It’s not uncommon in the era of cinematic universes for a movie to assume, if not require, audiences to be familiar with previous entries in its franchise or its director’s resume. Two new films, however, one on the arthouse circuit and the other descending on multiplexes, weave these histories in unusual ways. One, Jia Zhangke’s Caught by the Tides, incorporates decades of the director’s chronicles of contemporary China into an all-new tale. The other, From the World of John Wick: Ballerina, branches off from the Keanu Reeves action series to introduce a new character to its roster of assassins. (Yes, that’s the film’s actual title, per IMDb, but I only recall seeing Ballerina on the screen. It’s enough to make me glad I don’t have to worry about shelving movies in a video store anymore.)

Jia has been making films that track the rapid-fire modernization and urbanization of China for thirty years, including The World, 24 City, A Touch of Sin, and many others. These have often starred his spouse and muse, Zhao Tao, and, despite their ambivalence about the social and environmental costs of the country’s massive changes, have generally been made with state approval. While unable to film during COVID, Jia sifted through hundreds of hours of outtakes from Unknown Pleasures (2002), Still Life (2006), and Ash Is Purest White (2018) to assemble an entirely new narrative involving Qiao Qiao, a dancer played by Zhao in the earliest of that trio, which is set in a struggling coal-mining town in northern China. In the first act of Caught by the Tides, Qiao Qiao meets a petty crook named Bin (Li Zhubin) and they fall in love, but it doesn’t last. The second act corresponds roughly to Still Life, Jia’s film about the immense upheavals resulting from China’s massive Three Gorges Dam project, although scenes and outtakes from Ash Is Purest White are interwoven as well. Finally, Bin and Qiao Qiao reunite in new scenes shot during 2022 that are imbued with the eerily subdued futurism of our pandemic-tinged present reality.

That’s a lot of backstory, but it feels almost necessary if one isn’t to be thrown by the intentionally jarring alternation between film formats and styles, from the crude digital cinematography of Jia’s early work (Unknown Pleasures was shot on the sly without government sanction) to the smoother visuals and VR aesthetic of today. And yet, even without that context, Caught by the Tides is a riveting, kaleidoscopic tapestry that presents a tragic melodrama about characters, as the title suggests, swept up in the currents of history and struggling to retain any confidence that they are in charge of their own destinies. (Qiao Qiao, for instance, speaks hardly a word in the entire film.) If it spurs an interest in Jia’s back catalog, however, be aware that the vast majority of his filmography is currently streaming via The Criterion Channel. To get a full picture of the China’s surreal 21st-century transformation, a deep dive into it is essential. (Living Room Theaters)

While I had some familiarity with Jia’s oeuvre prior to seeing Caught by the Tides, almost everything I know about the John Wick mythos I owe to cultural osmosis and Wikipedia. (I suppose that imbalance puts me in the minority.) Ballerina, fortunately, doesn’t ask too much of its viewers in that regard—or in any other, really. It’s the story of Eve Macarro (Ana de Armas), who witnesses her father’s murder by a group of mysterious killers as a child and is then taken in by a group known as the Ruska Roma and its Director (Anjelica Huston). There, in a series of sequences that would probably trigger Natasha Romanoff’s PTSD, she’s taught to shoot, stab, choke, and, of course, dance. Once trained in the deadly arts, she sets off on a classic orphan’s revenge quest, which puts her on a collision course with Wick regular Winston (Ian McShane) and big baddie The Chancellor (Gabriel Byrne). Another regular, Lance Reddick, who died in 2023, appears briefly as Charon in his final film appearance. Anne Parillaud, who starred in Ballerina’s ancestor La Femme Nikita back in 1990, has a nice cameo as a concierge at one of the globe-spanning luxury hotels that cater to the professional killer crowd.

This is the first film in the series not directed by Chad Stahelski, who parlayed his work as Reeves’ stunt double in The Matrix films into a career as one of the most acclaimed action directors working today. Instead, the honor goes to Len Wiseman, best known for the Underworld movies, although Stahelski reportedly oversaw extensive reshoots. Most of the violence in Ballerina feels rote at this point, a series of bullet-riddled gymnastic routines that are only interesting to scrutinize for the shots containing de Armas versus those with her stunt double (basically, any shot where you can’t see Eve’s face clearly). In the final act, an unsurprising guest star (rhymes with Ron Thicke) faces off against our feisty but inexperienced hero, and there are a pair of inventive set pieces involving (a) the use of sharp-bladed ice skates as improvised boxing gloves and (b) a flamethrower-vs-flamethrower battle that ratchets things up to a level of enjoyable absurdity.

