His favorite subjects are art, social studies, and Michael Jackson. His friends: Dallas, Dynasty, and a goat named Leaf. When his not-so-smooth criminal of a father returns from prison, Boy’s fantastical dreams of riding dolphins happily ever after beat it. Universal crowd-pleaser Taika Waititi’s sweet Kiwi feature is sad, but its joy and humor — and surprise dance video — soothe the soul. It may be hard to find, but it’s worth the hunt.
It’s like: Eagle vs. Shark moonwalking with Son of Rambow.
Take: The woman in the mirror.
Premieres: Today

Find showtimes online at fandango.com.

Yes, it’s a movie about fly-fishing. What lured us: Emily Blunt, Ewan McGregor, and the script, penned by Slumdog Millionaire scribe Simon Beaufoy. Cast aside your to-dos for Fred and Harriet’s upstream battle to bring fishy fruition to the desert. It has elements of Charlie Wilson’s War — no explosions though, just lox of love.
It’s like: Catch and Release meets a kind of Field of Dreams.
Take: A reel friend.
Premieres: March 9

Find showtimes online at fandango.com.

Get hooked on Elizabeth Olsen’s latest one-woman show, set in an old fixer-upper crammed with incestuous secrets. No stranger to a full house, Olsen wades through darkness with all the suspense and shakiness of The Blair Witch Project — and, thankfully, none of the snotty monologues. Directors Chris Kentis and Laura Lau reimagine the Uruguayan true story in real time with one continuous camera shot and recut the final fifteen minutes for theater audiences.
It’s like: A High Tension quickie.
Take: Adrenaline junkies.
Premieres: March 9

Find showtimes online at fandango.com.

A chef’s work is never done. Meet Jiro Ono, the 85-year-old legend responsible for world-renowned rolls. Dedicated to his craft, he tucks, slices, and sauces tirelessly in an unassuming ten-seat joint nestled in a Tokyo subway station. (It’s a three-star Michelin operation, mind you.) Grade-A documentaries like this are what Tribeca Film Fest (where it screened last year) serves best.
It’s like: Bill Cunningham New York with a side of wasabi.
Take: A perfectionist.
Premieres: March 9

Find showtimes online at fandango.com.

Anything but (yet) another foreign film. Trust us, you want to get thee to the Greek deadpan comedy that is Attenberg. Among the genius, bizarre ruins: A seaside town, an awkward, unsocialized twentysomething named Marina, and new wave cinema-friendly mammal miming. (We’re on board until the art form goes extinct.)
It’s like: Dogtooth’s sweeter head case of a cousin.
Take: Friends of the friendless.
Premieres: March 9

Find showtimes online at fandango.com.

Maya Rudolph burping babies, Kristen Wiig slapping Jon’s Hamm. Another walk down the Bridesmaids aisle, perhaps? Newbie director Jennifer Westfeldt’s funny baby/mama drama is a grand debut that sticks with what works — but a sequel it is not. Just-friends Jason and Julie (Adam Scott and Westfeldt) skip the complicated “I do” and cruise straight to the Baby on Board bumper sticker. Caution: rocky road ahead.
It’s like: The Next Best Thing after Friends with Benefits.
Take: Parents who reach for the bottle.
Premieres: March 9

Find showtimes online at fandango.com.

Exercise your French tongue with the acclaimed Belgian film that rolled through numerous festivals and filled its basket with accolades aplenty. Starring a fiery little stinker in red clothing, the Dardenne brothers’ off-kilter fairy tale trails protagonist Cyril as he takes on a metaphorical big bad wolf.
It’s like: In a Better World meets Little Red Riding Hood.
Take: Bifocals. All the better to read subtitles with.
Premieres: March 16

Find showtimes online at fandango.com.

More Paul Rudd’s sweetheart stoner than James Franco’s foggy pothead, Jason Segel’s Jeff is a basement-dwelling couch potato who sees Signs in the everyday. That’s right, he uses M. Night’s everything-happens-for-a-reason ideology as a compass for life. Heaps of misdirection ensue once he leaves his puffy chair in search of wood glue.
It’s like: Our Idiot Brother meets The Dilemma.
Take: Your idiot brother.
Premieres: March 16

Find showtimes online at fandango.com.

Don’t act like you’re above it. Now that winter’s gone, we need a new bone to pick — who better than Kat and her beau and arrow in Seabiscuit director Gary Ross’s fight-to-the-death thriller? You know the ingredients: a dystopian government and impending doom garnished with an impossible romance. We could go into more detail, but there’s no need to beat a dead (battle) horse.
It’s like: 1984 for the Survivor age. And it’s already slaying Twilight: Eclipse advance-ticket sales.
Take: Your appetite.
Premieres: March 23

Find showtimes online at fandango.com.

Fresh off an Oscar win with Undefeated, Harvey Weinstein releases his new doc on the block, an ugly truth tearjerker with a monster for a subject. Get to know five kids (plus their families) and the alarming fear they face at what should be the safest place on Earth — school. Lee Hirsch’s exposing film will ring your bell, so don’t forget the Puffs.
It’s like: Waiting for Superman to tackle An Inconvenient Truth.
Take: Your kids. Don’t let that undeserved R rating stop you.
Premieres: March 30

Find showtimes online at fandango.com.

Let’s head to Norway for some foreplay. When Alma, a daydreaming looker who can’t stop fiddling with her kumquat, gets poked by Artur (you’ll see, this has nothing to do with Facebook), she becomes an outcast with pup Bingo as her only friend-o. Scoring Best Screenplay at the Tribeca Film Festival, the naughty charmer proves young bucks aren’t the only ones putting the horn in horny.
It’s like: Little Mermaids.
Go: Stag.
Premieres: March 30

Find showtimes online at fandango.com.