Movies playing at Valley theaters Nov. 20-26

The rating system: ☆☆☆☆, excellent; ☆☆☆, good; ☆☆, so-so; ☆, poor; zero stars, terrible. Unless noted otherwise, reviews are by Bee critic Rick Bentley. Check movie times: http://calendar.fresnobee.com/

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OPENING

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2: Katniss Everdeen faces one last showdown with President Snow. Jennifer Lawrence stars.

The Night Before: Three friends go in search of the perfect Christmas party. Seth Rogen stars.

Secret in Their Eyes: Detective continues a quest to find the person who killed the daughter of his partner. Julia Roberts stars.

Spotlight: Team with the Boston Globe uncovers a conspiracy in the Catholic Church dealing with priests who molest children.

The 33 (☆☆1/2): Efforts are made to save trapped miners. Because the world watched each miner being pulled to safety, the movie is missing the threat of death. No matter what director Patricia Riggen tries to do to build tension, it comes up short because we all know the ending. The best Riggen can do is bank on the performances of her main players to keep the audience engaged. Rated PG-13 (disaster sequence, language). 120 minutes.

Ant-Man: (☆☆1/2): Ex-con is pushed into slipping on super suit to become tiny hero. Paul Rudd stars. Rudd has neither the cutting wit nor cut physique others bring to such roles. He is a milquetoast romantic comedy escapee who ends up being the biggest thing wrong with “Ant-Man.” When Rudd slips on the suit, the movie settles into a thrill ride through a massive miniature world. Rated PG-13 (sci-fi action violence). 115 minutes.

Black Mass (☆☆☆☆): Johnny Depp portrays Whitey Bulger, a violent criminal who became an FBI informant. Depp becomes so entrenched in the character that any semblance of the actor has been replaced by the traits and characteristics of Bulger. Rated R (graphic violence, language, drug use). 122 minutes.

Bridge of Spies (☆☆☆1/2): Tom Hanks is a Brooklyn lawyer thrust into the center of the Cold War. There’s simmering tension and a tremendous Steven Speilberg payoff. Rated PG-13 (violence, language). 142 minutes. (Donald Munro, The Fresno Bee)

Crimson Peak (☆1/2): A young woman is swept away to a house atop a mountain of blood-red clay. The film is less about scares and more of a watered down version of “Downton Abbey” meets “Game of Thrones.” The majority of the movie feels like the usual period piece about a pair of siblings who will go to any extreme to save their family home. Ghosts occasionally show up to point out clues. Rated R (bloody violence). 119 minutes.

Everest (☆☆☆1/2): The recounting of the tragic 1996 effort to climb the world's tallest mountain reaches new heights in visual splendor. Rated PG-13 (intense peril, disturbing images). 121 minutes.

Goosebumps (☆☆☆): A kid teams up with the niece of young adult horror author. Jack Black stars. An older audience may feel nostalgic for the books or get a smile out of the cornucopia of creatures that come to life. But the movie is aimed at the same youth market that embraces the books. Rated PG-13 (scary images, language). 113 minutes.

Hotel Transylvania 2 (☆☆☆): Dracula tries to help grandson find his inner monster. It’s as rare as vampires on a beach to have a movie sequel be better than the original. But vampires might start looking for some sunglasses because the spookiest thing about “Hotel Transylvania 2” is how much funnier, colorful and original it is this second time around. Rated PG (scary elements, rude humor). 87 minutes.

Inside Out (☆☆☆ 1/2): The emotions that run an 11-year-old come to life. Lewis Black stars. The Pixar team has created amazing worlds for the characters. Smart writing and deeper elements fill the film with numerous emotional moments. Rated PG (mild language). 102 minutes.

Jurassic World (☆☆☆1/2): The new dinosaur park soon runs into familiar problems. “Jurassic World” serves as a reminder that it wasn’t just the dazzling CGI work in “Jurassic Park” that made it such a masterpiece. It was also the combination of that imagery with a solid story, interesting characters and pacing that bounces between terror and humor with ease. Rated PG-13 (violence, language). 123 minutes.

The Last Witch Hunter (☆): The White Queen seeks revenge on her killer. The lame plot has acting’s answer to drywall, Vin Diesel, playing the immortal witch hunter Kaulder. Because of a truce forged years ago with the witches, it doesn’t seem like he’s had a lot to do except seduce flight attendants over the past few centuries. Rated PG-13 (scary images, language). 105 minutes.

Love the Coopers: Four generations of Coopers come together for their annual Christmas Eve celebration. Not reviewed.

