In Theaters: JUMANJI - THE NEXT LEVEL, RICHARD JEWELL, BLACK CHRISTMAS and UNCUT GEMS

With Christmas just 12 days away, the winter box-office is heating up with three new wide releases. First, we have the blockbuster "Jumanji: The Next Level", which will have no trouble securing the #1 spot this weekend. The action adventure film has already delivered $4.7 million from Thursday previews and could end up with a $40+ million debut from 4,227 theaters.

Another new release is Clint Eastwood's true story drama "Richard Jewell", which will serve as adult counterprogramming this weekend. The film hasn't been able to capitalize on its awards buzz, so far, missing out on Best Picture and Best Director Golden Globe nominations, as well as being shut out from the recently announced Screen Actors Guild awards. However, the film is expected to make a strong debut at the box-office with around $10 million from 2,502 theaters.

Blumhouse is getting into the holiday mood with the PG-13 horror remake "Black Christmas". Despite a negative reception from both critics and moviegoers, the film is still expected to open with as much as $10 million from 2,625 theaters.

New limited releases this week include three awards season contenders: Lionsgate's "Bombshell", which will expand nationwide next week, the Adam Sandler drama "Uncut Gems" and Terrence Malick's "A Hidden Life".

Synopses, details, critical/audience reception, trailers, and more after the jump.

JUMANJI: THE NEXT LEVEL

Official Synopsis

In Jumanji: The Next Level, the gang is back but the game has changed. As they return to Jumanji to rescue one of their own, they discover that nothing is as they expect. The players will have to brave parts unknown and unexplored, from the arid deserts to the snowy mountains, in order to escape the world's most dangerous game.

Film Details

• Director: Jake Kasdan
  
  
• Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Awkwafina, Danny DeVito, Danny Glover, Nick Jonas, Alex Wolff, Colin Hanks, Madison Iseman, Morgan Turner
  
  
• Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy
  
  
• Running Time: 123 min.
  
  
• Rating: PG-13 for adventure action, suggestive content and some languag
  
  

Critical Reception

• Rottentomatoes: 69% (87 fresh, 39 rotten, score: 5.9/10)
  
• Metacritic: 58 out of 100 (15 positive, 16 mixed, 1 negative).

Audience Reception

• Rotten Tomatoes: 89% (average score: 4.3/5 from 289 user ratings)
• Metacritic: 7.3/10 (6 positive, 4 mixed, 1 negative).
• IMDb: 7.0/10 (9,193 votes)
  

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RICHARD JEWELL

Official Synopsis

Directed by Clint Eastwood and based on true events, "Richard Jewell" is a story of what happens when what is reported as fact obscures the truth. "There is a bomb in Centennial Park. You have thirty minutes." The world is first introduced to Richard Jewell as the security guard who reports finding the device at the 1996 Atlanta bombing-his report making him a hero whose swift actions save countless lives. But within days, the law enforcement wannabe becomes the FBI's number one suspect, vilified by press and public alike, his life ripped apart. Reaching out to independent, anti-establishment attorney Watson Bryant, Jewell staunchly professes his innocence. But Bryant finds he is out of his depth as he fights the combined powers of the FBI, GBI and APD to clear his client's name, while keeping Richard from trusting the very people trying to destroy him.

Film Details

• Director: Clint Eastwood
  
  
• Starring: Paul Walter Hauser, Sam Rockwell, Brandon Stanley, Jon Hamm, Olivia Wilde, Kathy Bates
  
  
• Genre: Drama
  
  
• Running Time: 129 min.
  
  
• Rating: R for language including some sexual references, and brief bloody images
  
  

Critical Reception

• Rottentomatoes: 77% (86 fresh, 26 rotten, score: 6.6/10)
  
• Metacritic: 69 out of 100 (30 positive, 5 mixed, 2 negative).

Audience Reception

• Rotten Tomatoes: N/A
• Metacritic: N/A
• IMDb: 7.6/10 (574 votes)
  

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BLACK CHRISTMAS

Official Synopsis

Hawthorne College is quieting down for the holidays. But as Riley Stone (Imogen Poots, Green Room) and her Mu Kappa Epsilon sisters--athlete Marty (Lily Donoghue, The CW's Jane the Virgin), rebel Kris (Aleyse Shannon, The CW's Charmed), and foodie Jesse (Brittany O'Grady, Fox's Star)--prepare to deck the halls with a series of seasonal parties, a black-masked stalker begins killing sorority women one by one. As the body count rises, Riley and her squad start to question whether they can trust any man, including Marty's beta-male boyfriend, Nate (Simon Mead, Same But Different: A True New Zealand Love Story), Riley's new crush Landon (Caleb Eberhardt, Amazon's Mozart in the Jungle) or even esteemed classics instructor Professor Gelson (Cary Elwes). Whoever the killer is, he's about to discover that this generation's young women aren't about to be anybody's victims.

Film Details

• Director: Sophia Takal
  
  
• Starring: Imogen Poots, Aleyse Shannon, Lily Donoghue, Brittany O'Grady, Cary Elwes
  
  
• Genre: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
  
  
• Running Time: 92 min.
  
  
• Rating: PG-13 for violence, terror, thematic content involving sexual assault, language, sexual material and drinking
  
  

Critical Reception

• Rottentomatoes: 42% (16 fresh, 22 rotten, score: 4.7/10)
  
• Metacritic: 46 out of 100 (5 positive, 4 mixed, 5 negative).

Audience Reception

• Rotten Tomatoes: 26% (average score: 2.3/5 from 42 user ratings)
• Metacritic: 1.6/10 (1 positive, 0 mixed, 7 negative).
• IMDb: 3.0/10 (566 votes)
  

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UNCUT GEMS

Official Synopsis

From acclaimed filmmakers Josh and Benny Safdie comes an electrifying crime thriller about Howard Ratner (Adam Sandler), a charismatic New York City jeweler always on the lookout for the next big score. When he makes a series of high-stakes bets that could lead to the windfall of a lifetime, Howard must perform a precarious high-wire act, balancing business, family, and encroaching adversaries on all sides, in his relentless pursuit of the ultimate win.

Film Details

• Director: Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie
  
  
• Starring: Adam Sandler, Julia Fox, Kevin Garnett, Idina Menzel, Lakeith Stanfield, Eric Bogosian
  
  
• Genre: Comedy, Crime, Drama
  
  
• Running Time: 135 min.
  
  
• Rating: R for pervasive strong language, violence, some sexual content and brief drug use
  
  

Critical Reception

• Rottentomatoes: 93% (105 fresh, 8 rotten, score: 8.4/10)
  
• Metacritic: 89 out of 100 (28 positive, 2 mixed, 0 negative).

Audience Reception

• Rotten Tomatoes: 100% (average score: 4.9./5 from 11 user ratings)
• Metacritic: N/A
• IMDb: 8.1/10 (1,347 votes)
  

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