March 2025: CinemaScopes • March Films in Like A Lion

 

We start the month with the 97th Academy Awards airing on March 2. If you love festivals, the 12th Annual JCC Chicago Jewish Film Festival, running March 1-23, showcases culturally diverse, Jewishly-inspired films that will entertain, educate, and inspire audiences of all generations. A selection of 19 carefully curated films honor Jewish filmmakers, writers, and actors—and those committed to repairing the world through brave, artistic expression. For more screening information, visit jccfilmfest.jccchicago.org. In theaters, Bong Joon Ho’s highly anticipated (and oft-delayed) Mickey 17 finally hits the big screen. Don’t miss these March new releases.

Mickey 17
Directed by Bong Joon Ho
Rated R
March 7 – In Theaters

From the Academy Award-winning writer/director of Parasite, Bong Joon Ho, comes his next groundbreaking cinematic experience and first film in English. Unlikely hero Mickey Barnes (Robert Pattinson) has found himself in the extraordinary circumstance of working for an employer who demands the ultimate commitment to the job… to die for a living. Naomi Ackie, Steven Yeun, Toni Collette, and Mark Ruffalo also star in this sci-fi/comedy.

In the Lost Lands
Directed by Paul W.S. Anderson
Rated R
March 7 – In Theaters

Based on the short story by George R.R. Martin, a queen sends the powerful and feared sorceress Gray Alys (Mila Jovovich) to the ghostly wilderness of the Lost Lands in search of a magical power, where the sorceress and her guide, the drifter Boyce (Dave Bautista), must outwit and outfight man and demon.

Night of the Zoopocalypse
Directed by Ricardo Curtis and Rodrigo Perez-Castro
Rated PG
March 7 – In Theaters

After a meteor unleashes a virus that turns zoo animals into mutants, a mountain lion (David Harbour) and wolf (Gabbi Kosmidis) lead a team of surviving animals to stop the virus and rescue their zoo. Inspired by a concept from best-selling genre author Clive Barker.

Rule Breakers
Directed by Bill Guttentag
Rated PG
March 7 – In Theaters

In a nation where educating girls is seen as rebellion, a visionary woman dares to teach young minds to dream. When their innovation draws global attention, their success sparks hope—and opposition. As threats loom and sacrifices are made, their courage and unity ignite a movement that could forever transform the world. Stars Ali Fazal, Nikohl Boosheri, and Amber Afzali.

Black Bag
Directed by Steven Soderbergh
Rated R
March 14 – In Theaters

Soderbergh directs this gripping spy thriller about legendary intelligence agents George Woodhouse (Michael Fassbender) and his beloved wife Kathryn (Cate Blanchett). When Kathryn is suspected of betraying the nation, George faces the ultimate test – loyalty to his marriage or his country. The cast includes Regé-Jean Page, Marisa Abela, Naomie Harris, Tom Burke, and Pierce Brosnan.

Novocaine
Directed by
Rated N/A
March 14 – In Theaters

Nathan Caine can’t feel pain. When the girl of his dreams (Amber Midthunder) is kidnapped, everyman Nate (Jack Quaid) turns his inability to feel pain into an unexpected strength in his fight to get her back in this action/thriller also starring Jacob Batalon, Ray Nicholson, and Betty Gabriel.

Opus
Directed by Mark Anthony Green
Rated R
March 14 – In Theaters

A young writer (Ayo Edebiri) is invited to the remote compound of a legendary pop star (John Malkovich) who mysteriously disappeared thirty years ago. Surrounded by the star’s cult of sycophants and intoxicated journalists, she finds herself in the middle of his twisted plan. The horror/musical also stars Juliette Lewis, Tony Hale, Murray Bartlett, and Melissa Chambers.

Snow White
Directed by Marc Webb
Rated PG
March 21 – In Theaters

A live-action reimagining of the classic 1937 film follows the magical musical adventure of the timeless story of Snow White (Rachel Ziegler) and the beloved characters Bashful, Doc, Dopey, Grumpy, Happy, Sleepy, and Sneezy. It also features Andrew Burnap, Martin Klebba, Ansu Kabia, and Gal Gadot.

Bob Trevino Likes It
Directed by Tracie Laymon
Rated PG-13
March 21 – In Theaters

Lily Trevino (Barbie Ferreira) longs for a familial connection, having been abandoned by her mother as a child and then suddenly by her father in her twenties. Bob Trevino (John Leguizamo) works long hours alone at a construction company to support his wife Jeanie’s scrapbooking habit. The couple has endured a lot in the past decade, and Bob has sought to put his wife first, to the point of ignoring his own feelings and need for friendship, meaning, and connection, That is, until he gets an unexpected Facebook message from a stranger. Lily and Bob’s blossoming friendship becomes a vital source of connection and healing in both their lives.

The Alto Knights
Directed by Barry Levinson
Rated R
March 21 – In Theaters

Robert De Niro stars in a dual role that follows two of New York’s most notorious organized crime bosses, Frank Costello (De Niro) and Vito Genovese (De Niro), as they vie for control of the city’s streets. Once the best of friends, petty jealousies and a series of betrayals place them on a deadly collision course that will reshape the Mafia (and America) forever. Debra Messing, Cosmo Jarvis, Kathrine Narducci, and Michael Rispoli appear in supporting roles.

A Working Man
Directed by David Ayer
Rated R
March 28 – In Theaters

Levon Cade (Jason Statham) left behind a decorated military career in the black ops to live a simple life working construction. But when his boss’s daughter, who is like family to him, is taken by human traffickers, his search to bring her home uncovers a world of corruption far greater than he ever could have imagined.

The Woman in the Yard
Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra
Rated PG-13
March 28 – In Theaters

A lone, spectral woman shrouded entirely in black appears on a family’s front lawn without explanation and warns, “Today’s the day.” Ramona (Danielle Deadwyler) is seriously injured and crippled by grief after she survives a car accident that takes her husband (Russell Hornsby). Ramona now must care for her son (Peyton Jackson) and daughter (Estella Kahiha) alone in her rural farmhouse. Then, one day, the woman takes form in their yard. Ramona assumes the woman (Okwui Okpokwasili) is lost or demented, but as the woman creeps nearer and nearer to the house, it becomes clear she is no ordinary figure, and her intentions are anything but peaceful. Now Ramona must rally to protect herself and her children from the grasp of the woman who won’t leave them alone.

 

-Lori Vernon

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