Pick of the week: “The Trip to Italy“ — My full review is here. The second go-round for Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon isn’t quite as much fun as the original “The Trip,” despite gorgeous Italian locations and mouth-watering food. But it’s still a lot of laughs, as they trade impressions, rock to Alanis Morissette and chuckle in the face of impending mortality.
“Romy & Michele’s High School Reunion“ — Now that Lisa Kudrow has revived her HBO series “The Comeback” after a decade away, maybe she can call up Mira Sorvino and give us a sequel to this sparkling 1997 comedy, in which the pair play best friends who have the 10th anniversary reunion the rest of us only dream of.
“Star Trek Generations” — The device connecting the original “Star Trek” and “Next Generation” together is a little clunky, but this is a pretty good transition from TV to movies, and seeing Picard and Kirk team up is good old fan-fiction fun.
“The Gruffalo” — My full review is here. The Oscar-nominated animated short is a handsome British adaptation of the beloved children’s book about a clever mouse who evades predators with the help of a fictional monster. The top-notice voice cast includes Helena Bonham Carter and John Hurt.
“Ai Weiwei: The Fake Case” — My full review is here. This documentary is a follow-up of sorts to “Ai Weiwei Never Sorry,” showing the dissident Chinese artist’s year under house arrest while facing trumped-up charges for tax evasion.