5 must-see movies open the day before Thanksgiving at Seattle-area theaters

Five new movies, providing a feast of riveting performances, open at Seattle-area theaters Wednesday, Nov. 27. Our movie critic, Moira Macdonald, weighs in on all of them. 

★★★★ “Marriage Story” (R; 137 minutes): Noah Baumbach’s drama pulls us inside the cyclone of a disintegrating marriage, letting us see the shrapnel flying and the devastated landscape left behind. It stars Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver, both remarkably, heartbreakingly good in every scene. Full review. Crest; begins streaming on Netflix Dec. 6.

★★★½ “Knives Out” (PG-13; 131 minutes): In a season of Big, Serious Movies, what a treat to find this wonderfully silly, perfectly paced hall of mirrors hanging out at the multiplexes. It’s as if Agatha Christie came back for a visit, after getting caught up on pop culture in the beyond. The all-star cast includes Daniel Craig, who steals the show as a detective investigating a murder. Full review. Multiple theaters.

★★★½ “Queen & Slim” (R; 132 minutes): This immersive, devastating film can be described — as one character refers to the central duo (Daniel Kaluuya and newcomer Jodie Turner-Smith, creating magic together) — as a black “Bonnie & Clyde.” But it’s more than that: It’s at once a taut on-the-run road movie; a mesmerizing reflection of a bitterly divided contemporary America; and a delicate, slow-burning love story. Full review. Multiple theaters.

★★★½ “Waves” (R; 135 minutes): We live, says a pastor in an early scene, in a world full of hate. “We need love,” he intones, “to bring people back.” Trey Edward Schultz’s third feature movingly illustrates exactly that, through an upper-middle-class family in suburban Florida who experiences a terrible event. Full review. SIFF Cinema Egyptian.

★★½ “Dark Waters” (PG-13; 126 minutes): Todd Haynes’ thoughtful, stylishly directed whistleblower film is the based-on-fact story of Cincinnati attorney Rob Bilott (Mark Ruffalo), who took on a case that revealed how DuPont exposed a community to serious chemical harm. It’s a film, with an important message, that feels just the littlest bit flat. But Ruffalo is compelling as ever, making his character an appealing crusader — and an unexpected hero. Full review. Multiple theaters.