Next Week in Tickets: Films playing Boston 23 January 2026 - 29 January 2025

Kind of fun to see theaters guess right/wrong about what they need screens for before Oscar noms come out!

• Not likely to show up at next year's Oscars is Mercy, directed by Timur Bekmambetov and starring Chris Pratt as a cop accused of killing his wife and forced to prove his innocence to an AI judge/jury/executioner (Rebecca Ferguson) in 90 minutes. It's at Fresh Pond, Jordan's Furniture (Imax 2D/3D), Boston Common (including Imax Laser 2D/3D & XL & Dolby Cinema & RealD 3D), Causeway Street (including RealD 3D), the Seaport (Dolby Atmos), South Bay (including Imax Xenon 2D/3D & Dolby Cinema & RealD 3D), Assembly Row (including Imax Laser 2D/3D & Dolby Cinema & RealD 3D), and Chestnut Hill (including RealD 3D).
  
  Director Christophe Gans (but apparently none of the original cast) is back for Return to Silent Hill which apparently ignores the second film and touts closer connections to the video games. It's at Boston Common and Causeway Street.
  
  Boston Common and South Bay also open Clika, which follows an aspiring Mexican-American musician who gets involved with dealing drugs to stay afloat. Atropia at Boston Common features Alia Shawkat as an actress working at an army base training troops for urban combat in Iraq; Boston Common also gets In Cold Light, with Maika Monroe as an ex-con on the run after witnessing her twin sister's murder.
  
  Oscar nominees back in theaters (or getting more screens) include One Battle After Another at West Newton, Boston Common, Causeway Street, the Kendall, and South Bay; Sinners at Boston Common, Causeway Street, the Kendall, and South Bay; The Secret Agent at the Capitol, the Kendall, and West Newton; Sentimental Value at the Coolidge (and also at Boston Common, Causeway Street, and the Kendall with a taped Q&A on Sunday); Hamnet at the Coolidge, the Capitol, the Lexington Venue, West Newton, CinemaSalem, Boston Common, Causeway Street, the Kendall, South Bay, and Arsenal Yards; The Voice of Hind Rajab at the Coolidge, West Newton, and the Seaport.
  
  The Testament of Ann Lee picks up West Newton, CinemaSalem, Boston Common, Kendall Square, and the Seaport in addition to the Coolidge (70mm when on screen 1) and The Somerville Theatre (70mm when on screen 1), which would have been a fine strategy if it had gotten even one well-deserved nomination.
  
  The Lord of the Rings movies another weekend, with Fellowship playing Friday, The Two Towers Saturday, and The Return of the King Sunday at and Assembly Row; Boston Common, Causeway Street, and South Bay play all three movies every day, although the order may be odd. Hard Boiled plays Boston Common Sunday/Monday/Wednesday and the Seaport Sunday/Monday/Tuesday.
  
  Send Help has an early access show at Boston Common, South Bay, and Assembly Row on Saturday; Whistle plays early at Boston Common on Wednesday. There are secret screenings at Boston Common, Causeway Street, the Kendall, South Bay, and Assembly Row on Monday. Megadeath: Behind the Mask has an encore at Boston Common on Saturday.
  
  Documentary Paris Hilton: Infinite Icon opens at Boston Common, Causeway Street, and Assembly Row on Wednesday.
• Landmark Kendall Square opens H Is for Hawk, with Claire Foy as a woman who takes up falconry while grieving her father (Brendan Gleeson). It's also at Boston Common.
  
  Kendall Square also has Frankenstein for another week, with the Seaport also picking it up, and a Retro Replay of Kiss Kiss Bang Bang on Tuesday.
• The Coolidge Corner Theatre has Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer for the true crime midnight on Friday and Sisters for Giallo (adjacent) January. They also have the original animated How to Train Your Dragon for kids' shows Saturday & Sunday. Sunday morning's Goethe-Institut German film is the latest from Fatih Akin (taking over for mentor Hank Bohm), Amrum. Tuesday's "Projections" show is Stalker (regular 7pm show sold out, but a second was put on at 9:35pm). Director Allie Rood will be part of a panel following Prickly Mountain and My Design/Build Life on Wednesday (already sold out); they also welcome author Gary K. Wolf for Who Framed Roger Rabbit on Thursday (also sold out), with a Cult Class/Projection screening of A Clockwork Orange later that night.
• Apple Fresh Pond gets Hindi-language action flick Border 2, Tamil-language action-comedy Thalaivar Thambi Thalaimaiyil, Malayalam-language thriller Baby Girl, Malayalam-language wrestling comedy Chatha Pacha: The Ring of Rowdies, and a re-release of Tamil actioner Mankatha (through Sunday). Telugu films Mana Shankara Varaprasad Garu and Anaganaga Oka Raju (through Sunday) continue.
  