The Martian: (☆☆☆1/2): In one of the most comforting science fiction films in years, Matt Damon plays an astronaut who must find a way to survive on Mars after being left behind. Ridley Scott’s zesty direction turns this into a highly enjoyable team-building exercise, with Damon playing the team of one. Rated PG-13 (strong language, injury images, brief nudity). 141 minutes. (Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune)

The Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials (☆☆): Gladers now face a new set of challenges. Rated PG-13 (mild violence). 137 minutes. (Walter Addiego, San Francisco Chronicle)

Minions (☆☆1/2): Animated story of the yellow characters that is charted from the start of time. The pill-shaped, yellow characters introduced in the “Despicable Me” movie as the subordinates to the villainous Gru have now taken center stage. The charm and humor they brought in tiny doses in the previous films now comes in a massive blast that wears thin quickly. Rated PG (rude humor, action). 91 minutes.

My All American (☆☆☆): Football player with a positive attitude inspires the Texas University football team. To be a success, a director needs to take that natural drama and gingerly play it out, making the viewer care for the person, then their athletic accomplishments. Tilt the story too much in either direction and the drama suffers. Director Angelo Pizzo’s “My All American” comes very close to committing such a fumble, but the human story is so heart-tugging strong and Finn Wittrock’s performance so good that those elements fortify the natural drama. Rated PG (thematic elements, language, partial nudity). 105 minutes.

Pan (☆☆1/2): Look at how Peter Pan came to be the hero of Neverland. Hugh Jackman stars. Pan is back with this big-screen adaptation written by Jason Fuchs ("Ice Age: Continental Drift") and director Joe Wright ("Anna Karenina"). Except for a spirited performance by Hugh Jackman as Blackbeard, their efforts won’t send you flying to theaters to see it or out of the theaters if you do. Rated PG-13 (language, violence). 111 minutes.

The Peanuts Movie (☆☆☆1/2): A Charlie Brown and the gang are back for more adventures including Snoopy’s heroic flying efforts. The animated film from the company that produced “Rio” and “Ice Age” is a loving tribute to the characters first introduced through the creative talents of Charles Schulz. It has a colorfulness and energy that will introduce a new generation of fans to this gang, while adhering to the deep emotions with which Schulz infused his work. Rated G. 92 minutes.

The Perfect Guy: An ideal man turns out to have a very dangerous side. Not reviewed.

Prem Ratan Dhan Payo: Charitable man goes on a quest to find a princess. Salman Khan stars. Not reviewed.

Sicario (☆☆☆1/2): Idealistic FBI agent finds herself involved in a no-rules war on drugs. Director Denis Villeneuve fashions a film that looks at real evil, with Emily Blunt providing a voice of reason to a twisted world. The result is the scariest picture of the year. Rated R (intense peril, violence, nudity, language, drug use). 120 minutes.

Spectre (☆1/2): James Bond goes in search of a mysterious agency. Daniel Craig stars. The latest in the long-running 007 series proves that even James Bond can have a bad day. The film’s convoluted script, watered-down villain and forgettable Bond girl makes “Spectre” the worst of the Craig Bond films. And it has so many flaws that it falls into the bottom third of all Bond movies. PG-13 (action, language). 150 minutes.

Suffragette (☆☆1/2): Growing number of women join the fight for voting rights in England. Telling the story of the injustice shown toward a group of people because of their race or sex can be overwhelming unless the focus is kept tight. Director Steve McQueen managed that feat with “12 Years a Slave,” as did director Jean-Marc Vallee in “The Dallas Buyers Club.” Both kept the audience engaged through a clear story with captivating central characters. Rated PG-13 (intense themes, partial nudity). 106 minutes.

The Visit (zero stars): Trip to grandmother’s house isn’t all that welcoming. M. Night Shyamalan has put together another poorly written offering that also has the visual inspiration of a blank piece of paper. Shyamalan has put so little effort into making this film, he resorts to the “found footage” gimmick that went out of favor years ago. Rated PG-13 (brief nudity, language, disturbing images). 94 minutes.

Brooklyn: An Irish woman comes to America to start a new life but becomes torn between two men. Opens Wednesday.

Creed: Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) agrees to train the son of Apollo Creed. Opens Wednesday.

The Good Dinosaur: In a world where dinosaurs have progressed ore than man, a young dinosaur must learn how to face his fears. Opens Wednesday.

Victor Frankenstein: The tale of the doctor’s quest to create life is told from Igor’s point of view. Daniel Radcliffe stars. Opens Wednesday.

This story was originally published November 18, 2015 at 3:20 PM with the headline "Movies playing at Valley theaters Nov. 20-26."