De Armas made an Oscar-nominated bid for critical legitimacy with the much-maligned Blonde, in which she astonishingly impersonated Marilyn Monroe. That film’s ultimate disappointments seem to have encouraged her to return to the elevated genre work (Knives Out, No Time to Die) that first brought her prominence. (Coincidentally, her first splash came as one of the sexy interlopers who seduced Reeves in 2015’s Knock Knock.) It’s a shame if so, because she doesn’t have much presence as Eve in Ballerina and it would be unfortunate if this charismatic, seemingly versatile performer got stuck in a gun-toting rut. (Wide release)

Dogma: Kevin Smith’s fourth feature has perhaps the all-time ’90s indie cinema cast, an indication of just how ingrained he had become in the zeitgeist by the end of that transformative decade for American movies. You’ve got Matt Damon and Ben Affleck as a pair of exiled (to Wisconsin, no less!) angels of vengeance trying to get back into Heaven, and Linda Fiorentino as a Catholic abortion clinic worker who’s recruited by another angel, played by Alan Rickman, to stop them. Meanwhile, a demon played by Jason Lee intervenes to encourage Matt and Ben’s quest, which will (oops!) result in the destruction of existence if successful. Chris Rock is Jesus’ 13th apostle, written out of the gospels because he’s Black, while Salma Hayek shows up as a stripper who’s secretly the muse of creative inspiration. Janeane Garofalo has a small part, as does the great George Carlin as a dippy bishop. Naturally, Smith and his partner in crime Jason Mewes have a part to play in this whole kerfuffle as stoner stalwarts (or is it stalwart stoners?) Jay and Silent Bob. The cherry on top of the whole thing (spoiler alert for a 25-year-old movie) is the casting of Alanis Morrisette as the Almighty Herself.

Having been kept hostage by villainous rapist Harvey Weinstein for decades, the film’s rights were finally acquired by Smith last year, allowing for this “resurrection” of a film that was deemed blasphemous on its original release by the Catholic League but which now seems relatively devout, at least to this practicing atheist. It’s certainly irreverent, from the “Buddy Christ” marketing campaign headed by Carlin’s cleric to the demon made of literal shit summoned by Lee’s demon, but what do you expect from the gloriously profane mind behind Clerks? In retrospect, it’s astonishing that a guy who made a career out of dirty jokes and Star Wars references (hilarious as both could be) was given $10 million (nearly $20 million today) to make a religious satire that dares to ponder metaphysical questions while simultaneously including a joke about a character (Jay, naturally) who hangs around abortion clinics because it’s “a good place to meet loose women.”

There’s a lot of good stuff in Dogma, but revisiting it also foregrounds its maker’s limitations. Smith simply doesn’t know how to write dialogue that resembles how people actually speak, and as a director, his reach generally exceeded his grasp. The fact that every character in the movie sounds like a Kevin Smith mouthpiece keeps the human element—namely, Fiorentino’s character’s arc—from having any emotional impact, and his floundering approach to visual storytelling is a potent reminder of why he quickly retreated to his comfort zone of cinematically unambitious talkfests and stoner comedies. (Regal Fox Tower, Living Room Theaters, Kiggins Theatre, through Sunday 6/8; Cinemagic, Tuesday 6/10 only)

Dangerous Animals: In the fine tradition of Ozploitation comes this cheeky, cheesy horror flick from Down Under, in which the many sharks on screen are not the dangerous animals of the title. At least, not the most dangerous one. That would be Tucker (Jai Courtney), the beefy operator of a trawler equipped with a shark cage that caters to tourists looking for a little adrenaline rush. As the opening scene demonstrates, Tucker’s also a serial killer who preys upon his customers. Specifically, he gets off on forcing one of his prisoners to watch while he lowers another into the water to be consumed by a toothy aquatic predator. Why? There’s some reference to the fact that Tucker survived a shark attack as a lad, but really it’s just an excuse for director Sean Byrne, making his first film since 2015’s The Devil’s Candy, to indulge in some gory Grand Guignol shenanigans. When the free-spirited surfer girl Zephyr (Hassie Harrison, demonstrating physical gusto and an impressive scream) goes missing after wafting into a one-night stand (prompted by their mutual admiration of Creedence Clearwater Revival) with Moses (Josh Heuston), he dutifully investigates. But the ultimate, brutal showdown here is between Zephyr and Tucker in a nasty but lithe thriller that has about as much body fat as the average Great White. (Regal Fox Tower, Clackamas Town Center, Oak Grove)

