Thursday
Troll 2 (6:30p — Central Library, Rm 302)
A family moves to the farming community/Lord of the Rings derivative Nilbog where they’re beset by goblins out to turn them into a green vegetarian paste. “Bad Cinema” lives up to its in name with a Troll sequel in name only. FREE.
Gone Girl (6:30p — Union South Marquee)
Nothing’s worse than letting a marriage wither and die a slow, painful death. Well, almost nothing. David Fincher’s second crime adaptation in a row takes Gillian Flynn’s beach read and sics an entire nation on Ben Affleck, who’s accused of murdering the missing wife (Rosamund Pike) he appears to be looking for. Great Pike performance. Greater Ross/Reznor score. FREE.
The Skeleton Twins (9:45p — Union South Marquee)
After a failed suicide attempt, Bill Hader moves in with estranged sister Kristen Wiig, and the two rekindle their childhood friendship to the tune of Starship’s “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” and the doofy smile of Wiig’s good-guy husband Luke Wilson. Sundancey to a fault, Hader and Wiig show they have the dramatic chops to back up their comedy — but we already knew that anyway. FREE.
All freakin’ weekend
Mortdecai (Sundance, AMC Star, Point, Eastgate)
Pewaukee native David Koepp directs Johnny Depp as Charlie Mortdecai, a disreputable art aficionado and the star of a comedic thriller anthology series. With a sassier and smarter wife (Gwyneth Paltrow) covering his mistakes and tolerating his infidelities, Mortdecai is tasked with tracking a stolen painting. Johnny Depp’s still playing a weirdo, but this time he’s a weirdo with a mustache.
Cake (Point)
Many a kerfuffle has been made over just how “gritty” a performance Jennifer Aniston gives as an emotionally and physically scarred woman who becomes obsessed with a suicide victim in her support group but no, that’s it.
Strange Magic (AMC Star, Point, Eastgate, Stoughton Cinema Café)
Long a pet project of George Lucas, Lucasfilm and Walt Disney Studios have in this under-the-radar animated release a combination of Shakespearean mismatched lovers and an assortment of pop song covers. Strange indeed.
The Boy Next Door (AMC Star, Point, Eastgate)
After a one-night stand with a sexy and suspiciously older-looking student (Ryan Guzman), Jennifer Lopez’s high school teacher is terrorized by her one-time mistake in a thriller that’s less Fatal Attraction and more psychotic six-pack abs.
Friday
The Skeleton Twins (6:00p — Union South Marquee)
FREE.
The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness (7:00p — 4070 Vilas Hall)
Mami Sunada gained unprecedented access into Studio Ghibli and the final production stages of Hayao Miyazaki’s purportedly final film, The Wind Rises. Regardless of if that access reveals a great deal about the soft-spoken animation legend is up for debate, but even if Sunada’s documentary can’t completely reconcile its reverence for its subject with Miyazaki’s own humility, it’s a fascinating (if removed) look at a long-dying art form and a bona fide treat for Totoro enthusiasts everywhere. FREE.
Gone Girl (8:15p — Union South Marquee)
FREE.
Dazed and Confused (11:30p — Union South Marquee)
Whether a tribute to director Richard Linklater’s awards circuit success for Boyhood or a tie-in to WUD Film’s unofficial “Ben Affleck” weekend, Linklater’s slice of halcyon high school days in the 1970s  (and the girls who refuse to age) plays all night, all night, all night.  FREE.
Saturday
The Wind Rises (2:00p — 4070 Vilas Hall)
And here’s the payoff for Cinematheque’s opening night film. Hayao Miyazaki tells the early life of Japanese engineer and “Zero Plane” inventor Jiro Horikoshi through dream, career, and romance. Equal parts wistful and grounded, what may prove to be the last film by hand drawn animation’s grandmaster is already a matured masterpiece that doubles as a meditation on Miyazaki’s own storied career. FREE.
How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2:00p — Pinney Branch Library)
FREE.
Dazed and Confused (6:30p — Union South Marquee)
FREE.
Citizen Kane (7:00p — 4070 Vilas Hall)
There is a film. A certain film. And it’s jumpstarting Cinematheque’s centennial celebration of Orson Welles’ 100th birthday. The shadow of one of the greatest works of art ever conceived can be daunting for newcomers to Citizen Kane, but this chronicle of the rise and fall of an American entrepreneur (in the tradition of William Randolph Hearst) should gain humility and insight in its inclusion in a series looking at Kenosha’s favorite son. FREE.
The Skeleton Twins (9:00p — Union South Marquee)
FREE.
Gone Girl (11:00p — Union South Marquee)
FREE.
Sunday
Gone Girl (3:00p — Union South Marquee)
FREE.
Monday
Bridesmaids (7:00p — Point, Eastgate)
Paul Feig’s comedy, which has Kristen Wiig’s maid of honor and Rose Byrne’s bridesmaid vying for the “best friend” status of Mya Rudolph’s bride-to-be, does for explosive diarrhea what Butterfinger BBs once did for explosive diarrhea: put it in a movie theater. $5.
Wednesday
How The West Was Won (1:15p, 6:45p — Sundance)
With a cast list that could stretch across the entirety of the midwest and Alfred Newman’s soulful, melancholy music, How the West Was Won is one family’s sprawling western of an epic, four generations in the making, from the east coast to the Pacific Ocean. I can barely handle my morning commute.