It takes a brave studio to open a film against a sure hit like the latest in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise. But every one of the four I’ve seen that also open this weekend are orders of magnitude better than Disney’s latest. That’s unlikely to affect the box office much, however — audiences regularly flock to films that critics have panned. Every “Pirates” film has made more than $300 million, even the second and third entries that got much worse reviews than the first. But take my advice, and avoid the long lines. Head to the arthouse and find something you’ll actually think about the next day.
“Meek’s Cutoff” is my top choice this weekend. It should satisfy fans of Westerns, but it’s anything but a formulaic genre film. Set in the hot sun of the Oregon desert in 1845, it follows a caravan of three wagons led by a gritty guide (Bruce Greenwood) who’s led the group astray, perhaps by accident or on purpose. As the supply of water dwindles, tensions become as taut as this lean film. Michelle Williams, Shirley Henderson and Paul Dano are just a few members of the standout cast.
