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Here's a look at the new movies I saw this week.

Air Strike (Netflix)
Starring: Bruce Willis, Adrien Brody and Rumer Willis
Synopsis: Willis, his daughter and Brody are the token Americans in this film about Chinese pilots and soldiers battling the Japanese Army during World War II. This one has middling special effects and a mediocre story to go along with a flat production. I was thinking it would be, at least, an interesting war movie, but there's nothing here to draw you in. This film, produced in 2018, is best safely skipped.
Rating: R for war violence including disturbing images, and for language.
Verdict: Zero stars out of four.

Arctic (Starz)
Starring: Mads Mikkelsen
Synopsis: This taught drama is about a pilot (Mikkelsen) who has crashed in arctic and is trying to survive. When a helicopter arrives, he thinks it's his salvation. Instead, the helicopter crashes and the man soon becomes a caretaker for a young woman (Maria Thelma Smáradóttir) who was the sole survivor of the accident. Running low on food and needing medical help, he embarks on a journey to find rescue that faces peril and challenges all along the way. Mikkelsen is a gifted actor, and he gives his all here. The scenery sets the scene and director Joe Penna offers some interesting visuals. There are a number of these kind of tales of survival and this one, while simple, is just OK. It's worth seeing to appreciate Mikkelsen, but that's about it.
Rating: PG-13 for language and some bloody images.
Verdict: Two stars out of four

Finding You (Theaters)
Starring: Rose Reid, Katherine McNamara, Jedidiah Goodacre, and Vanessa Redgrave
Synopsis: This new film is a romance about a young woman, Finley (Reid), who is at a crossroads. She's still mourning the loss of her older brother and stymied after a failed audition for a musical conservatory program. She heads for a semester abroad in Ireland, following in her brother's footsteps. There she makes new friends, including actor Beckett Rush (Goodacre) and an older woman, Cathleen Sweeney (Redgrave). Together they help set her on a new path that helps her find the direction she's looking for. Brian Baugh writes and directs this adaptation of the young adult romance novel from Jenny B. Jones titled There You'll Find Me. I thought this one had a good blend of humor and heart, and was especially taken with Reid in the lead role and Redgrave, whose character provided the most emotional arc of the film. Goodacre is OK, but Reid carries the story and the narrative. There are plenty of other colorful characters, and this provided a good time as we're returning to theaters. This is well worth checking out and a great date night option.
Rating: PG for language and thematic elements.
Verdict: Three stars out of four

Polar (Netflix)
Starring: Mads Mikkelsen, Vanessa Hudgens, Katheryn Winnick, and Matt Lucas
Synopsis: This action film from director Jonas Åkerlund based on the graphic novel centers on an aging assassin (Mikkelsen) who wants to retire. But he becomes a target as a boss (Lucas), a rival assassin (Winnick) and a new group of younger killers tries to hunt him down. All the while he's drawn to the quiet woman (Hudgens) who lives near his cabin in the woods. This one has a lot of violence and a lot of sex. It's quite over-the-top in every aspect. Mikkelsen is a good lead and good in these action roles, and this one has a decent cast, but the story was too much and not all that engaging. Akerlund delivers a stylish film, but one that is a lot to take in. I was hoping for a fun action film, but this one crossed the line of good taste on more than one occasion.
Rating: TV-MA
Verdict: One star out of four

Riders of Justice (Theaters/VOD)
Starring: Mads Mikkelsen and Nikolaj Lie Kaas
Synopsis: This new Danish film from director Anders Thomas Jensen is interesting and veers in unexpected directions. The film opens with an interlude that you'd be tempted to forget until it comes full circle at the end, showing how we're all connected and each small decision impacts the future of people around the world. In the main crux of the narrative, Mikkelsen plays Markus, a soldier serving overseas, who returns home when his wife dies in a train accident. Markus struggles to express his grief and connect with his daughter (Andrea Heick Gadeberg). When a fellow passenger (Lie Kaas) approaches Markus and suggests the train incident wasn't an accident, his grief turns to rage as he becomes a man on a mission. Mikkelsen is an incredible actor, able to share such a range of feelings and emotions through wordless expression alone. That serves him well in this film and this role. It's a story that stuck with me after I finished it, and a film I enjoyed a great deal more than I expected. It's one of my favorites of 2021 so far, especially with the bigger idea it tackles through the opening and closing segments that frame the rest of the narrative. It ends up being an powerful experience.
Rating: N/A
Verdict: Four stars out of four

Those Who Wish Me Dead (HBO Max/Theaters)
Starring: Angelina Jolie, Finn Little, Jon Bernthal, Aiden Gillen, and Nicholas Hoult
Synopsis: This new film, which debuted on HBO Max and in theaters on the same day, centers on a wildland firefighter (Jolie) who is grappling with guilt and grief over a fire gone wrong. She's sent to work alone in a tower as a spotter during fire season. While out there, she comes across a young boy (Little) who is being chased by two assassins (Gillen and Hoult) because he has secret files his father (Jake Weber) died to protect. Together, the pair must try and evade the threats in the woods, both in the form of the men hunting them and the fire raging in the woods. This one comes from director Taylor Sheridan (Wind River, Yellowstone) and is co-adapted by Michael Kortya, based on his novel. I love Sheridan as a writer and director. He has an eye for action and a great feel for these kind of modern stories of the west. This one has a good cast and some decent action sequences. However, the story is a bit of a jumble and a bit flat. There's a lot going on, but not enough time is spent building into these characters. Without that hook and emotional connection, the action sequences lack punch. There was potential here, but it doesn't quite coalesce into a great film.
Rating: R for strong violence, and language throughout.
Verdict: Two stars out of four

The Woman in the Window (Netflix)
Starring: Amy Adams, Gary Oldman, Julianne Moore, Wyatt Russell, Anthony Mackie, and Bryan Tyree Henry
Synopsis: Tracy Letts adapts this novel from A.J. Finn in a film directed by Joe Wright. That's a talented production crew and there is plenty of talent in the cast, too. But this story, which feels like a bit of a twist on the Rear Window formula, falls flat. It was originally intended for theaters before being delayed due to the pandemic and acquired by Netflix to stream exclusively as part of the streamers' huge 2021 for original films. Adams gives her all here and some of the other performers do well, but this narrative doesn't work. The story is muddled and not that engrossing, and there is little special in the way Wright puts the film together. Overall, this feels like a tepid and high profile miss.
Rating: R for violence and language.
Verdict: One star out of four