Bleak Week: The concept originated at the American Cinematheque in Los Angeles: a week’s worth of some of the world’s most notorious films exploring the dark side of humanity, the hopelessness and nihilism that are generally anathema in mainstream movies. Now in its fourth year, Bleak Week comes to Portland with a roster of depressing and disturbing films that includes Ingmar Bergman’s Cries and Whispers (1973) and Lars von Trier’s Dancer in the Dark (2000), both on 35mm. Other titles guaranteed to bring you down (in a good way) are the uber-noir Chinatown, in which Jack Nicholson learns the hard way to give up on hope; Michael Winterbottom’s Butterfly Kiss (1995), with Amanda Plummer as a haunted serial killer in northern England; and Uli Edel’s Christiane F. (1981), about a teenaged girl in Berlin who gets addicted to heroin. But the pièce de résistance is a 35mm screening of Pier Paolo Pasolini’s final work, 1975’s Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom, one of the most controversial and frequently banned movies ever made. It’s a furious and brutal fable about the fury and brutality of fascism in which four aristocrats kidnap a group of adolescents and subject them to a barrage of torture and sexual abuse. (The Republic of Salò was the name of the fascist state in northern Italy that continued to exist after the fall of Mussolini during the last year-and-a-half of World War II.) Whether or not the film remains relevant in a time of increasing authoritarianism tinged with sometimes overt themes of sexual domination is, perhaps, an open question. (Friday 6/6 through Thursday 6/12, Hollywood Theatre)

Desire Lines: As heteronormative society continues to haltingly come to terms with the vast spectrum of human experience that lies outside its traditional boundaries and definitions, one of the key evolutions, it seems, has been an awareness of the distinction between gender identity and sexual orientation. That distinction, as commonsensical as it may be, was basically unexplored prior to the work of Lou Sullivan, who is credited as the first transgender man to publicly identify as gay. An interview with Sullivan in 1989, shortly before his death from AIDS, forms one of the threads in Jules Rosskam’s hybrid documentary, which explores FTM (female-to-male) and gay transmasculine culture through a fictional framing story about an Iranian-American scholar visiting an LGBTQ+ archive and befriending a younger archivist there. That friendship prompts discussions of bathhouse and cruising practices over the decades, and is supplemented by real testimony from other individuals who identify as gay trans men, often finding themselves alienated to some degree from both gay and trans populations. Rosskam, the maker of several films on trans issues, weaves these strands into an empathetic, frank look at a perhaps underrepresented slice of the LGTBQ+ community. (Tomorrow Theater, Saturday 6/7)

Also opening

Dan Da Dan: Evil Eye: This anime series about a pair of high schoolers who investigate occult happenings returns for a second season, and to commemorate, the final episode of the first season along with the first three of the second season will screen in theaters. (Cinemagic, Eastport Plaza, Regal Fox Tower, Clackamas Town Center)

Housefull 5: The fifth installment of the all-time highest-grossing Indian comedy franchise follows a pair of police detectives who board a cruise ship to investigate the murder of a billionaire. The film will reportedly have different endings, with different killers, in different theaters, something the makers (who are clearly unfamiliar with 1985’s Clue) claim is a first in film history. (Movies on TV)

I Don’t Understand You: Nick Kroll and Andrew Rannells, previous collaborators on the animated Netflix series Big Mouth, play an American couple on vacation in Italy hoping for a final grown-up fun time before their adoption comes through. Instead, they end up on the run after the accidental death of the old woman whose rural hotel they’re staying at. (Clackamas Town Center, Movies on TV)

The Phoenician Scheme: Wes Anderson’s latest wasn’t screened for local critics, and it was tempting to write a review anyway, since it certainly looks like exactly what you’d expect from a Wes Anderson movie, with the apropos addition of Michael Cera to the director’s twee ensemble. It has something to do with Benicio Del Toro as a tycoon trying to make amends with his estranged daughter (Mia Threapleton, another newcomer to the Andersonverse) following a near-death experience.

