Bracing for a busy week: Too many projects, not enough time

A short and sweet Moving Image Madison entry this week.

May 12, 2026

Scroll down for Now Showing in Madison, May 12–May 18, 2026

Tuesday weekly posts feature some short notes on various cinematic topics, followed by the Now Showing in Madison guide to commercial theaters and alternative venues.

While I brace myself for a busy week, please don’t forget that *The Signal Tower* (1924, pictured) is coming to Duck Soup Cinema on June 13.

As I mentioned last week, starting today I’m going to experiment with publishing the regular weekly posts, including the Now Showing in Madison listings, on Tuesdays. I needed to reclaim part of my weekend, namely lazy Sundays, and Sundays are hard to keep lazy with a Monday deadline looming every week. I just needed more me time.

The first Tuesday post today needs to be very short, however, because several projects have deadlines approaching and I need to focus on them this week. And unfortunately, I can’t wring much content out of them at this point, because it is too early to make any official announcements about them:

I’m selecting and booking the 2026-2027 Duck Soup silent cinema series at Overture Center, with some deadlines looming because the season needs to be announced soon. It’s coming together. My “Plan A” is more or less set, but there are many moving parts that have to be worked out over the next few days. Meanwhile, don’t forget about The Signal Tower (1924) on Saturday, June 13.
As many of you know, I’m now Assistant Curator, Film and Art Video at Madison Museum of Contemporary Art. There are not one but two exciting developments in progress at MMoCA. One should be announced soon, and you should see some new ongoing programming in the next few weeks. The other is in its early stages, but I’ll need to spend some time on it the next few weeks if it is ever going to come together!
Mills Folly Microcinema has received a Dane Arts grant for its 2026-2027 season. Now I just have to figure out those programs as well! Luckily, Mills Folly will have some guest programmers for some upcoming screenings. Meanwhile, don’t forget that the next Project Projection screening will be Wednesday, July 29, and the submission form is already posted.
And I have a few video ideas in the hopper for Moving Image Madison, both recorded conversations with Rob Thomas, and some video essay-type-things that involve learning some new tech and editing skills. A note posted at Not That Rob Thomas provides a pretty good hint about what we’ll be discussing at some time in the future. But the next topic will be a film set to be released this weekend.

Okay, I’ll stop here and get back to work. Just one more note: Don’t forget about tonight’s Laundry Film Screening, part of the LAB^4 community programming project at Arts + Literature Laboratory, which starts at 6:00pm (so unfortunately I can’t make it!).

Thanks for reading Moving Image Madison! This post is public so feel free to share it.

Now Playing In Madison: May 12–May 18, 2026

Please confirm showtimes with the venues (follow venue links where provided). The commercial theaters update their weekend listings on Wednesdays. Another valuable source that posts on Wednesdays with now playing lists is The Horizon Line Madison. When possible, I will provide links to reviews by Rob Thomas at Not That Rob Thomas, who gets around to far more proper reviews than I do.

Comments here are not reviews of the films, they are usually a response to the trailer, a summary of the buzz I have heard, or just snark. They are not always particularly accurate, according to reader feedback. I add trailers to new films of interest that you might not know about (American indies, international features, etc.).

Arts + Literature Laboratory

LAUNDRY FILM SCREENING, Wednesday, May 13, 6:00pm
- As part of LAB^4 community programming at ALL, artist India Johnson has curated a selection of short films on the topic of laundry, including Clotheslines by Roberta Cantow.

Commercial Theaters:
AMC Theatres
Flix Brewhouse
Marcus Theatres (Palace and Point)

AMERICAN IN PARIS, AN at AMC.
- Vincente Minnelli / Gene Kelly classic. Should be fun on the big screen!
ANIMAL FARM at AMC.
- Hmm, Orwell adaptation distributed by faith-based distributor Angel. Interesting mix. Directed by everyone’s favorite motion-capture actor, Andy Serkis. Surprise: Opening week viewers are criticizing the film for changes from the original book.
ATTACK ON TITAN: THE LAST ATTACK at AMC and Point.
- My understanding is that this is comprised of final two special episodes (The Final Chapters Part 1 & 2) into one 2-hour and 40-minute feature, with improved visuals and sound.
BEST IN SHOW at Flix.
BILLIE EILISH - HIT ME HARD AND SOFT: THE TOUR at AMC, Flix, Palace, and Point.
- Billie Eilish concert film. I have to admit, Billie Eilish is one of the few current female pop stars who I enjoy listening to during interviews. But I have mixed responses to most of the music, so I’ll pass on this one for now.
CRAZY RICH ASIANS at AMC.
CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON at AMC.
- If you haven’t seen this on the big screen, you might want to consider catching this at AMC Fitchburg. Looks like it will be a week-long run starting Friday, May 15.
DEEP WATER at AMC and Palace.
DEVIL WEARS PRADA 2, THE at AMC, Flix, Palace, and Point.
DRAMA, THE at AMC and Point.
FRIED GREEN TOMATOES 35TH ANNIVERSARY at AMC, Flix, Palace, and Point.
HOKUM at AMC, Palace, and Point.
IN THE GREY at AMC, Palace, and Point.
- If you have been to any film in any theater in the last month or so, there is a very good chance that you’ve seen this trailer for the latest Guy Ritchie action drama starring Henry Cavil, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Eliza Gonzalez. Might be fun.

