By Kam Williams

In 1887, 24-year-old Abdul Karim (Ali Fazal) was sent from India to England to represent India by presenting Queen Victoria (Judi Dench) with a gold coin that commemorated her Golden Jubilee year as the Queen. When he presented the coin at a banquet at Windsor Castle, he managed to catch the attention of the lonely monarch.

In fact, she was so taken with Karim that she made him her companion and promoted him to be her “munshi,” Urdu for teacher. Not surprisingly, this development didn’t sit well with members of the royal court, especially her son, Bertie (Eddie Izzard). The crown prince was suspicious of the interloper’s intentions and was concerned about how things looked with his widowed mum having a handsome young Muslim at her side.

However, Victoria brushed aside any objections as racial prejudice, and kept Abdul on as her trusted confidant until she passed away in 1901. Based on Shrabani Basu’s bestseller of the same name, Victoria and Abdul describes the unlikely friendship that developed between her majesty and her devoted subject. Directed by two-time Oscar nominee Stephen Frears (The Queen and The Grifters), this “mostly true” tale portrays the relationship as a dramatic comedy whose comedic elements outweigh its dramatic moments.

Dame Judi Dench, who won an Academy award for playing Queen Elizabeth, is again at her best here as an imperious, but vulnerable, Queen. She plays an empathetic visionary adrift in a sea of intolerance that is swarming with British bigots who are too blinded by hate to begin to understand a mild-mannered foreigner whose customs are different than theirs.

The picture’s transparent message about brotherhood is delivered in too heavy-handed a fashion to take seriously. Nevertheless, the movie’s lighter moments generate enough laughs to make the movie worth seeing.

Very Good (**½ stars). Rated PG-13 for profanity and mature themes. In English, Hindi, and Urdu with subtitles. Running time: 111 minutes. Production Studio: BBC Films/Working Title Films/Perfect World Pictures. Distributor: Focus Features.

By Kam Williams

William Moulton Marston (Luke Evans) was a Renaissance man with an impressive array of talents. After earning his BA, PhD, and law degrees, the Harvard graduate taught psychology at Radcliffe. Despite a demanding academic career, he found time to write self-help books and to invent the precursor of the lie detector.

To this day, however, he remains best remembered as the creator of Wonder Woman. Selling the idea to a comic book publisher in 1941 was no mean feat, since until then, Superman, Batman, The Flash, Captain Marvel, The Green Lantern, and all the other superheroes, were male.

The character Marston envisioned was not just a powerful crime-fighter, but also was an attractive Amazon whose eroticism and dominance were deemed to be sexual and sado-masochistic in nature by her detractors. Although Wonder Woman wore a skimpy outfit, as did Superman, and used a rope to subdue and restrain adversaries, the comic books were far from pornographic. Marston had been inspired by the success of the suffrage movement that helped advance the feminist cause. In fact, he once stated that “The only hope for civilization is the greater freedom, development, and equality of women.”

Another source of inspiration were the two women in Marston’s life; his wife, Elizabeth (Rebecca Hall), and their longtime lover, Olive (Bella Heathcote). He would father children with each woman, and they all lived under the same roof, although the scandalous arrangement led to the family being shunned by polite society.

Written and directed by Alexandra Robinson, Professor Marston and the Wonder Women is an intriguing and informative biopic that finally awards a brilliant visionary, who had been marginalized by history, his due. Thanks to our more enlightened LBGTQ-embracing times, William Moulton Marston can finally be fully appreciated.

Excellent (****). Rated R for profanity, graphic sexuality, and lewd images. Running time: 108 minutes. Production Studio: Stage 6 Films/Boxspring Entertainment/Topple Productions. Distributor: Annapurna Pictures.

By Kam Williams

Faith-based films usually have limited appeal beyond the Christian community because most tend to be heavy-handed morality plays that preach to the choir. A Question of Faith is a refreshing change of pace, because instead of proselytizing, the film features character development and a compelling plot.

