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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Fridays openings: Race relations and short docs

Dan Webster

Note: This post has been updated since this morning.

We're only a couple of weeks from the 2016 Oscars broadcast, so the big movie news of the week comes from the Magic Lantern, which continues its preview of some of the nominated categories. The week's openings are as follows:

"Race": This movie's title offers up a double meaning as it tells the story of Jesse Owens, the black athlete who fought prejudice to participate in the 1936 Olympics. Take that, Adolph!

"Risen": We see the story of Jesus' resurrection as told through the eyes of a Roman tribune. Someone stole the plotline from "Hail, Caesar!"

"The Witch": It's 1630, we're in New England and a family is ripped apart by dark forces. And, no, not flying monkeys.

"Snowtime": Winter means the neighborhood engages in a snowball fight. Snow the way I like it best: animated.

"The Lady in the Van": Maggie Smith plays the title character, who is befriended by a resident of the English village she settles in. Don't tell the folks at Downton Abbey.

And at the Magic Lantern (which continues Oscar nominees "Brooklyn," "Carol," "Room" and the nominated live-action and animated shorts):

The Oscar-nominated Documentary Shorts Programs: Two programs, Part A consisting of three films (from Liberia, Pakistan and the U.S.), Part B consisting of two films (from the U.S./Vietnam, and the U.S.).

More mainstream films might open. I'll update when I can.