Pete's Dragon

 

 Synopsis

The classic tale of an orphan boy and his pet dragon is retold by director David Lowery, and stars Bryce Dallas Howard, Robert Redford, Wes Bentley, and Oakes Fegley as Pete.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

 

 Synopsis

The highly anticipated adaptation of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter prequel, focuses on the mythical creatures of that universe, as told by Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) during his time at the Magical Congress of the United States of America.

The Jungle Book

 

Synopsis

In this reimagining of the classic collection of stories by Rudyard Kipling, director Jon Favreau uses visually stunning CGI to create the community of animals surrounding Mowgli (Neel Sethi), a human boy adopted by a pack of wolves. The appearance of a villainous tiger named Shere Khan (voiced byIdris Elba) forces Mowgli's guardian, the panther Bagheera (Ben Kingsley), to shepherd the child to safety in the "man village." Along the way, the boy meets an affable, lazy bear named Baloo (Bill Murray), as well as a snake with hypnotic powers (Scarlett Johansson) and an orangutan (Christopher Walken) who wants to harness the power of fire. Lupita Nyong'o, Giancarlo Esposito, and Garry Shandling also lend their voices to this adventure tale.

The BFG

 

 Synopsis

Steven Spielberg directed this adaptation of Roald Dahl's beloved novel, which centers on the unlikely friendship between a lonely orphan named Sophie (Ruby Barnhill) and the titular "big friendly giant" (brought to life via a motion-capture performance from Mark Rylance). Together, the pair explore Giant Country and collect dreams; later, they try to warn the Queen of England (Penelope Wilton) about the threat posed by the other giants, who, unlike the vegetarian BFG, eat children for sustenance. The BFG made its world premiere at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival, and is dedicated to the memory of screenwriter Melissa Mathison (who also wrote the script for Spielberg's E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial). Rebecca Hall, Bill Hader, Jemaine Clement, and Rafe Spall co-star.

The Secret Life Of Pets

Synopsis

This animated comedy from Illumination Entertainment asks the question: what do our pets do all day when we're not home? For the critters living in a Manhattan apartment building, the answer is: whatever they want! A terrier named Max (voice of Louis C.K.) regularly invites his friends to hang out at his place while his owner (Ellie Kemper) is gone, but his quiet life is upended when said owner also takes in Duke (Eric Stonestreet), a stray mutt whom Max instantly dislikes. Their feud eventually causes both of them to get lost in New York City, and as they work together to find their way home, they cross paths with a vicious bunny (Kevin Hart) who plans to lead a group of abandoned pets on a mission of revenge against humanity. Jenny Slate, Albert Brooks, Lake Bell, Hannibal Buress, Tara Strong, Steve Coogan, Dana Carvey, and Bobby Moynihan also lend their voices to the film, which was directed by Chris Renaud (Despicable Me 2) and Yarrow Cheney.