Try Harder!
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Debbie Lum
This documentary from Debbie Lum goes inside a top-performing San Francisco public high school to see how students are preparing for the future.

Alvan Cai, one of the subjects of the documentary “Try Harder!”
By BEANDREA JULY

Torn
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Max Lowe
This documentary on the life and death of the mountaineer Alex Lowe demonstrates how unexpected bonds can form around those in grief.

The climber Alex Lowe, right, with his son, Max, in the documentary “Torn.”
By CLAIRE SHAFFER

Flee
NYT Critic’s Pick | PG-13 | Documentary, Animation | Directed by Jonas Poher Rasmussen
A Danish documentary uses animation to tell the poignant, complicated story of an Afghan refugee.

Amin, whose family left Afghanistan, as seen in the animated documentary “Flee.”
By A.O. SCOTT

Listening to Kenny G
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary, Music | Directed by Penny Lane
Penny Lane’s documentary about the superstar sax player Kenny G shows an artist who can be defensive and self-satisfied almost simultaneously.

The saxophonist Kenny G in the documentary “Listening to Kenny G.”
By GLENN KENNY

The Power of the Dog
NYT Critic’s Pick | R | Drama, Romance, Western | Directed by Jane Campion
In Jane Campion’s staggering take on the western, her first movie in more than a decade, a cruel cowboy meets his surprising match.

Benedict Cumberbatch as Phil Burbank in Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog.”
By MANOHLA DARGIS

— Of Possible Interest —

Benedetta
Biography, Drama, History, Romance | Directed by Paul Verhoeven
Paul Verhoeven takes us to a nunnery where faith, eroticism and the Black Death make for an unholy good time.

Daphne Patakia and Virginie Efira in “Benedetta.”
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS

Single All the Way
TV-PG | Comedy, Drama, Romance | Directed by Michael Mayer
This Netflix holiday rom-com rests its family-friendly shenanigans on a display of chemistry that never materializes.

Philemon Chambers and Michael Urie in “Single All the Way.”
By TEO BUGBEE