This carefully crafted modern parable explores a mix of worldly and spiritual themes in a way that will entertain the faithful and sinners alike. The picture was directed by Kevan Otto, who recruited an impressive cast to perform Ty Manns’s script.

The cast disappears so thoroughly into their parts that it’s easy to forget you’re watching actors after just a few minutes into the movie. One of the stars is Kim Fields, who’s best known for the role of Tootie that she originated in the TV sitcom Different Strokes, and continued to play in the spinoff, The Facts of Life.

The film unfolds in Atlanta where we’re introduced to three families that are dealing with serious life issues. The first is Theresa Newman (Fields), who is worried that her husband (Richard T. Jones) is so obsessed with taking over as senior pastor of the church from his father (Gregory Alan Williams) that he might break a promise to attend their younger son’s (Caleb T. Thomas) basketball game.

Next, gospel singer Michelle Danielsen’s (Amber Thompson) father (C. Thomas Howell) is pressuring her to perform at a record company’s audition because he needs the money his daughter’s contract with the record company would provide to help save his business. He is apparently more concerned with avoiding an impending collapse of his business than with finding the cause of his daughter’s debilitating headaches.

Finally, restaurant owner Katie Hernandez (Jaci Velasquez) keeps reminding her daughter Maria (Karen Valero) to stop texting while driving when she is making deliveries to customers. Katie doesn’t want Maria to have an accident that might prevent her from becoming the first person in their family to attend college.

These parallel storylines converge in a very dramatic fashion. As their fates become intertwined the protagonists rise to the occasion in different ways.

The film is a moving tale of redemption that reveals God’s grace and makes a case for cross-cultural tolerance.

Excellent (****). Rated PG for mature themes. Running time: 104 minutes. Production Studio: Silver Lining Entertainment. Distributor: Pure Flix Entertainment.

By Kam Williams

Lloyd Garmadon (Dave Franco) must be the least liked student at Ninjago High. The unassuming 16-year-old is so unpopular that nobody will even sit on the same side of the bus with him on their ride to school.

What they don’t know, however, is that he has a super hero alter ego — the Green Ninja. He is the leader of the Secret Ninja Force, a team of five teens and an android who are helped by Lloyd’s wise and wisecracking uncle, Master Wu (Jackie Chan).

Master Wu has taught each of his protégés how to harness the different forces of nature that are contained in his magical treasure chest. The hot headed Red Ninja (Michael Pena) controls fire; the music-loving Black Ninja (Fred Armisen) has mastered earth; the Blue Ninja (Kumail Nanjiani), lightning; and the Gray Ninja (Abbi Jacobson), water; and the robotic White Ninja’s (Zach Woods) domain is ice.

Their mission is to prevent Lord Garmadon (Justin Theroux) from conquering Ninjago City. It turns out that the evil villain is Lloyd’s long-lost father, who abandoned his wife (Olivia Munn) and baby when she refused to accept his decision to go to the dark side.

As a result, all Lloyd knows about his father is what he’s been told by his mother and uncle. Consequently, Lloyd is eager to meet and defeat the diabolical warlord who has the reputation of being the world’s “Worst Guy Ever.”

If you’ve seen either LEGO or LEGO Batman, then you have an idea of what to expect from the third film in the animated series. Directed by Charlie Bean, the film is not only a visually captivating adventure, but also has pithy asides and clever allusions to screen classics that also make the movie interesting to adults.

In this critic’s opinion, Ninjago is the best episode in the series because of all the positive messages that are delivered by the picture’s end.

Excellent (****). Rated PG for mild action and rude humor. Running time: 101 minutes. Distributor: Warner Brothers Pictures.

By Kam Williams

Sometimes, substance trumps low-production values, such as in the movie Man in Red Bandana. Minutes after the World Trade Center was hit by United Airlines Flight 175 on the morning of 9/11, Welles Crowther called his mother to let her know he was okay. The 24-year-old stockbroker knew she’d be worried, because his office was located on the 104th floor of the South Tower.  more