‘Ninjababy’ is a departure from mainstream fare

Above : The Norwegian film “Ninjababy” opens Friday at Regal’s Coeur d’Alene Riverstone Stadium. (Photo/Sorø Films)

I’ve never understood the formula for movie scheduling . All too often it seems stranger than a Hogwarts spells curriculum.

The overall plan, of course, is to take advantage of open weekends – of the most advantageous weekends, preferably – and to avoid competing against other wannabe blockbusters.

No one wants to throw down against a Marvel Studios superhero flick.

But every so often, one of the area’s mainstream theaters will add a film to its slate that is jaw-droppingly different from its normal fare. AMC River Park Square does that at times. The area Regal Cinemas theaters, not so much – if at all.

Yet that’s exactly what seems to be happening beginning today at Regal’s Coeur d’Alene Riverstone Stadium, which is listing a Norwegian-language film titled “Ninjababy” as one of its opening features.

Here is the film’s synopsis from the Berlin International Film Festival :

“A baby has lodged itself unnoticed in her stomach, and if there’s one thing that Rakel knows: She doesn’t want it. The life-hungry young woman has a blooming imagination and spends time illustrating her everyday life. Hence, the Ninjababy appears as a comic figure which accompanies Rakel through the madness that is called growing up.”

Critic Cath Clarke of The Guardian wrote, “On paper, some of this sounds irritatingly quirky, but it’s a film that really offers an honest look at a woman’s life.”

Kate Erbland of IndieWire wrote, “At every stage, (actress Kristine Kujath) Thorp delivers a winning, rich performance, finding nuance in a complex character, but never afraid to poke fun at Rakel, who is about to grow up, whether she likes it or not.”

And Alexandra Heller-Nicholas of the Alliance of Women Film Journalists (AWFJ) wrote that the “story is uncouth, touching, and laugh-out-loud funny, a high-energy and thoroughly unladylike tale of unexpected, unwanted pregnancy and the surprising paths it can lead you down.”

It’s not likely to last more than a week. So if you’re at all interested – subtitles and all – you shouldn’t wait.

The new “Downton Abbey” movie is opening on May 20th and will likely take up all the available screen times it can get.