Friday’s openings: Something for everyone

Above : Joaquin Phoenix stars in “Beau Is Afraid,” which opens Friday. (Photo/A24)

It’s looking to be a full week of movie openings this coming Friday. Along with “Chevalier,” which I wrote about on Tuesday , a half dozen other films are expected to play at the area’s mainstream theaters.

The list of scheduled openings is as follows:

“Beau Is Afraid” : Writer-director Ari Aster tells the story of a man (Joaquin Phoenix) struggling to cope with the death of his mother and his entry into a Kafkaesque world.

Nick Allen of RogerEbert.com wrote, “Did you ever hear the one about the boy who feared his mother? ‘Beau Is Afraid’ tells this joke for three gobsmacking, sometimes exhausting, always beguiling hours.”

“Evil Dead Rise” : Working from Sam Raimi’s original franchise, writer-director Lee Cronin takes us into the horror faced by two sisters haunted by flesh-possessing demons. Raimi executive produced.

Lovia Gyarkye of the Hollywood Reporter described the film as “Both a bloody good homage and an effective corrective.”

“Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant” : When an Afghan interpreter (Dar Salim) saves the life of a U.S. Army sergeant (Jake Gyllenhaal), the American soldier goes to great lengths to repay the debt.

Owen Gleiberman of Variety wrote that the film “unveils something new: Ritchie the contempo classicist. We’re seeing a born-again filmmaker.”

“Somewhere in Queens” : Ray Romano directs and stars in a film he co-wrote about a New York family guy who disrupts the life of everyone to ensure that his son finds athletic success. It’s supposedly a comedy.

Michael Nordine of Variety wrote, “The exaggerated mannerisms and verbal sparring aren’t exactly new territory for Romano, but he proves as comfortable behind the camera as he is in front of it.”

“To Catch a Killer” : A Baltimore cope (Shailene Woodley) gets recruited by an FBI agent (Ben Mendelsohn) in an effort to track down a serial killer.

Dennis Harvey of Variety described the film as “A solid investigative procedural that breaks no new ground, but delivers sufficient suspense, character interest, and action in confident fashion.”

“How to Blow Up a Pipeline” : A band of environmentalists goes on a mission to sabotage an oil pipeline.

Matt Zoller Seltz calls the film “One of the most original American thrillers in years, and one that draws from a deep well of movie history as it develops its characters and sets up its plot twists.”

That’s it for the moment. So go, see a movie. And enjoy.