By Chip Chandler — Producer

In Amarillo theaters this week: Underwater battles, faithful soldiers, skatepunks and visits from Jack Skellington and Coco. 

New in theaters

• Hunter Killer: American submarine Captain Joe Glass (Gerard Butler) uncovers a secret Russian coup and must undertake a mission to save the Russian president in an attempt to stop World War III. Reviews are not terribly strong for the action-adventure film. (R for violence and some language; click here for showtimes at United Artists Amarillo Star 14, 8275 W. Amarillo Blvd.; Cinergy Amarillo, 9201 Cinergy Square; and Cinemark Hollywood 16, 9100 Canyon Drive)
• Indivisible: Army Chaplain Darren Turner (Justin Bruening) is deployed to Iraq shortly after he, his wife Heather (Sarah Drew) and family arrive at Fort Stewart. As he tries to tend to his fellow soldiers' needs overseas, Heather raised their three children and tries to serve the soldiers' families, causing strain in their marriage. The faith-based drama is based on a true story. (PG-13 for some thematic material and war violence; click here for showtimes at Amarillo Star 14 and Hollywood 16)
• Mid90s: Actor Jonah Hill makes his directorial debut with this intimate look (which he also wrote) at life among '90s-era skaters, particularly a 13-year-old named Stevie (Sunny Suljic). Reviews are pretty solid across the board. (R for pervasive language, sexual content, drug and alcohol use, some violent behavior/disturbing images — all involving minors; click here for showtimes at Amarillo Star 14 and Hollywood 16)

Special engagements

• Oct. 26: Last year's hit Pixar film Coco will return to big screens for a limited run at Hollywood 16. It'll screen at least through Nov. 1.
• Oct. 26: Halloween favorite The Nightmare Before Christmas will return to big screens for a limited run through Oct. 31 at Amarillo Star 14.
• Oct. 27 and 31: The Met: Live in HD series continues with Puccini's Wild West drama La Fanciulla del West, starring Eva-Maria Westbroek and Jonas Kaufmann. It'll screen live at 11:55 a.m. Oct. 27 and encore at 1 and 6:30 p.m. Oct. 31 at Hollywood 16.
• Oct. 28 to 30: The Studio Ghibli Fest 2018 continues with the all-time classic Spirited Away at both Amarillo Star 14 and Hollywood 16. An English-dubbed version will screen at 12:55 p.m. Oct. 28 and 7 p.m. Oct. 30, with a subtitled version screening at 7 p.m. Oct. 29.
• Oct. 29: The National Theatre production of Frankenstein starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller will return to theaters. The actors famously swapped roles throughout the production, and the 7 p.m. Oct. 22 screening will feature Cumberbatch as the Creature, with the 7 p.m. Oct. 29 screening featuring Miller as the Creature. Both screenings will take place at Amarillo Star 14, 8275 W. Amarillo Blvd. (I've now seen both, and I think I prefer the one with Miller as the Creature overall. Cumberbatch gives a phenomenal performance as the Creature, but his Victor Frankenstein is equally compelling; Miller's Victor wasn't quite as strong.)
• Oct. 30: Christian singer Russ Taff's battle with alcoholism is charted in the documentary I Still Believe, screening at 7 p.m. Oct. 30 at both Amarillo Star 14 and Hollywood 16.

