The cradle of humanity becomes a crucible of its opposite. Netflix's first foray into theaters makes the most of the big screen's additional square footage by placing its small subject on a very large canvas: specifically, Agu (Abraham Attah), an African boy on the cusp of adolescence, navigating his way through the nightmare morass — physical, social, personal — of war. (Screenwriter-director-cinematographer Cary Joji Fukanaga (Jane Eyre) regularly pulls back to give us the long view, so we know that however significant an event, it is only ever one thing in a profound and complex vastness.) "I am a good boy from a good family," attests Agu at the outset, and it's true. But soon his family is shattered, and goodness is muddied with the need to survive and the desire for revenge. Agu comes under the wing — or perhaps falls under the shadow — of a brutal, charismatic commandant (Idris Elba, evincing menacing swagger and seductive affection in equal measure), and soon, his prayers to God are laced with despairing equivocation. ("The worst sin" is also "the right thing to be doing.") A consuming, harrowing adventure story that holds onto hope in spite of horror. (2015) — Matthew Lickona
This movie is not currently in theaters.