From Up on Poppy Hill Animation god Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away) trusted his son Goro to direct this story the old man wrote, which draws a parallel between blossoming teen romance and Japan’s re-emergence as a world power in the early 1960s. Anglo actors who provided dubbing for the Western version include Gillian Anderson, Ron Howard, Christina Hendricks and Jeff Dunham. Yes, the “brains” behind Achmed the Dead Terrorist can now say that he’s worked with Hayao Miyazaki. But if you think they’re the week’s strangest bedfellows – well, hang on, man! (PG; opens Friday, May 10, at Regal Winter Park Village Stadium 20) – Steve Schneider
The Great Gatsby You probably thought you had tumbled down the rabbit hole to Severe-Head-Trauma-Land the first time you heard the words “The Great Gatsby … in 3-D!” But then you remembered how much your enjoyment of The Way We Were had been enhanced by the Sensurround, and you were cool with it. Sultan of glitz Baz Luhrmann is in the director’s chair as Leonardo DiCaprio assumes the role of the mysterious Jay Gatsby (having honed his reclusive-richie chops
playing Howard Hughes, of course). Tobey Maguire is Nick Carraway, and the score was produced by (of course) Jay-Z. Not sold yet? There’s also a song by LANA DEL REY. As Motörhead’s Lemmy once put it so eloquently, “Once again, common sense and good taste prevail.” (PG-13) – SS
Peeples Drumline writer Tina Gordon Chism moves up to writer-director status with Peeples, in which Craig Robinson plays an ordinary workin’ stiff about to marry into a family of Hamptons buppies. The supporting players include Scandal’s Kerry Washington, David Allen Grier, Diahann Carroll and – get this – Melvin Van Peebles, old Sweet Sweetback himself. Ten to one everybody else in the
cast is dead by the time the end credits roll. (PG-13) – SS
Also playing
Iron Man 3 Writer-director Shane Black, who directed Robert Downey Jr. in 2005’s superb Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, brings sharp, snarky humor and some welcome psychological depth to the Iron Man franchise, which had faded in an exhausting second installment. (PG-13) – Seth Kubersky
