‘Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot’ and ‘The Divergent Series: Allegiant’ Continue at Local Movie Houses (Mon., 3/28/16)

1) Whiskey Tango Foxtrot – If you pick which movie you’re going to see based on how interesting the cast is you’ve probably already ordered tickets for Whiskey Tango Foxtrot. Tina Fey, Martin Freeman, Alfred Molina, Billy Bob Thornton, Josh Charles, Cherry Jones, and Thomas Kretschmann star … and Soledad O’Brien shows up playing herself! The reason all these people got together was to make this film adaptation of a memoir by Kim Barker called The Taliban Shuffle: Strange Days in Afghanistan and Pakistan about her years as a war correspondent. The film’s directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, the highly original duo behind such oddball movies as I Love You Phillip Morris, Crazy, Stupid, Love, and last year’s most underrated film Focus. Check Fandango for screens and times. (TH)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0G0C-vMHcQY

2) The Divergent Series: Allegiant – Say goodbye to those pangs of need, Summit Pictures is at last releasing the next installment in the “Divergent Series” Allegiant. What, you missed the first two, Divergent and Insurgent? Really, you’ve got to keep up. Based on a young adult sci-fi adventure trilogy by Veronica Roth, it’s the story of a dystopian future (is there any other kind?) in which people are classified into one of five categories based on their personalities—Abnegation, Amity, Candor, Dauntless, and Erudite. (Already we see I wouldn’t fit into this world because there’s no Bitchy.) Well what do you know but our heroine Tris can’t be classified and so becomes of enemy of the state. And before you can say “Katniss Everdeen” she’s fallen in with a group of rebels hoping to destroy the power structure. (Hmm, I wonder if Bernie Sanders has gotten wind of this?)

Hollywood’s taken the three novels, turned them into four movies and Allegiant is the penultimate. I’ve seen the other two but really don’t remember much—it’s all a bunch of cute young actors running around blowing up things. I seem to recall Kate Winslet in one of them playing a villain and getting killed. For this go ‘round—in addition to the series stars Shailene Woodley, Zoë Kravitz, Miles Teller, and Theo James—Naomi Watts, Jeff Daniels, and Bill Skarsgård (of the Swedish Skarsgårds) show up for the fun. Check Fandango for screens and times. (TH)

3) It’s Global Mondays at Cappy’s Cafe in Shadyside with imported bottled beers for only $3. While there, team up an import with a bowl of their scrumptious chili. 5431 Walnut St.

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