• Paramount Pictures
• Better Man

Better Man
Count me all-in on the trend—after the "Pharrell-as-LEGO" documentary Piece by Piece and this oddball endeavor—of bypassing the Walk Hard musical biopic clichés through imaginative representation of the central figure. In this case, that figure is British pop icon Robbie Williams, whose life story—from lower-class kid to boy-band icon to troubled superstar—is chronicled by turning Williams into a digitally animated chimpanzee (voiced by Williams and motion-capture performed by Jonno Davies). The character logic for the decision tracks through the portrayal of Williams as a self-loathing fame whore trying to work through a lot of daddy issues, even if you miss the passing use of the word "unevolved." Plot-wise, it's not radically different from a lot of portrayals of messed-up artists trying to keep their heads above water while bottoming out in substance abuse, but director Michael Gracey (The Greatest Showman) makes the most of the jukebox-musical format for a bold and lively presentation, most notably in the street-party marking the fame of Williams' band Take That set to "Rock DJ," and the montage of his relationship with fellow pop star Nicole Appleton (Raechelle Banno) set to "She's the One." The overall effect is both tremendously entertaining and a format that helps to humanize the notorious "bad boy"—which is kind of ironic, since the version we see of Williams isn't actually human. Available Jan. 10 in theaters. (R)

• Roadside Attractions
• The Last Showgirl

The Last Showgirl
A premise like this one—about a 50-something Las Vegas showgirl named Shelly (Pamela Anderson) facing the prospect of ending her career when her long-running casino show is cancelled—seems tailor-made for celebrating a veteran actor. The operative word there, of course, is "actor," which is not exactly Ms. Anderson's forte. There's certainly some potential for the character in Kate Gersten's script, which finds Shelly looking at her gaudy T-and-A spectacle with rose-colored glasses in order to justify the choices she made, including being an absentee mother to her daughter Hannah (Billie Lourd). Anderson, unfortunately, doesn't really have the chops to find nuance in that self-delusion, to the extent that Shelly merely comes off as kinda dumb. It doesn't help that there's a potentially far more interesting story in that of Shelly's friend, former colleague and aging gambling-addict cocktail waitress Annette, played with gusto by Jamie Lee Curtis. When Annette breaks into a dance performance set to "Total Eclipse of the Heart," it's the kind of expression of defiance in the face of "age-appropriate" expectations that we never get from Shelly's story. Throw in a few other half-realized sub-plots in just over 80 minutes, including the surrogate family of Shelly's fellow dancers and her relationship with the show's director (Dave Bautista), and you end up with a thin attempt at a character study that could stand a bit more studying. Available Jan. 10 in theaters. (R)

January 2025 Special Screenings

KRCL "Music Meets Movies": Moonage Daydream: Director Brett Morgen (Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck) creates a kaleidoscopic profile of pioneering pop icon David Bowie in this 2022 documentary. The one-night-only screening takes place at Brewvies Cinema Pub (677 S. 200 West) on Thursday, Jan. 9 at 7:30 p.m., tickets $10 at the door. brewvies.com

Sunday Brunch Feature: The Invisible Man: With director Leigh Whannell's new spin on a classic movie monster—Wolf Man—due later this month, Brewvies presents the 2020 version of The Invisible Man starring Elisabeth Moss. Showtime is noon on Sunday, Jan. 12; admission is free to the public while seats last, doors open at 11:30 a.m. brewvies.com

Twilight Saga: The hit horror-romance series based on Stephenie Meyer's best-selling books returns to theaters for special week-long engagements at select Megaplex Theatres locations, beginning with 2008's Twilight (Jan. 17), followed by New Moon (Jan. 24), Eclipse (Jan. 31) and Breaking Dawn parts 1 & 2 (Feb. 7). Tickets are $5 per screening; a special marathon of all five films takes place on Saturday, Jan. 18 at assorted Megaplex Theatres locations at 8:35 a.m. megaplextheatres.com

The Goonies 40th anniversary: Gen X-ers, rejoice! The 1985 youth adventure classic comes back to theaters for a limited engagement on Jan. 19 and Jan. 20 at Megaplex Theatres locations. megaplextheatres.com