The Ritual: Based on the true story of Emma Schmidt, which may have been a major inspiration for The Exorcist, director David Midell’s film stars Al Pacino (!) and Dan Stevens as the priests who attempt to cure the 46-year-old woman (here played by the 27-year-old Abigail Cowen, because movies) of her purported demonic possession in 1928 Iowa. (Bridgeport Village, Movies on TV)

Thug Life: This Tamil-language action musical marks the reunion of director Mani Ratnam and star Kamal Haasan, 36 years after their iconic collaboration in 1987’s Nayakan. The plot centers on two brothers who rescue a young boy during a police shootout and later adopt him. Years later, one of the brothers suspects the other, and the now-grown boy, of betraying him. The music is by Oscar-winner A. R. Rahman (Slumdog Millionaire). (Cedar Hills, Bridgeport Village, Movies on TV)

Also this week

Best of SECS Fest: This sex-positive international film festival brings a selection of kinky queer shorts from around the globe to Portland (21+ only). (Clinton Street Theater, Friday 6/6)

New Wave: Director Elizabeth Ai recounts her own history as a first-generation Vietnamese-American who discovers the culture of New Wave music produced by the diaspora to which she belongs during the 1970s and ’80s. At the same time, she unearths family secrets and explores the trauma of the immigrant experience. This Pride Month event features a book signing of the film’s companion tome by Ai and an AAPI drag show before the film as well as a Q&A with the filmmaker afterwards. (Clinton Street Theater, Saturday 6/7)

The Great Divide: Director John Skipp’s dark comedy about a bunch of relatives who convene following the death of their matriarch to find out who’s in the will, which I profiled last year for ArtsWatch, is a fun, ramshackle look at family dysfunction—or, as it’s better known, family. (Clinton Street Theater, Sunday 6/8)

The People vs. Agent Orange: Presented by the Sierra Club of Oregon, this award-winning documentary explores the use of the cancer-causing defoliant not only in Vietnam during the American War, but domestically in various forms as well. It follows activists, including a woman who sued the American chemical industry in French courts for poisoning her family during the war, in their efforts to bring its manufacturers to justice. (Clinton Street Theater, Monday 6/9)

Hari Hara Veera Mallu Part 1: Sword vs Spirit: This Telugu-language historical epic tells the story (or at least a story) of Veera Mallu, a legendary Indian outlaw who rebelled against the 17th-century Mughal Empire. Star Pawan Kalyan is also an elected official and the founder of the centrist, humanist Janasena political party. (Cedar Hills, Wednesday 6/11)

Beyond Psychedelic Posters: The Moving Image Works of Jim Blashfield: The veteran Portland filmmaker, known for his music videos for artists including Talking Heads and Michael Jackson, and for his inventive, surreal short films, will participate in a moderated discussion following a screening of selections from his decades of work. (Tomorrow Theater, Thursday 6/12)

Miley Cyrus: Something Beautiful: The pop star presents a visual album including thirteen original songs described as being “fueled by fantasy.” (Eastport Plaza, Clackamas Town Center, Bridgeport Village, Thursday 6/12)

Repertory

Friday 6/6

• The Bodyguard [1992] (Tomorrow Theater)
• Bottle Rocket [1996] (Cinema 21, also 6/7)
• The Kiss [1988] (Cinemagic, on VHS)
• The Last Days of Disco [1998] (5th Avenue Cinema, through 6/8)

Saturday 6/7

• On the Town [1951] (Cinema 21)
• The Palm Beach Story [1942] (Hollywood Theatre, also 6/8)

Sunday 6/8

• Demons [1985] (Hollywood Theatre, cast member and Portland native Geretta Geretta in attendance)
• Hale County This Morning, This Evening [2018] (Tomorrow Theater)
• One of Them Days [2025] (Tomorrow Theater)
• Orlando, My Political Biography [2023] (Clinton Street Theater)

Monday 6/9

• The Hitch-Hiker [1953] (Kiggins Theatre)

Tuesday 6/10

• The Prodigal Son [1981] (Hollywood Theatre, on 35mm)
• The Watermelon Woman [1996] (Clinton Street Theater)

Thursday 6/12

• Bottoms [2023] (Clinton Street Theater)