and the power to triumph over the most daunting obstacles. Rated PG-13. At Chez Artiste. — Landmark Theatres

Dallas Buyers Club

Matthew McConaughey stars in Dallas Buyers Club as real-life Texas cowboy Ron Woodroof, whose freewheeling life was overturned in 1985 when he was diagnosed as HIV-positive and given 30 days to live. Rated R. At Esquire. — Landmark Theatres

Die Fledermaus: Vienna State Opera

It’s the final countdown on New Year’s Eve … who will be your midnight kiss? The bumbling lovers in Die Fledermaus from the Vienna State Opera will waltz the night away (and drink a little too much champagne) until they find out! Starring Kurt Streit, Michaela Kaune and Zoryana Kushpler. At Boedecker. — Boedecker Theater

47 Ronin 3D

Kai (Keanu Reeves) joins forces with 47 samurai who have been outcast by the evil dude who killed their former master. They face big obstacles and trials that would do in most fighters as they attempt to restore order to their world. And it’s in 3-D. Rated PG-13. At Colony Square, Century and Twin Peaks.

Frozen

When the snow queen traps a tiny kingdom in eternal winter, Anna and Kristoff, accompanied by Sven the reindeer and a comical snowman that has trouble keeping his head, set out to end the spell. Rated PG. At Twin Peaks, Colony Square and Century.

The Great Beauty

Gorgeously photographed in Rome and Tuscany, The Great Beauty (La Grande Bellezza) is a dazzling, lyrical and at times surreal dramatic comedy, like a modernday La Dolce Vita. The magnetic Toni Servillo plays dapper journalist Jep Gambardella, slick and soulful, who has been a permanent fixture in Rome’s literary and social circles since the legendary success of his one and only novel. When his 65th birthday coincides with a shock from the past, Jep finds himself taking stock of his life. At SIE Film Center.

Grudge Match

You’re never too old to make fun of yourselves, and that’s what this film is really about. Sylvester Stallone and Robert DeNiro play two retired boxers who are talked into getting back in the ring to settle an old score. Rated PG-13. At Twin Peaks, Century and Colony Square.

Her

Only Spike Jonze could come up with a comedy flick wherein a shy writer (Joaquin Phoenix) falls in love with his computer’s sexy-voiced operating system. Rated R. At Century.

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Another entertaining installment in the Lord of the Rings series. This one has a giant dragon guarding treasure. Rated PG-13. At Century, Twin Peaks and Colony Square.

The Human Scale

Fifty percent of the world’s population lives in urban areas, by 2050 it will be 80 percent. Cities have become the primary human habitat, and if we are to make them sustainable and livable we must re-imagine the very foundations of modern urban planning. Rather than examining buildings and urban structures themselves, visionaries study the in-between spaces of urban life: the places where people meet, interact, live and behave. Stunningly photographed, Director Andreas Dalsgaard’s film travels around the world to explore how Jan Gehl and other like-minded designers, city planners and urban activists have begun to transform cities as diverse as New York, Beijing, Christchurch and London. At Boedecker. — Boedecker Theater

Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Jennifer Lawrence dazzles in this adventure sequel. Rated PG-13. At Twin Peaks, Colony Square and Century.

Inside Llewyn Davis

The Coen brothers craft this story of a homeless young folk singer trying to create a name for himself in the Greenwich Village of the 1960s. Rated R. At Mayan and Century.

Labyrinth (1986)

When a young girl makes a wish about her little brother, it unexpectedly sends him to the mysterious land of the fairies. Rated PG. At Esquire.

Legend of Hercules

Kellan Lutz stars as Hercules, the mythical son of Zeus. The super strong half-god, half-man kicks some gladiator butt in this action film. Rated PG-13. At Twin Peaks, Colony Square and Century.

