Dough Why is this high different from all other highs? A kosher baker hires a Muslim apprentice, not knowing that the industrious young fellow has a side gig dealing weed. When the kid accidentally dumps his product in the baker's dough, the resulting challah mixture has a decidedly calming effect on their community. A favorite at Jewish film festivals, this dramedy was also classified by the New York Times as "always non-threatening." (And boy, doesn't Benjamin Netanyahu wonder how you get that kind of press.) Personally, I'm always receptive to the moral that the key to cross-cultural understanding is blazing up as often as possible. Puff, puff, Passover. (NR)
A Hologram for the King Hey, you know how the government of Saudi Arabia secretly helped finance the Sept. 11 attacks? And how it's all revealed in the redacted pages of a congressional report that many Americans are clamoring to see? And how the Saudi government just snubbed President Obama over that continuing clamor, even though he's the one who's been pressuring Congress to keep a lid on it? Well, try not to think of any of that while you're watching this movie, adapted from the Dave Eggers novel about a faded American businessman who's desperate to score an important deal in the land of big oil and public behandings. Critical consensus has the film as technically faithful to the book yet still somehow watered down, with Variety putting us on high alert for the "feel-good" ending. Hey, at least none of it was redacted! (R)
Term Life I generally don't think it's a good idea to give a movie a title that reminds Americans of insurance salesmen, unless somebody is seriously planning on making Flo Gets 'Em Out for the Lads. Yet still we have Term Life, a black-comic crime caper in which a master thief takes out a life insurance policy to benefit his young daughter – as long as he can avoid getting murdered for the 21 days it takes for the policy to go into effect. Director Peter "Ralphie" Billingsley once again relies on pals Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau, who starred in his directorial debut, Couples Retreat. But with a release this limited, he's gotta be wondering what Flick and Schwartz are up to right now. (R)