IS GOD IS at AMC, Palace, and Point.
- Another one in heavy trailer rotation if you’ve been in the theaters this month. On the surface this seems like pretty predictable stuff, but the cast just might bring the right energy to make it interesting.

KARUPPU at AMC.
- Indian Tamil-language courtroom drama / action film with mythological fantasy elements, starring Prakash Raj and Suriya.

KRISHNAVATARAM at AMC.
- Indian Hindi-language mythological drama. Looks like the final screening is Wednesday night. Presented with no subtitles (but Variety says a English dubbed version will be released in North America in a few weeks).
LIFEHACK at Palace and Point.
- Ugh, there’s now a term for films whose characters spend most of their time online or in chats: “screenlife action thriller.” Sorry, just I threw up a little in my mouth. But I guess I should post the trailer.

MĀRAMA at AMC.
- Horror film set in 1859 North Yorkshire, about a young Maori woman who arrives from New Zealand to serve as a governess for a wealthy man’s granddaughter. This appears to offer more than the current wave of typical horror films, but I’m a little skeptical. Update: This is getting decent reviews.
MARCUS MYSTERY MOVIE at Palace.
MICHAEL at AMC, Flix, Palace, and Point.
- Apparently people didn’t know how much they needed a Michael Jackson music-filled bio-pic that doesn’t go beyond the Bad tour in 1988. I guess that makes sense to someone my age, I seem to recall disliking almost everything in the Michael Jacksons ouvre after (and including) Scorsese’s Bad video. As of this writing, Michael is the fourth-highest grossing film of 2026.
MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM HATHAWAY: THE SORCERY OF NYMPH CIRCE at AMC, Palace, and Point.
- A pretty cool trailer, nearly incomprehensible if you are unfamiliar with the franchise.

MORTAL KOMBAT II at AMC, Flix, Palace, and Point.
NEGLECTED at AMC.
- Josh Duhamel and Dylan Sprouse star as a detective (Guess what? He’s retiring soon) and serial killer in this cat-and-mouse crime drama. This seems like it will go straight to video-on-demand after a nominal theatrical release.
OBSESSION at AMC, Palace, and Point.
- Horror film with the ol’ Be Careful What You Wish For theme. Young man buys a supernatural toy and wishes that his crush would fall hopelessly in love with him. Dude, you know you should have added “while respecting ourselves as individuals and providing sufficient space when needed.”

PATI PATNI AUR WOH DO at AMC.
- Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy, a “spiritual sequel” to Pati Patni Aur Woh (2019, translates as “Husband, Wife, and Her”).

PROJECT HAIL MARY at AMC, Flix, Palace, and Point.
- Read Rob Thomas’s review.
SHEEP DETECTIVES, THE at AMC, Flix, Palace, and Point.
- Okay, I have no idea if this is any good. Word-of-mouth so far is that it is seems to be better than the first impressions I had from the trailer. But does it need a New Yorker think-piece from Jill Lepore (who just won the 2026 Pulitzer Prize for History) titled, “What ‘The Sheep Detectives’ Doesn’t Understand About Sheep”? Someone behind the paywall can tell me if it is worth it.

SHREK 25TH ANNIVERSARY at AMC, Flix, Palace, and Point.
STEAL THIS STORY, PLEASE! at Point.
SUPER MARIO GALAXY MOVIE, THE at AMC, Flix, Palace, and Point.
THAT TIME I GOT REINCARNATED AS A SLIME THE MOVIE: TEARS OF THE AZURE SEA at AMC.
TOP GUN 40TH ANNIVERSARY at AMC, Palace, and Point.
TOP GUN: MAVERICK RE-RELEASE at AMC, Palace, and Point.
WINTER HYMNS at Flix.
- Return engagement for this Wisconsin’s Own film that played at the Wisconsin Film Festival. Directed by Nathan Deming, who was one of the filmmmakers leading the drive for a new state film office, Film Wisconsin. Read Rob Thomas’s review.

WIZARD OF THE KREMLIN, THE at AMC, Palace, and Point.
- You might just hear more from me (and a certain someone) about this recent AMC Secret Cinema film. What I will say, for now, is that Putin (Jude Law) is not on-screen as much as he seems he might be from this trailer. And the trailer does not capture how many cups of tea are poured at meetings during the film. It’s an interesting history lesson following a fictional character inspired by Russian avant-garde theater director / businessman / politician / bureaucrat Vladislav Surkov. But a history lesson does not always translate into a compelling drama.

Have you used the Now Showing in Madison listings at least once to find something interesting to see? Have you discovered a film that you didn’t realize was playing in town? Please consider supporting these efforts directly by clicking the “Buy Me a Popcorn” button and making a modest donation on those occasions when you find this resource valuable to your moviegoing in Madison.

Buy Me a Popcorn

Looking Ahead:

Local filmmaker Michael Doyle Olson has started what he hopes to be a comprehensive, collaborative public calendar of alternative film screenings in Madison. It is still a work in progress, but check it out at www.mdo.me/film.