Lone Survivor

If you still have the stomach for such tales, this film finds Mark Wahlberg telling the story of a group of Navy SEALs on a covert mission gone wrong trying to kill a big-shot Taliban operative. The SEALs get ambushed in Afghanistan. The film is based on a bestselling book. Rated R. At Twin Peaks, Colony Square and Century.

Nebraska

After receiving a sweepstakes letter in the mail, a cantankerous father (Bruce Dern) thinks he’s struck it rich, and wrangles his son (Will Forte) into taking a road trip to claim the fortune. Shot in black and white across four states, Nebraska tells the stories of family life in the heartland of America. Rated R. At Colony Square and Chez Artiste. — Landmark Theatres

Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones

When a young man starts behaving oddly, as in possessed with evil demons, family and friends step in to help and things get scary. Rated R. At Century and Twin Peaks.

Philomena

The unparalleled Dame Judi Dench brings to life the story of a woman who gave away the child she conceived out of wedlock for adoption in the United States and her search, decades later, to find that son with the help of a BBC reporter. Rated PG-13. At Century, Colony Square, Esquire and Chez Artiste.

The Punk Singer

Kathleen Hanna, lead singer of the punk band Bikini Kill and dance-punk trio Le Tigre, rose to national attention as the reluctant but never shy voice of the riot grrrl movement. She became one of the most famously outspoken feminist icons, a cultural lightning rod. Her critics wished she would just shut up, and her fans hoped she never would. So in 2005, when Hanna stopped shouting, many wondered why. Through 20 years of archival footage and intimate interviews with Hanna, The Punk Singer takes viewers on a fascinating tour of contemporary music and offers a never-before-seen view into the life of this fearless leader. At SIE Film Center. — Denver Film Society

Saving Mr. Banks

Inspired by a true story, this film tells the tale of how Walt Disney (Tom Hanks) was finally able to convince the very difficult writer P. L. Travers (Emma Thompson) to allow him to bring her book Mary Poppins to the big screen. Rated PG-13. At Twin Peaks, Colony Square and Century.

Science on Screen: Dr. Dennis Van Gerven and ‘The Mummy’

They say, “Dead men tell no tales.” Or do they? Spend an evening reading the clues and discovering the tales that the dead have to tell about life and death in Ancient Nubia with anthropologist Dennis Van Gerven. The CU-Boulder professor is known for his extensive collection of mummified human remains from ancient populations of the Nile Valley. He will talk about what it is like to be an anthropologist and how he uses forensics to gain knowledge when disturbing the dead. And stick around for a special showing of the classic Boris Karloff film The Mummy following the presentation. Made possible through a grant from the Coolidge Corner Theatre, with support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. At Boedecker. — Boedecker Theater

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

Ben Stiller stars in this film version of author James Thurber’s classic. It’s a tale of a man who escapes his ordinary life by day-dreaming his way into fantasy worlds filled with adventure. But when his real world gets threatened, he and his co-worker, played by Kristen Wiig, get caught up in a wilder adventure than Mitty ever could have imagined. Rated PG. At Twin Peaks, Century and Colony Square.

12 Years a Slave

In the pre-Civil War United States, Solomon Northup, a free black man, is abducted and sold into slavery. Rated R. At Colony Square and Mayan. — Landmark Theatres

Walking with Dinosaurs 3D

In this prehistoric adventure, Patchi, a little dinosaur in a world of big, mean dinosaurs, still manages to triumph and become the hero. Fun story, but the real delight of this film is the amazing portrayal of dinosaurs in their natural habitat, looking more realistic than ever before. Rated PG. At Century, Colony Square and Twin Peaks.

The Wolf of Wall Street

Martin Scorsese directs Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill and Jean Dujardin in this adaptation of 1990s banker gone bad Jordan Belfort’s memoir. Rated R. At Twin Peaks, Century and Colony Square.

Additional films showing at the Denver Film Society’s SIE Film Center in Denver: A Touch of Sin; Paradise: Hope; The Armstrong Lie; Frances Ha; Betty Page Reveals All; and Films on Tap: Harry Potter.