‘THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER’: There’s no shortage of seasonal films that claim to extol “the true meaning of Christmas,” and this year, the holiday comes early with Dallas Jenkins’ “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever,” based on the 1972 novel by Barbara Robinson. But whether or not you’ll be excited to receive this one under the tree may depend on your tolerance for precocious kiddos and faith-based stories that come wrapped up as wacky family comedies. Narrated by Beth (Lauren Graham), her recounting of a story from childhood serves as the voice-over for the film. As far as family-friendly, faith-based holiday movies go, you could do worse than “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever,” though it might not quite connect with all young audiences, as the film leans more toward poignant than playfully riotous. However, we could all stand to remember that Christmas is about so much more than pageantry, and that the roots of these rituals come from stories of togetherness and charity. It never hurts to be reminded of that. 1:39. 2 stars. — Katie Walsh, Tribune News Service

‘BREAD & ROSES’: Sahra Mani’s sobering documentary, “Bread & Roses,” is a testament, a tattered documentation of the horrifying oppression that women especially have suffered since the Taliban took Kabul in August 2021, upon the withdrawal of the United States military. The film is a devastating and intimate look at life for women in Afghanistan now, and the harrowing consequences suffered by those who dare to speak up. Malala Yousafzai and Jennifer Lawrence serve as producers on the film, lending their names to this project in order to elevate its message. Much of the urgency of “Bread & Roses” is in simply getting the information out of Afghanistan, to tell the stories of these women who were suddenly denied their education and careers under Taliban rule, forced to stay at home, hunted, arrested, tortured and disappear for daring to speak up. The film follows three women closely: Taranom, the activist; Dr. Zahra Mohammadi, a dentist who attempts to balance her medical practice with her activism; and Sharifa, who struggles with her life stuck at home and her desire to protest. There are other women as well who band together to take to the streets with homemade signs, who attend meetings and capture footage and attempt to bring light to their terrible situation. The title “Bread & Roses” references the American political slogan associated with suffragist Helen Todd, as well as a Massachusetts labor strike, but it also refers to the chant of the Afghan women as they bravely take to the streets, demanding, “work, bread, freedom.” 1:29. 3 stars. — Katie Walsh

‘GLADIATOR II’: Ridley Scott’s 2000 sword and sandal epic “Gladiator” closed on a memorable shot that became an indelible image associated with the film: star Russell Crowe’s hands, callused and battle-worn, softly caressing strands of wheat, as the spirit of his character Maximus makes his way home in the afterlife. Scott references this peaceful image in the opening of his sequel, “Gladiator II.” Rough, thick hands, toughened by farming and fighting, plunge into a sack of harvested grain, feeling the fruits of their labor. These two similar shots thereby become the thesis of this faithful sequel. It is the same movie, slightly tweaked, and constantly referencing and reminding you of the original. The hands that open “Gladiator II” belong to Lucius (Paul Mescal) the son of Maximus and Lucilla (Connie Nielsen). Once the crown prince of Rome, he fled at age 12 for his safety and is now a humble farmer in Numidia, North Africa. He and his wife (Yuval Gonen) live an idyllic life of domestic bliss, interrupted by Roman incursions. It’s one such incursion, led by General Acacius (Pedro Pascal), that returns Lucius to his home city, now as an enslaved gladiator, as his father was, and as a grieving widower, as his father was. His ferociousness catches the eye of gladiator agent Macrinus (Denzel Washington), much in the same way Maximus caught the eye of Proximo (Oliver Reed), and Macrinus is going to make Lucius a star. The cast is uniformly excellent, and the film is the only “Gladiator” sequel that could possibly exist and exactly what you expect, for better or for worse. Are you not entertained? 2:28. 3 stars. — Katie Walsh

‘HERETIC’: If “A Quiet Place” — the screenplay that put writers Scott Beck and Bryan Woods on the map — was a rather tight-lipped, high-concept monster movie where the characters could rarely speak, “Heretic,” their latest film, is the opposite. This is a talky chamber piece of philosophical face-offs, debate duels and wordy warfare, though the outcomes remain just as harrowing. But the danger of “Heretic” is not anything extraterrestrial but rather the most common, and mundane, of earthly predators: a man. And what a man Beck and Woods have cast in their religious horror flick, effectively weaponizing the befuddled British charm of one Hugh Grant, who has fumbled and grinned through rom-com classics. The genius of his performance in “Heretic” is that his manner is no different in this horror film than those romantic comedies, it’s just the nature of the conversation — and what he’d like to do with women — that’s different. “Heretic,” as a lecture on faith and ethics gone awry, is a story of belief versus disbelief. If there’s anything we take away from this tale, it’s not that faith is bad, or good, but that it exists in the eye of the beholder. The only thing worth believing in is yourself. 1:50. 3 stars. — Katie Walsh

‘RED ONE’: “Red One” is a holiday fantasy that imagines a nightmarish mass- incarceration scenario put in motion by a Christmas witch seeking revenge on billions worldwide who’ve landed on Santa’s previously unenforced “naughty list.” Job one: abduct St. Nick, code name Red One (J.K. Simmons), suck the goodness out of him with expensive and mediocre digital effects, and leave him a lifeless shell of his former magical self. “Red One,” starts from a premise that wasn’t right from the beginning. Bad or good, naughty or nice, the industry needs hits right about now. It does not need a two- hour distress signal from a Hollywood that has lost its mojo. 2:03. 1 star. — Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune

‘WICKED’: Actor Cynthia Erivo (Elphaba) tops the list of reasons the first part of a two-part film adaptation of the musical “Wicked” likely will extend the good fortune that has paved this story’s road from the beginning. It’s quite a zigzag lineage: From L. Frank Baum’s “Oz” adventures to MGM’s 1939 movie musical to Gregory Maguire’s increasingly raunchy quartet of “Wicked” bestsellers to the more acceptably edgy 2003 Broadway musical smasheroo. The movie, directed by Jon M. Chu, accommodates a little camp, a lot of “Wizard of Oz” throwbacks and plenty of Easter eggs. Ariana Grande is good, too, as Glinda, the pampered entry-level witch and social clique bait of Shiz University, both repelled by and attracted to the intriguing magnetism and enviable sorcery of her green-toned roommate. Because they have plenty of time and only an act’s worth of structure to deal with, the writers pull a few strands from Maguire’s books; expand the interaction between Elphaba and her favored, not-green sister Nessarose (Marissa Bode), also attending Shiz; depict Elphaba’s tutoring sessions in some detail with Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh); and generally air out the pace of things. The movie feels alternately hectic and languid, and while it’s fun to see Jeff Goldblum as the Wizard, he and Yeoh manage gravitas of differing varieties without much urgency. Too often, though, the magic in “Wicked” remains stubbornly unmagical. And whenever Erivo isn’t around to make us believe, and take the mechanics of “Wicked” to heart, “Part I” reveals what’s behind the curtain, an adequate set-up for the second act. 2:41. 2 stars. — Michael Phillips

RATINGS: The movies listed are rated according to the following key: 4 stars, excellent; 3 stars, good; 2 stars, fair; 1 star, poor.