Movies playing at Valley theaters Aug. 12-18

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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Anthropoid: Two men go on a secret mission during World War II to kill one of Hitler’s top men.

Florence Foster Jenkins: Meryl Streep stars in this true story of a woman with limited singing abilities who becomes a star.

Gleason: Man diagnosed with ALS makes video diary for his unborn child.

Indignation: Young Jewish boy must deal with life in a small Ohio town.

Operation Chromite Four men fight in a major battle of the Korean War.

Pete’s Dragon: A young boy who has been living alone in the woods is separated from his pet dragon.

Sausage Party: Wieners try to make their escape in this mature animated offering.

Alice Through the Looking Glass (☆☆1/2): Alice returns to the weird world of Wonderland to help the Mad Hatter. “Alice Through the Looking Glass” has neither the whimsy nor wordplay of the original Lewis Carroll novel. It’s a time-traveling tale driven by bland elements and characters. Rated PG (language, peril). 113 minutes.

The Angry Birds Movie (☆☆1/2): A visit by green piggies leaves the local bird population very angry. You’ll know why the birds are so mad after seeing “The Angry Birds Movie.” They’ve been saddled with a thin story, juvenile writing and a look that might be great for flying through the air but otherwise seems a little creepy. Rated PG (rude humor, violence). 90 minutes.

Bad Moms: A group of mothers decides to put themselves first. Mila Kunis stars. The problem with “Bad Moms” isn’t the concept, or the message about the struggle to raise good people in the world – it’s the execution. (Katie Walsh, TNS)

Captain America: Civil War (☆☆☆1/2): Superheroes are divided by new rulings from the United Nations. The challenge Marvel Studios faced was releasing another movie after the nearly flawless “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” and hero-packed “Avengers: Age of Ultron.” In the ever-expanding universe of comic book-inspired films, “Winter Soldier” had just the right amount of chaos and control to make it an unrelenting movie thrill ride. Anything following that would have to be bigger, louder and more exciting. Rated PG-13 (action, violence). 156 minutes.

Central Intelligence ☆☆☆1/2): Reuniting with an old friend pulls a man into the spy world. Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart star. The combination of the muscle and mirth Johnson brings to “Central Intelligence” with Hart’s controlled energy makes the spy film a sure summer hit. Rated PG-13 (crude humor, nudity, language). 114 minutes.

Finding Dory (☆☆☆ 1/2): The blue fish who helped Nemo goes on a trek to find her parents. The long-awaited follow-up to the 2003 release “Finding Nemo” has all the fun and charm of the original movie. In some ways – especially dealing with themes of friends and family – the sequel trumps the original. Rated PG (mild thematic elements).

Ghostbusters (☆ 1/2): Team is formed to stop the host of ghosts in the city. There’s something strange in the neighborhood and it’s the way director-writer Paul Feig handled the reboot. Instead of taking the classic franchise and making it a unique product, he settles for a story that lacks originality. The only sparks of interest are the endless cameo appearances and references to the original film. Rated PG-13 (crude humor, action scenes). 105 minutes.

Ice Age: Collision Course: Group must stop a meteor that could destroy the Earth. Not reviewed.

Independence Day Resurgence: Aliens take another shot at Earth. Not reviewed.

Jason Bourne: The CIA’s most dangerous weapon is pulled back into the line of fire. Matt Damon stars. After the misfire that was “The Bourne Legacy,” a misguided attempt to pass off the franchise to Jeremy Renner, Damon and director Paul Greengrass ably right the ship, delivering a Bourne film that looks and feels like the kind that we’ve always loved. (Katie Walsh, TNS)

The Jungle Book (☆☆☆ 1/2): Young boy survives in the jungle with a little help from his animal friends. Director Jon Favreau, who showed with “Iron Man” his skill at handling movies with heavy special effects, uses a blend of the original writings with the whimsy of the Disney 1967 animated classic and the realism of the 1994 version starring Jason Scott Lee. It’s the way all of these bits and pieces are presented that makes this movie the new king of the jungle movies. Rated PG (scary images). 111 minutes.

Lights Out (☆☆☆1/2): An older sister tries to stop an entity that once haunted her from harming her brother. Sell all your stocks immediately and invest in companies that make candles, flashlights, lightbulbs or anything else that creates illumination. There’s going to be a run on those items with the release of “Lights Out.” Director David F. Sandberg has teamed with writer Eric Heisserer to create a film that proves it is possible to generate long-lasting scares without resorting to gore. Rated R (violence, scary scenes). 81 minutes.

Nerve (☆☆1/2): High school senior gets involved with an online game that features more and more dangerous truth-or-dares. Emma Roberts stars. The film wants to be an action film. It also wants to be a romance, indictment for the ills of society and a postcard from New York. In an effort to do so much, nothing really takes complete shape. Rated PG-13 (brief nudity, language, drinking). 96 minutes.

Nine Lives: Business man finds himself stuck inside the body of a cat. Kevin Spacey stars. Not reviewed.

The Purge: Election Year (☆☆ 1/2): Politicians decided the annual day when nothing is illegal must stop. James DeMonaco, who wrote and directed all three “Purge” films, tries to mine some personal connections through Joe (Mykelti Williamson), the owner of a small deli. He’s a man with a checkered past but a big heart when it comes to his community. It has its moments. And the tension the director/writer has infused in the story is relentless. It’s just the unnecessary efforts to make the story bigger, coupled with a predictable plot, that leave it the least compelling of the “Purge” movies. Rated R (violence, language). 105 minutes.

The Secret Life of Pets (☆☆): The way your pet acts when you are away is very different than when you are home. “The Secret Life of Pets” comes from the same team that produced the sweet, funny and memorable “Despicable Me.” That film is almost impossible to follow, especially when there are no breakout characters like the Minions. Rated PG (rude humor, action). 95 minutes.

The Shallows (☆☆1/2): Surfer is stuck on a rock a short distance from shore but a shark is in the way. Blake Lively stars. The film is a splash of fresh seawater in the face of a rather dismal summer movie season. Rated PG-13 (bloody images, peril, language). 87 minutes. (Katie Walsh, Tribune)

Star Trek Beyond (☆☆☆1/2): The Enterprise faces a new threat at the edges of the uncharted space. Thanks to director Justin Lin, “Star Trek Beyond” is the most fierce in the 50-year history of the franchise. Lin combines the kind of full-speed-ahead action that he brought to the “Fast & Furious” franchise with a story that harkens back to the days when Gene Roddenberry was creating the show. Rated PG-13 (violence, action scenes). 120 minutes.

Suicide Squad (☆☆): A group of villains that include the Joker (Jared Leto) and Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) go on a mission. “Suicide Squad,” the latest fumbled movie offering based on a DC Comics franchise, has only two things going for it. The most noteworthy is Margot Robbie, who brings a wonderful crazy energy to her role as supervillain Harley Quinn. The character has been immensely popular since debuting in “Batman: The Animated Series” in 1992, and Robbie’s personification of Quinn is flawless. Rated PG-13 (violence, sexual situations) 126 minutes.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows: The Turtles must once again save the world. Megan Fox stars. Not reviewed.

Opening next week

Ben Hur: Jack Huston stars in the story of a prince who is falsely accused of treason and ends up a slave.

Hell or High Water: Two men rob Texas banks to pay their mortgage. Chris Pine stars.

Kubu and the Two Strings: A young boy must use magic to save himself and his village.

War Dogs Two young men find that war can be profitable. Jonah Hill stars.

This story was originally published August 11, 2016 at 1:00 PM with the headline "Movies playing at Valley theaters Aug. 12-18."