New movies this week: Watch tech thriller ‘Missing,’ catch up on awards contender ‘Women Talking’

Storm Reid plays a teen girl desperately trying to find her missing mom in a modern tech thriller, Anna Kendrick plays an emotionally abused woman getting girlfriend support in a psychological drama, while Jessie Buckley, Claire Foy, Rooney Mara and Frances McDormand head up a talented, Screen Actors Guild-nominated ensemble in a film about a female community taking back their power. 

Here’s a guide to new movies that will satisfy every cinematic taste, plus some noteworthy theatrical films making their streaming and on-demand debuts:

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Female empowerment and Hugh Jackman are this week’s highlights

A crop of new flicks join Tom Hanks and “M3GAN” at the January box office: 

• Taut and twisty “Missing” story is told through various screens and apps.
• “Alice, Darling” and “Women Talking” both find female characters at a crossroads.
• Peacock gets “Sick” with a slasher movie set during the pandemic.

If you feel like watching someone use the Internet for good: ‘Missing’

A follow-up to “Searching,” the satisfyingly twisty “screenlife” thriller – told through computer applications, texts, email and video chats – centers on teen June (Reid), whose mom (Nia Long) disappears with her new boyfriend (Ken Leung) while on vacation in Colombia. With real-world help and many online rabbit holes, June uncovers a bevy of red flags and hidden secrets before a white-knuckle conclusion.

Where to watch: In theaters

If you like to see women uplifting women: ‘Alice, Darling’

Kendrick stars as the title character who goes on a lakeside getaway with her best friends (Wunmi Mosaku and Kaniehtiio Horn). But it’s more needed than anyone knows in this insightful potboiler: Psychologically abused by her boyfriend (Charlie Carrick), Alice doesn’t realize the full extent of her trauma until she’s around her confidantes, who are ready and willing for anything when the dude suddenly shows up at their doorstep.

Where to watch: In theaters

If you love spot-on movie titles: ‘Women Talking’

Based on the Miriam Toews novel, writer/director Sarah Polley’s intimate drama centers on a group of women in a religious colony who, after a series of rapes, have to decide whether to stay or go. The storytelling momentum wanes at times but the acting is phenomenal, with Buckley, Foy and Mara among those playing characters determining their fate in a life-altering barn debate.

Where to watch: In theaters

If you’re a Hugh Jackman completist: ‘The Son’

While Florian Zeller’s family drama fails to reaches the brilliant heights of “The Father,” Jackman has one of his better dramatic outings as a busy working father concerned by the discovery his teen son (Zen McGrath) hasn’t been to school in a month. The kid moves in with his father and new stepmom Beth (Vanessa Kirby) but his depression gets worse, leading to a staggering final act.

Where to watch: In theaters

If you’re all about creepy kids: ‘There’s Something Wrong With the Children’

The freakiest youngsters not named M3GAN at the movies are Lucy (Briella Guiza) and Spencer (David Mattle), a pair of siblings who are really into dead bugs and weirding out adults. During a forest trip with their family, they go missing for a spell and then inexplicably return with dead eyes and eerie grins, seriously unnerving their parents’ friends (Zach Gilford and Alisha Wainwright).

Where to watch: Apple TV, Vudu, Amazon

If you’re all about creepy space invaders: ‘Kids vs. Aliens’

This indie shlock-fest centers on young Gary (Dominic Mariche) and wrestling-obsessed older sister Samantha (Phoebe Rex). With mom and dad out of town, Samantha throws a Halloween party to get in with the cool clique, and the soiree gets crashed by some homicidal aliens. The sci-fi horror film makes up for the familiar teen-film premise with an impressively high level of gore (including one nifty scene with flesh-melting goo). 

Where to watch: In theaters and on Apple TV, Vudu, Amazon

If you want to see Tom Hanks channel Oscar the Grouch: ‘A Man Called Otto’

Even in grump mode, Hanks’ signature charisma comes through in this solidly heartfelt comedy. The actor’s title widower is curt and cross with his neighbors – and pondering the end of his life – until a pregnant woman (Mariana Treviño) moves in next door and, with the help of a stray cat and other folks, gives Otto a reason to keep on living.

