Culture

A new documentary about St. Teresa of Kolkata, produced by the Knights of Columbus, aims to show how her mission and spirit continues in the work of her order, the Missionaries of Charity.

Director Ron Howard provides an understated chronicle of heroic real-life events in the absorbing dramatization “Thirteen Lives” (MGM/Amazon Prime). While a bit of off-color dialogue precludes endorsement for young viewers, the value of the film’s portrait of humanity at its best makes it acceptable for older adolescents.

The social strife that roiled Spain, both during the 19th century and in the lead-up to that nation’s tragic 1936-39 civil war, serves as the background for the biography “Slaves and Kings” (Bosco). This chronicle of the varied life of St. Anthony Mary Claret (Antonio Reyes) is framed by research about him carried out in the Depression era, 60 years after his 1870 death at age 62.

What kind of a ride can viewers expect on “Bullet Train?” Though complex, clever and quick-paced, director David Leitch's action comedy is also blood-soaked. As penned by Zak Olkewicz, moreover, this screen version of Kotaro Isaka’s 2010 novel simultaneously revels in and trivializes the increasingly nasty violence with which it’s stuffed.

By 1922, the film industry, which had begun to migrate from the East Coast to Hollywood about a decade earlier, was well-established and thriving. A century later, many of the movies released that year have perished. But some have survived while others have been rediscovered or restored.

How to revitalize the oft-told story of Superman, who made his debut in print way back in 1938? By focusing on his canine best friend. At least, that's the gambit behind director and co-writer Jared Stern's reasonably fresh animated comedy "DC League of Super-Pets."

After a grim quotation from the prophet Nahum, the opening scene of "Nope," writer-director Jordon Peele's menacing sci-fi horror film, sets the tone for what follows.

Bathroom humor reaches new heights -- make that depths -- in "Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank" (Paramount), an animated martial-arts spoof with a most unlikely provenance.