In Theaters This Weekend: Reviews of ‘Tomorrowland,’ ‘Poltergeist’ and More

A genius inventor, ghosts and a daredevil athlete are heading to theaters this weekend with the releases of Tomorrowland, Poltergeist and Sunshine Superman.

Also hitting theaters this weekend: Jennifer Connelly‘s Aloft and the Japanese animated coming-of-age film When Marnie Was There, featuring the voices of Hailee Steinfeld, Kiernan Shipka and Kathy Bates.

Read on to find out what The Hollywood Reporter‘s critics are saying about the weekend’s new offerings (as well as which film will likely top the weekend’s box office).

Tomorrowland

Director Brad Bird reinvents the futuristic section of Disneyland in the long-awaited summer flick starring George Clooney, Britt Robertson and Hugh Laurie. THR‘s chief film critic Todd McCarthy writes that the big budget fantasy film is “a sparkling work of speculative fiction (and wishful thinking) that could not be more ‘Disney’ in the old-fashioned sense, but is dominated by its philosophical thrust against social pessimism and disenchantment.” Read his full review here.  

Poltergeist

Director Gil Kenan remakes the classic ‘80s horror film in a version co-starring Sam Rockwell and Rosemarie DeWitt. The two actors portray a couple who move with their kids into a more affordable home, unaware that it’s haunted with malevolent spirits. THR film critic Justin Lowe applauded the remake in his review, writing that “director Gil Kenan not only delivers on the promise of [the earlier version’s director, Tobe] Hooper’s Poltergeist, but significantly raises the stakes for similar PG-13 fare.”

Aloft

Oscar nominated director Claudia Llosa features Jennifer Connelly, Cillian Murphy and Melanie Laurent in her first English-language film, which focuses on the estranged relationship between a New Age healer and her son. THR film critic Stephen Dalton writes in his review that the snowy backdrop of the Canadian Midwest is what’s most interesting about the magical realist fable. “Strip away its gorgeous wintry landscapes and we are left with a symphony of ponderous New Age mumbo-jumbo masquerading as philosophical wisdom,” writes Dalton.

When Marnie Was There

The Japanese animated coming-of-age film from Studio Ghibli and director Hiromasa Yonebayashi features the voices of Hailee Steinfeld, Kiernan Shipka and Kathy Bates in the English-language version. THR film critic Boyd van Hoeij writes in his review that the film is “a beautifully animated tale of the growing friendship and occasionally rather cloying emotional travails of two 12-year-old girls.”

Sunshine Superman

Director Mara Strauch places viewers in the middle of extreme sport action in her documentary chronicling the legacy of BASE jumper Carl Boenish. THR film critic John DeFore writes in his review that the film is “a thrill, and one that seriously rewards big-screen viewing.”