| Afire
NYT Critic’s Pick | Comedy, Drama, Romance | Directed by Christian Petzold
Christian Petzold’s new film, about a sour young writer and the woman he desires, generates both cruel comedy and heartbreak.

Thomas Schubert, left, and Paula Beer in “Afire,” a tale about friendship and romance, jealousy and enmity.
By MANOHLA DARGIS

20 Days in Mariupol
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Mstyslav Chernov
While the Ukrainian city was under siege by Russian forces, a team of journalists recorded the brutal war, resulting in this essential documentary.

A scene from the documentary “20 Days in Mariupol,” which charts Russia’s attack on the city.
By JASON FARAGO

Theater Camp
NYT Critic’s Pick | PG-13 | Comedy | Directed by Molly Gordon, Nick Lieberman
In this bitterly funny mockumentary set at a drama institute, the actors feel their characters in their bones.

Molly Gordon and Ben Platt, foreground, in “Theater Camp.”
By AMY NICHOLSON

Lakota Nation vs. United States
NYT Critic’s Pick | PG-13 | Documentary, History | Directed by Jesse Short Bull, Laura Tomaselli
In 1980, the Lakota were offered money for their stolen Black Hills land. They refused to accept the settlement and continue to fight today.

By CONCEPCIÓN DE LEÓN

Black Ice
NYT Critic’s Pick | R | Documentary, Sport | Directed by Hubert Davis
The Canadian filmmaker Hubert Davis amplifies the voices of hockey players of color and reveals the sport’s lesser-known pioneers in this smart, sensitive documentary.

A scene from “Black Ice.”
By NICOLAS RAPOLD

Earth Mama
NYT Critic’s Pick | R | Drama | Directed by Savanah Leaf
In Savanah Leaf’s moving, intimate feature debut, a pregnant woman tries to regain custody of her two children in foster care.

Tia Nomore, right, who stars as a pregnant single mother in “Earth Mama,” with Doechii.
By MANOHLA DARGIS

— Of Possible Interest —

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
PG-13 | Action, Adventure, Thriller | Directed by Christopher McQuarrie
In this franchise’s seventh entry, Tom Cruise’s mission includes increasingly improbable leaps, chases and stunts. Luckily for us, he chooses to accept it.
By MANOHLA DARGIS

Gray Matter
Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller | Directed by Meko Winbush
Things don’t go well when a teenage girl with mental superpowers ends up at a secret facility in this Max movie entirely devoid of suspense or character.
By ELISABETH VINCENTELLI