The best movies to watch in April
Wondering what's playing at your local movie theater in April? Plan out your month with our comprehensive guide to what's worth watching.
April 3: Furious 7
The movie: The seventh installment in the Fast & Furious franchise pits gearhead Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his crew against a vengeful rival (Jason Statham).
Why you should care: No one can accuse the Fast & Furious franchise of failing to deliver on its promises. The blockbuster franchise has built a loyal following on a foundation of expensive cars, insane stunts, and a charismatic (and unusually diverse) main cast. This latest installment has the uneasy task of bidding farewell to star Paul Walker, who died in a real-life car accident shortly before Furious 7 wrapped production — but by all accounts, the film handles the situation with unexpected poignancy and grace.
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What else is coming out: Woman in Gold, a drama about a Jewish World War II survivor (Helen Mirren) who goes to court to recover family heirlooms stolen by the Nazis; Effie Gray, a long-delayed historical romance about the infamous Victorian love triangle between the artist John Everett Millais, the critic John Ruskin, and his wife Effie (Dakota Fanning).
April 10: Ex Machina
The movie: A sci-fi thriller focusing on the warped bond that develops between a programmer (Domhnall Gleeson) and a cutting-edge robot (Alicia Vikander).
Why you should care: Ex Machina's eerie, existential take on the future of artificial intelligence earned widespread praise when it premiered in the U.K. in January, and U.S. audiences are finally getting the chance to see the film for themselves. From 28 Days Later to Sunshine to Dredd, writer/director Alex Garland has a well-deserved reputation for turning out smart, unsettling sci-fi films, and stars Domhnall Gleeson and Oscar Isaac — who will both appear in Star Wars: Episode VII — are talented actors on the cusp of a huge breakout.
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What else is coming out: Clouds of Sils Maria, a psychological drama about a world-renowned actress (Juliette Binoche) returning to the play that launched her career, with the aid of a savvy assistant (Kristen Stewart) and a hot new costar (Chloe Grace-Moretz); The Longest Ride, another insufferable romance based on one of the 17 interchangeable novels by Nicholas Sparks; Kill Me Three Times, an action-comedy starring Simon Pegg as a sleazy hitman; Lost River, the surreal directorial debut of Ryan Gosling; Desert Dancer a based-on-a-true-story drama about an Iranian man (Reece Ritchie) who taught himself to dance despite a nationwide ban on dancing.
April 17: Monkey Kingdom
The movie: The latest entry in Disney's engaging string of nature documentaries focuses on a family of monkeys living in the jungle in Sri Lanka.
Why you should care: With hit documentaries like Bears and Chimpanzee, Disney has successfully built on the winning formula pioneered by March of the Penguins: Shoot reams of stunning nature footage, impose a narrative by nicknaming an animal and making it the focus of the film, and enlist a well-liked celebrity to provide the narration. This time, Tina Fey is the narrator, and "Maya" — a toque macaque who gives birth near the beginning of the film — is the protagonist. It's a cutesy (and arguably overly simplistic) hook, but it's also a great way to get kids interested in nature, and the film's directors — who cut their teeth on the BBC's mesmerizing documentary series Planet Earth — have scored incredible new footage.
What else is coming out: Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2, a sequel to the Kevin James comedy that dared to give its protagonist a name that rhymes with "fart"; Child 44, a historical crime drama about a string of child murders in Russia in 1944; Unfriended, a tasteless and ludicrous horror flick that takes place almost entirely on its teenage cast's video chat screens; True Story, the latest stop on Jonah Hill's ongoing tour to prove his serious acting chops, as a reporter who forms a complicated relationship with an accused murderer (James Franco); Monsters: Dark Continent, a sequel to the 2010 giant creature feature that landed director Gareth Edwards his Godzilla gig; The Road Within, a painfully earnest dramedy about three young psych ward escapees who learn life lessons on a road trip to California.
April 24: The Water Diviner
The movie: A historical drama following an Australian farmer (Russell Crowe) who goes on a desperate hunt for his lost sons in the wake of 1919's Battle of Gallipoli in World War I.
Why you should care: The Water Diviner is a passion project for Russell Crowe, who's pulling double duty as director and star. The film has already been warmly received in Australia, where it eventually became the country's highest-grossing domestic production of 2014 — and while American audiences will likely be less familiar with the film's historical backdrop, the story of a man searching for his children provides a plausible entry point. Hollywood has largely moved away from these kinds of melodramatic war epics, so for anyone looking for a dose of big-hearted grandiosity, The Water Diviner is for you.
What else is coming out: The Age of Adaline, a fantasy/romance about a girl who never ages (Blake Lively) — only to find herself in love with a regular, non-immortal guy; Little Boy, a Christian-themed period drama about a kid (Jakob Salvati) whose unshakeable faith gives him psychic powers; The Forger, a low-budget thriller that saddles Jon Travolta with a stupid accent and an even stupider soul patch.
Scott Meslow is the entertainment editor for TheWeek.com. He has written about film and television at publications including The Atlantic, POLITICO Magazine, and Vulture.