Screen Scene for week of July 21: Christopher Nolan goes to war with ‘Dunkirk’ (+trailers)

Best bets opening this week

▪ “Dunkirk” – Director Christopher Nolan’s epic tale takes place in 1940 during World War II, as Germany advances into France, trapping Allied troops on the beaches of Dunkirk who must be evacuated by any means possible. See this in IMAX, as Nolan and cinematographer Hoyte Van Hoytema shot almost the entire film with large-format film cameras, and it should be visually spectacular.

▪ “Girls Trip” – Regina Hall, Queen Latifah, Jada Pinkett Smith and Tiffany Haddish go the raunchy comedy route as lifelong friends who descend on New Orleans for a debaucherous adventure.

Also new this week

▪ “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets” – Director Luc Besson updates the French comic books “Valerian and Laureline,” about two special operatives who must race to stop a menace from destroying Alpha, a vast metropolis and home to species from a thousand planets.

Special screenings

▪ “Dough” – The Jewish Summer Film Series presents this 2015 comedy/drama about an old Jewish baker who struggles to keep his business afloat until his young Muslim apprentice accidentally drops cannabis in the dough, sending the bakery’s sales sky high. Showing at 2 p.m. Sunday, July 23, at the Wichita Art Museum, 1400 W. Museum Blvd. Admission is free and open to the public. Presented by the Mid-Kansas Jewish Federation.

▪ “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” – The Orpheum’s Fantastic Summer film series continues with the last film in the “Rings” trilogy, as the final confrontation between the forces of good and evil fight for control of Middle-Earth. Showing at 7 p.m. Monday, July 24, at the Orpheum, 200 N. Broadway. Tickets are $5, $4 students/seniors/military.

This story was originally published July 19, 2017 at 2:38 PM with the headline "Screen Scene for week of July 21: Christopher Nolan goes to war with ‘Dunkirk’ (+trailers)."