It’s unusually cold out there—warm up in a movie theater this weekend with our film critics’ picks including Moana and Moonlight. Skip Collateral Beauty, a super-sad story about cancer that Ned Lannamann dubbed a “vile shitfleck of a movie.” Instead, check out new releases like Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and La La Land, or get in the holiday spirit with It’s a Wonderful Life and Office Christmas Party. As always, check out our complete movie times calendar for more options, or our Things To Do calendar for all of the events happening this weekend.
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SATURDAY ONLY
1. Oyster Factory
The problem is this: Japan’s population desperately needs young labor power to replace its aging population. But because the Japanese do not—for the most part—like foreigners, sections of the economy that require home production are unable to find a good solution to the labor crisis. Kazuhiro Soda’s superb documentary Oyster Factory investigates this crisis with great but very quiet detail. We see oysters hauled out of the sea, we see them cracked open by grannies and granpas on their knees or sitting on cushions. We also see the faces of young Chinese laborers. Though they have lots of energy, they look unhappy. They are in a hostile country. The locals call them thieves or lazy. These are the niggers of the seaside village—if a group of people exploit you and call you inferior at the same time, you are a nigger. CHARLES MUDEDE
Northwest Film Forum
SUNDAY ONLY
2. Heart of Glass
A whole town in 1800s-era Bavaria becomes depressed when…