Where to watch: In theaters

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If you dig Gerard Butler action movies: ‘Plane’

The way-too-simple title gives you hope this thing might be enjoyably bonkers but it’s instead sadly generic. Butler plays a pilot forced to crash-land his commercial flight in a bad part of the Philippines and partner with a skilled fugitive (Mike Colter) to save passengers from bad guys. There’s not even that much plane stuff in a movie that can’t live up to the cheesy ’80s films it copies,

Where to watch: In theaters

If you’re curious to see a pandemic-era slasher: ‘Sick’

From “Scream” writer Kevin Williamson and set in the early days of COVID-19, the horror film centers on two college kids who quarantine in a country mansion but are hunted through the place by a masked killer. It sticks to the slasher script but the humor and plot cleverly bend a few tropes making use of the pandemic gimmick.

Where to watch: Peacock

If you’re a fan of courtroom dramas: ‘Saint Omer’

Director Alice Diop’s French entry to the Oscars’ international film category is an excellently insightful exploration of race and motherhood in the guise of a legal flick. Kayije Kagame plays a pregnant journalist who takes an uncanny interest in – and is increasingly affected by – the trial of a Senegalese immigrant (Guslagie Malanda) accused of murdering her 15-month-old daughter.

Where to watch: In theaters

If you want to be unnerved for 100 minutes: ‘Skinamarink’

While not for everyone, horror fans needing a creepy, discombobulating experience get their fill with this found-footage-esque film. Two young kids (Lucas Paul and Dali Rose Tetreault) wake up in the middle of the night and can’t find their dad, leading to an unnerving time spent watching cartoons, seeing doors appear and disappear and wondering what the heck’s wrong with mom in a nightmare come to sleepless life.

Where to watch: In theaters

If you grew up with Teddy Ruxpin and other toy companions: ‘M3GAN’

The thriller doles out more laughs than scares with the story of a robotics engineer (Allison Williams) who creates a cutting-edge android doll, “pairs” it with her 9-year-old orphaned niece, and comes to find that wasn’t a great idea. M3GAN herself is a hoot as a 21st-century mean-girl version of Chucky amid a sharply satirical take on parenting and modern technology. 

Where to watch: In theaters

If you saw ‘Glass Onion’ and need more mystery: ‘The Pale Blue Eye’

This 19th-century whodunit is full of dark, moody flair and a nifty literary bent. A weathered detective (Christian Bale) is called to West Point circa 1830 to solve a grisly murder, and needing a man on the inside, he recruits Poe (Harry Melling), an oddball cadet years away from becoming a goth icon. One of the “Harry Potter” movie kids, Melling brings an eccentric magnetism to the twisty thriller.

Where to watch: Netflix

If you want to see a gunslinging Nic Cage: ‘The Old Way’

Colton Briggs (Cage) went from cold-blooded outlaw to devoted family man, but when a gang of miscreants brings tragedy to his home, Briggs and his 12-year-old daughter Brooke (Ryan Kiera Armstrong) head off on a quest for vengeance. The straightforward Western leans cookie-cutter with its characters, especially the bad guys, but not with its parent-kid dynamic, where Brooke is way more like her dad than one might expect.

Where to watch: In theaters and on Apple TV, Google Play

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If you’re a science nerd: ‘The Invisible Extinction’

Crafted in a breezy but informative fashion, the documentary investigates the importance of microbes, how antibiotics have lessened the bacteria in our bodies, and why that might be playing a role in the rise of chronic diseases such as obesity and diabetes. The film looks at experimental therapies as well as personal stories, and at the very least you’ll learn a ton about fecal transplants.

Where to watch: In theaters and on Apple TV, Google Play

Also on streaming 

• A “Shrek” spinoff, the animated comedy “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” – with Antonio Banderas voicing the title feline swashbuckler – is now available on Apple TV, Vudu and Amazon.
• “The Menu” is streaming on HBO Max, the journalism drama “She Said” is on Peacock and the Korean war drama “Devotion” is playing on Paramount+.