The Life of Chuck

• Director: Mike Flanagan
• Writer: Mike Flanagan
• Starring: Tom Hiddleston, Karen Gillan, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Mark Hamill, Jacob Tremblay

Grade: B+

Mike Flanagan is easily one of the most underrated filmmakers working today. Whether it’s his work on films like Doctor Sleep or Gerald’s Game or his TV shows The Haunting of Hill House and The Fall of the House of Usher, Flanagan has made a name for himself in the Hollywood industry. His newest film, The Life of Chuck, sees his return to the big screen with a nonlinear drama that proves his versatility as a filmmaker.

How to Train Your Dragon

• Director: Dean DeBlois
• Writer: Dean DeBlois
• Starring: Mason Thames, Nico Parker, Gerard Butler, Nick Frost, Julian Dennison, Gabriel Howell, Bronwyn James

Grade: B

Until this point, live action remakes of animated films have been confined to Disney, a symbol of their hubristic greed to wring every last possible dollar out of their classic catalog. How to Train Your Dragon, one of the most respected of DreamWorks Animation’s library, has an admittedly dated aesthetic by today’s standards, but this alone isn’t reason enough to make the jump to live action. But writer-director Dean DeBlois (who co-directed the original with Chris Sanders and went solo for the rest of the trilogy) stays true to the heart of the film, making the best remake of its kind so far.