Upcoming

• Nov. 1: Advance tickets are on sale now for Freddie Mercury biopic Bohemian Rhapsody and Tyler Perry comedy Nobody's Fool at Amarillo Star 14, Cinergy Amarillo and Hollywood 16.
• Nov. 1: Advance tickets are on sale now for family holiday adventure The Nutcracker and the Four Realms at Amarillo Star 14 and Cinergy Amarillo. Others may follow.
• Nov. 1: Faith-based urban drama Never Heard will screen at 7 p.m. Nov. 1 at Amarillo Star 14 and Hollywood 16.
• Nov. 3 and 5: A double-feature of Dragon Ball Z films — Bardock: The Father of Goku and Fusion Reborn — will screen at 12:55 p.m. Nov. 3 and 7 p.m. Nov. 5 at both Amarillo Star 14 and Hollywood 16.
• Nov. 4: A 10th anniversary reissue of the original Mamma Mia! will screen at 7 p.m. Nov. 4 and 4 and 7 p.m. Nov. 6 at Amarillo Star 14.
• Nov. 8: Advance tickets are on sale now for family holiday film Dr. Seuss' The Grinch at Amarillo Star 14, Cinergy Amarillo and Hollywood 16.
• Nov. 8: Advance tickets are on sale now for supernatural war thriller Overlord at Amarillo Star 14 and Hollywood 16. Others may follow.
• Nov. 8: Advance tickets are on sale now for thriller The Girl in the Spider's Web at Amarillo Star 14. Others may follow.
• Nov. 8: A performance captured live from the Festspielhaus in the Bavarian Alps, Hymn: Sarah Brightman in Concert will screen at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 8 at Hollywood 16. 
• Nov. 10 and 14: The Met: Live in HD series continues with composer Nico Muhly's new opera Marnie, starring Isabel Leonard and Christopher Maltman in a reimagining of the Winston Graham novel and Alfred Hitchcock film. It'll screen live at 11:55 a.m. Nov. 10 and encore at 1 and 6:30 p.m. Nov. 14 at Hollywood 16.
• Nov. 11 and 14: The TCM Big Screen Classics series continues with a 30th anniversary screening of iconic action film Die Hard at 2 and 7 p.m. 11 and 14 at both Amarillo Star 14 and Hollywood 16.
• Nov. 12: The animated favorite Batman: Mask of the Phantasm will screen in a 25th anniversary presentation at 2 and 7 p.m. Nov. 12 at both Amarillo Star 14 and Hollywood 16.
• Nov. 13: Get a sneak preview of new Harry Potter franchise installment Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald at  7 p.m. Nov. 13 at Hollywood 16.
• Nov. 13: Cirque du Soleil's stage show Kurios: Cabinet of Curiosities will screen at 7 p.m. Nov. 13 at Hollywood 16.
• Nov. 13: Faith-based documentary Restoring Tomorrow will screen at 7 p.m. Nov. 13 at both Amarillo Star 14 and Hollywood 16.
• Nov. 15 and 19: A filmed-on-stage version of Broadway musical Bandstand, about a group of World War II vets who work through their post-war trauma by forming a swing band, will encore at 7 p.m. Nov. 15 and 19 at Hollywood 16.
• Nov. 15: Advance tickets are on sale now for Harry Potter franchise Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald at Amarillo Star 14, Cinergy Amarillo and Hollywood 16.
• Nov. 15: Advance tickets are on sale now for adoption comedy Instant Family at Amarillo Star 14 and Hollywood 16. Others may follow.
• Nov. 16: Action thriller Widows is scheduled to open nationally, but advance tickets are not yet on sale.
• Nov. 18 to 20: The Studio Ghibli Fest 2018 continues with the classic Castle in the Sky at both Amarillo Star 14 and Hollywood 16. An English-dubbed version will screen at 12:55 p.m. Nov. 18 and 7 p.m. Nov. 20, with a subtitled version screening at 7 p.m. Nov. 19.
• Nov. 19: Advance tickets are on sale now for the latest revamp of Robin Hood at Amarillo Star 14. Others may follow.
• Nov. 21: Sports drama sequel Creed II, period comedy/drama Green Book and animated sequel Ralph Breaks the Internet are scheduled to open nationally, but advance tickets are not yet on sale.
• Nov. 24 to Dec. 1: The new Pokémon the Movie: The Power of Us will screen at 12:55 p.m. Nov. 24, 7 p.m. Nov. 26 and 28, and 12:55 p.m. Dec. 1 at both Amarillo Star 14 and Hollywood 16.
• Nov. 25 and 27: A 40th anniversary screening of Superman with Christopher Reeve will play at 3 p.m. Nov. 25  at Amarillo Star 14 and 3 and 7 p.m. Nov. 25 at Hollywood 16 and 3 and 7 p.m. Nov. 27 at both.
• Nov. 29: Get insight into Santa Fe's beguilingly bizarre art installation in Meow Wolf: Origin Story at 7 p.m. Nov. 29 at Amarillo Star 14 and Hollywood 16.
• Nov. 29 to Dec. 8: Time-traveling anime film Mirai (a potential Oscar nominee, based on the tea leaves I'm reading) will screen at 7 and 8 p.m. Nov. 29, 7 p.m. Dec. 5 and 12:55 p.m. Dec. 8 at Hollywood 16.

Listings at a glance

Click on titles for my reviews and on theaters for showtimes. (AS-14 = Amarillo Star 14; CA = Cinergy Amarillo; H-16 = Hollywood 16, WM-6 = Westgate Mall 6)

• Alpha (WM-6)
• Bad Times at the El Royale (AS-14, CA, H-16)
• Christopher Robin (WM-6)
• First Man (AS-14, CA, H-16)
• Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween (AS-14, CA, H-16)
• Gosnell: The Trial of America's Biggest Serial Killer (AS-14)
• Halloween (AS-14, CA, H-16)
• The Hate U Give (AS-14, CA, H-16)
• Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (WM-6)
• The House with a Clock in Its Walls (H-16)
• Hunter Killer (AS-14, CA, H-16)
• The Incredibles 2 (WM-6)
• Indivisible (AS-14, H-16)
• The Meg (WM-6)
• Mid90s (AS-14, H-16)
• Night School (AS-14, CA, H-16)
• The Old Man & The Gun (H-16) (Interview with costume designer and Amarillo native Annell Brodeur)
• Peppermint (WM-6)
• The Predator (WM-6)
• Smallfoot (AS-14, CA, H-16)
• A Star Is Born (AS-14, CA, H-16)
• Venom (AS-14, CA, H-16)

Chip Chandler is a producer for Panhandle PBS and a member of GALECA. He can be contacted at Chip.Chandler@actx.edu, at @chipchandler1 on Twitter and on Facebook.