  Anime All You Need Is Kill continues at Boston Common.
• The Brattle Theatre kicks the weekend off with a 35mm print of Batman for the Friday Film Matinee, before getting into "Some of the Best of 2025: The Monkey (35mm) & Final Destination Bloodlines on Friday evening; Bugonia (35mm) & Eddington Saturday; Familiar Touch Sunday & Monday afternoons; Fréwaka & Weapons Sunday evening; Sorry, Baby on Monday (with Strictly Brohibited hosting the 6pm show); Resurrection & Misericordia on Tuesday; If I Had Legs I'd Kick You & Die My Love on Wednesday; and Nouvelle Vague & Vulcanizadora on Thursday.
  
  They also host RPM Fest on Sunday afternoon with a screening of short Films by Raymond Rea, who will be there in person.
• The Seaport Alamo has TikTok-spawned romcom Two Sleepy People all week. They also have John Cassavetes' Opening Night on Friday, Sam Raimi's Drag Me to Hell later Saturday, Twin Peaks episodes 10-13 on Saturday, Reds on Sunday, My Own Private Idaho on Monday, Christiane F. on tuesday, and a movie party for Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 1 on Thursday.
• The Museum of Fine Arts has an"Arton Film" weekend, with Kelly Reichardt's The Mastermind on Friday, documentary The Painter and the Thief on Saturday afternoon, and Caravaggio on Sunday afternoon.
• The ICA has two programs of short films from the Boston International Kids Film Festival on Saturday & Sunday, with the 11am program suited for those 10 and under and the 2pm program aimed at kids 11 to 15.
• The Capitol Theatre has both a 4th Wall show with Boarzoy, Frogs, and Spanghew as well and a screening of the five-episode series The Imposter Syndrome on Saturday night (it was created by the new head of the Arlington International Film Festival, who will be on hand), plus the monthly Disasterpiece Theater event on Monday.
• The Harvard Film Archive has a free screening of Steve McQueen's Occupied City on Saturday (currently at capacity although there will be a rush line in case people don't show), with McQueen giving a talk at the Sanders Theatre on Wednesday. On Monday, they project their print of Bernardo Bertolucci's The Conformist
• Belmont World Film's annual Family Film Festival features animation workshops at the Belmont Media Center on Saturday although the three films scheduled to play the Regent on Sunday are being postponed due to weather (to either the 7th or the 8th of February, depending on whether or not the Patriots are in the Super Bowl).
• The Regent Theatre has similarly postponed Nepali film Harsha, intended to screen Sunday evening. A program from the Ritual Mountain Bike Film Tour plays Wednesday.
• The Museum of Science continues to show Avatar 3 on the Omnimax screen Friday & Saturday evenings through the end of January.
• The Lexington Venue looks to be closed Sunday & Monday to avoid the heavy weather, playing The Choral, Hamnet, and Marty Supreme the rest of the week. Documentary Among Neighbors plays Tuesday, and there is a free screening of The Librarians on Wednesday.
  
  The West Newton Cinema opens The Testament of Ann Lee, keeping The Choral, No Other Choice, The Voice of Hind Rajab (including a "Behind the Screen" show on Saturday), One Battle After Another, Father Mother Sister Brother, Marty Supreme, The Secret Agent, *Hamnet, and Zootopia 2. There's a double feature of Buster Keaton's The General and Charlie Chaplin's The Immigrant with pianist Bruce Vogt providing the music on Sunday; Among Neighbors also plays here on Tuesday; and documentary Teenage Wasteland plays Wednesday, with subject Fred Isseks on-hand to discuss the film.
  
  Cinema Salem has The Testament of Ann Lee, Hamnet, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, and Is This Thing On? on Friday, Saturday, and Monday, not messing with the storm on Sunday. Friday's Night Light show is Logan's Run; the Spooky Horror Show presents Sam Raimi's original The Evil Dead on Saturday; and the Wednesday Classic is Baby Doll, with a Weirdo Wednesday show next door.

That snow's going to mess up some plans, eh? Like, just targeting Hard Boiled directly. Going to try for some Oscar catch-up - it seems very strange that Sentimental Value is making such a small return! - and also catch H Is for Hawk, Return to Silent Hill, and In Cold Light. Check my Letterboxd page for what I think of 'em.