In Theaters This Weekend: Xander Cage Is Going to Put You in the Xander Zone Again and a New Thriller From M. Night Shyamalan

A pair of films that got limited releases so they could join the award season race are finally hitting the rest of the country — 20th Century Women and The Founder. But if movies aimed at the Academy aren’t your cup of tea, then there’s a pair of films that are bucking January’s trend of miserable releases, the madhouse xXx: Return of Xander Cage and M. Night Shyamalan’s well-received Split.

xXx: Return of Xander Cage

Vin Diesel is back as Xander Cage. (Photo: Paramount)
Vin Diesel is back as Xander Cage and this time is joined by Deepika Padukone. (Photo: Paramount)

Vin Diesel is breathing new life into yet another stalled franchise with his return as daredevil/adrenaline junkie/secret agent Xander Cage. This time Diesel is bringing some of the fun teamwork his Fast and Furious franchise has utilized and thus the movie gives time to shine to Rogue One standout Donnie Yen, vastly popular Indian actress Deepika Padukone, Orange is the New Black favorite Ruby Rose, world-famous popstar Kris Wu, UFC champion Michael Bisping, martial arts star Tony Jaa, and Game of Thrones star Rory McCann. D.J. Caruso, he of Disturbia fame helms this, the third movie in the franchise. So far, critical reception has been mixed.

Split

Anya Taylor-Joy and James McAvoy star in the latest film from M. Night Shyamalan. (Photo: Universal)
Anya Taylor-Joy and James McAvoy star in the latest film from M. Night Shyamalan. (Photo: Universal)

M. Night Shyamalan may never receive the same accolades he did when he made The Sixth Sense and Unbreakable, but he seems to be recovering from a bad stretch that included stinkers like After Earth and The Last Airbender. This film features X-Men favorite James McAvoy as a man with 24 distinct personalities. When one of those personalities kidnaps three young women, those women must figure out which other of the personalities that reside in him might help them escape. Critical reception has been mostly positive for this thriller.

The Founder

Michael Keaton plays Ray Kroc. (Photo: Weinstein)
Michael Keaton plays Ray Kroc. (Photo: Weinstein)

Michael Keaton’s efforts as Ray Kroc are getting heralded as being the the prize in this happy meal, but critics aren’t giving this movie quite the love its makers possibly thought it would get. John Lee Hancock, director of Saving Mr. Banks, is back with with another film based on historical events as he tells the story of how Kroc took a blossoming restaurant run by two brothers and made it the corporation it is today, McDonald’s.

20th Century Women

Annette Bening, Greta Gerwig, and Elle Fanning star. (Photo: A24)
Annette Bening, Greta Gerwig, and Elle Fanning star. (Photo: A24)

Beginners filmmaker Mike Mills is hitting a chord with various groups that hand out awards. This film about a single mother who asks two younger women to help raise her son has been praised by multiple critic societies and wound up with two Golden Globe nominations, one for its star Annette Bening, and another for Best Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy. Greta Gerwig and Elle Fanning also star.

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