Reel cool: November movie openings

TROLLS
Find your happy place.

Fantasy | Adventure

Directors: Mike Mitchell, Walt Dohrn

Starring: Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake, Russell Brand

In theaters: Nov. 4

An idealistic dwarf and her cantankerous counterpart team up on an unlikely adventure to save their fuzzy friends and family from an unfortunate fate.

DOCTOR STRANGE
The impossibilities are endless.

Fantasy | Sci-Fi

Director: Scott Derrickson

Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachel McAdams

In theaters: Nov. 4

The latest addition to Marvel’s cinematic universe features a self-centered surgeon who, after surviving a crippling, career-ending car accident, learns of his true destiny as a mystical, multidimensional protector of mankind.

HACKSAW RIDGE
One of the greatest heroes in American history never fired a bullet.

Drama | Biography

Director: Mel Gibson

Starring: Andrew Garfield, Sam Worthington, Luke Bracey

In theaters: Nov. 4

After enduring endless abuse for his anti-violence views, an unarmed Army medic saves scores of his fellow soldiers during the Battle of Okinawa.

LOVING
All love is created equal.

Biography | Drama

Director: Jeff Nichols

Starring: Joel Edgerton, Ruth Negga, Marton Csokas

In theaters: Nov. 4

An interracial couple in 1950s Virginia in is imprisoned by virtue of the fact that they are married; then, years after their release, they take their case to the U.S. Supreme Court to fight against this injustice.

BILLY LYNN’S LONG HALFTIME WALK

Drama | History

Director: Ang Lee

Starring: Kristen Stewart, Chris Tucker, Garrett Hedlund

In theaters: Nov. 11

Find out what really happened to a squad of American soldiers who survived a nightmarish battle in Iraq before being honored as heroes during halftime of the Thanksgiving Day game.

ALMOST CHRISTMAS
Five days together? Oh, joy.

Drama | Comedy

Director: David E. Talbert

Starring: Kimberly Elise, Omar Epps, Danny Glover

In theaters: Nov. 11

Excitable siblings in a tight-knit family reunite for the first time since the death of their much-loved matriarch and, to appease their aging father, attempt to spend the Thanksgiving holiday together.ARRIVAL
Why are they here?

Amy Adams as linguist Dr. Louise Banks in the film “Arrival.” (Filmnation Entertainment)” width=”1500” height=”1125”>

Amy Adams as linguist Dr. Louise Banks in the film “Arrival.” (Filmnation Entertainment)

Sci-Fi | Mystery

Director: Denis Villeneuve

Starring: Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, Forest Whitaker

In theaters: Nov. 11

After alien spaceships land near cities around the world, a brilliant linguist and her team of experts strive to establish an open dialogue with the extraterrestrials before global war erupts.SHUT IN
Don’t believe everything you see.

Naomi Watts in “Shut In.” (EuropaCorp)

Drama | Thriller

Director: Farren Blackburn

Starring: Naomi Watts, Jacob Tremblay, Charlie Heaton

In theaters: Nov. 11

Things get weird after a recently widowed psychologist and her paralyzed son take in a churlish child who decides to disappear into the woods during a deadly storm.

FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM
From J.K. Rowling’s wizarding world.

Adventure | Fantasy

Director: David Yates

Starring: Eddie Redmayne, Ezra Miller, Katherine Waterston

In theaters: Nov. 18

In this Harry Potter spinoff set seven decades before the young wizard’s story starts, an uncanny English writer with extraordinary abilities gets swept up in a magical adventure while making a quick stop in New York City.

THE EDGE OF SEVENTEEN
You’re only young once ... is it over yet?

Comedy | Drama

Director: Kelly Fremon Craig

Starring: Hailee Steinfeld, Woody Harrelson, Kyra Sedgwick

In theaters: Nov. 18

In this coming-of-age comedy, an awkward girl discovers that her hot brother and best friend have been hooking up, then she endures an existential breakdown before becoming distracted by a charismatic classmate.

ALLIED

Drama | Thriller

Director: Robert Zemeckis

Starring: Brad Pitt, Marion Cotillard, Jared Harris

In theaters: Nov. 23

Two government operatives meet during an assassination mission in World War II and, after falling in love and starting a family, it’s revealed that of them is a double agent the other is required to kill.

MOANA
The ocean is calling.

Adventure | Comedy

Directors: John Musker, Ron Clements

Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Auli’i Cravalho, Alan Tudyk

In theaters: Nov. 23

An adolescent island girl who can control ocean currents embarks on a seafaring quest to locate a legendary land that holds her people’s only hope for survival.

RULES DON’T APPLY

Drama | Romance

Director: Warren Beatty

Starring: Lily Collins, Alden Ehrenreich, Annette Bening

In theaters: Nov. 23

Set in Hollywood during the 1950s, an ambitious ingenue in the employ of an eccentric billionaire attempts to win the affection of an engaged chauffeur who works for the same man.

NOCTURNAL ANIMALS

Drama | Thriller

Director: Tom Ford

Starring: Amy Adams, Jake Gyllenhaal, Michael Shannon

In theaters: Nov. 23 limited release in San Diego, Dec. 9 nationwide

After the owner of a Los Angeles art gallery receives a haunting novel penned by her estranged ex-husband, this film’s narrative shifts to focus on that book’s story, which tells the tale of a teacher on a terrifying family vacation.