What to see: New movies in theaters this weekend

Looking for a good movie this weekend? Here are the latest releases, trailers and reviews from Paste BN.

Fury

Given how many World War II films have emerged in the last 70 years, it requires a thoroughly fresh angle to make one seem distinctive. Fury focuses on Sherman tanks and the soldiers piloting them. It's a solidly acted, engrossing drama about the hellishness of combat, though it doesn't measure up to the indelible Saving Private Ryan (1998) or Letters from Iwo Jima (2006). (*** out of four stars)

Trailer: 'Fury'

Brad Pitt stars alongside Shia LaBeouf and Michael Pena in 'Fury.' Pitt is a U.S. Army sergeant who leads a five-man crew and their tank through the heart of Nazi Germany.

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Book of Life

The hectic story is not nearly as imaginative as the vibrant visuals in The Book of Life, an animated tale that spins off Mexico's Day of the Dead holiday. But the dizzying, intricate imagery is so beautiful, and the Latin-inspired songs catchy enough that the overall effect is often enchanting. (** ½ out of four stars)

The Best of Me

Movies based on Nicholas Sparks' weepy romance novels are the cinematic equivalents of paintings by Thomas Kinkade: Schmaltzy, set in bucolic locales and bearing an ultra-familiar stamp. The Best of Me is just the kind of clichéd sentimental claptrap we've come to expect from these adaptations (** out of four stars)

Trailer: 'The Best of Me'

A pair of former high school sweethearts reunite years later in 'The Best of Me.' Michelle Monaghan and James Marsden star in this film adaptation of the book by Nicholas Spark.

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Birdman

One of the year's most audacious, savagely funny and unpredictable films, the dark comedy features an outstanding performance by Michael Keaton as the has-been star of a superhero franchise desperate to be taken seriously. Crackling dialogue offers whip-smart observations about human nature — usually the worst of it. (*** ½ out of four stars)

Trailer: 'Birdman'

'Birdman' features an all-star cast of Michael Keaton, Edward Norton, Zach Galifianakis, Emma Stone and Naomi Watts. Keaton plays a washed-up actor who tries to reclaim his past glory with a Broadway play.

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Dear White People

Dear White People is no love letter, but it's also not a poison-pen missive. Rather, it's a clever, provocative and incisive social satire, with a particularly catchy title. The film takes a clear-eyed approach to the complex subject of racial identity and leavens it with wit. (*** out of four stars)

Trailer: 'Dear White People'

'Dear White People' is a satirical drama that focuses on the lives of black students attending an Ivy League college in America. The film first premiered at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival.

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Other recent releases:

Don't let Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Very Bad Day's title fool you. It's anything but terrible. (**½ out of four stars)

Bill Murray and Melissa McCarthy take the screen in St. Vincent. (**½ out of four stars)

Bang goes the drum and the performances in drama Whiplash. (**** out of four stars)

Marriage and a potential murder make Gone Girla must-see thriller. (**** out of four stars)

Annabelle brings a creepy doll to life. (*½ out of four stars)

Nicolas Cage deals with the rapture in Left Behind. (*1/2 out of four stars)

Meet the quirky, adorable gang in The Boxtrolls. (*** out of four stars)