Opening This Week: HER PRIVATE HELL by NWR, SHEEP IN THE BOX by Kore-eda, MANHUNTER: THE FINAL CUT by Mann

For those of us who are not able to travel to the heart of genre cinema at the Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal, Canada, we can still dream about it.

We can content ourselves further by planning a trip to a local cinema to soak in the latest by Nicolas Winding Refn and/or Hirokazu Kore-eda. Alternately, a serial killer classic by Michael Mann will be returning to select theaters in an undoubtedly chilling 4K restoration, as well as the intriguing Australian thriller Cruel Hands and a new take on a legendary puppet, Pinocchio Unstrung.

What to see, what to see, what to see in the wild, wonderful world of genre fare this week? Make your pick(s) and then make your plan(s). Here is our guide.

Her Private Hell
The film opens Friday, July 24, only in movie theaters, via Neon Releasing.

Nicolas Winding Refn's first film in years is a cause for celebration. Our own Kurt Halfyard saw it on Opening Night at Fantasia last week: "The director is far more interested in mise-en-scène still-lives over coherent storytelling in his latest film, Her Private Hell. ... A trauma-infused fever dream."

Official synopsis: "When a mysterious mist engulfs a futuristic metropolis, unleashing a deadly and elusive entity, a troubled young woman searches for her father. Her quest collides with an American GI on a harrowing odyssey to rescue his daughter from Hell."

Sheep in the Box
The film opens Friday, July 24, only in movie theaters, via Neon Releasing.

A new film by Hirokazu Kore-eda (Shoplifters, Nobody Knows) is also a cause for celebration. Look for our review later this week.

Official synopsis: "In the near future, Otone and Kensuke, a grieving couple who have lost their son, take into their lives a humanoid identical to their late child."

Manhunter: The Final Cut
The film opens Friday, July 24, only in movie theaters, via Rialto Pictures. Visit their official site for locations and showtimes.

Viewing this for the first time on broadcast television, I was instantly gripped, even with too-frequent advertising breaks. Seeing it again later (without commercials), the tension was relentless. I was already a Michael Mann fan, thanks to Thief -- I missed The Keep -- but this movie cemented that.

Official synopsis: "The film that redefined the modern thriller. 40 years on, Michael Mann's pulsating, cutting-edge Manhunter: The Final Cut returns to cinemas in a brand new breathtaking 4K restoration supervised by Michael Mann. Coming to the US via Rialto Pictures on July 24th and StudioCanal UK on September 25th, with further international releases this fall.

"A retired criminal profiler (William Petersen) reluctantly returns to the FBI to help track down a serial killer of families and is forced to consult an expert - the imprisoned Dr. Hannibal Lecktor (Brian Cox in a subtly chilling performance).

"The third feature written and directed by Michael Mann is a gripping adaptation of the first of Thomas Harris's famed crime novels and benefits from the filmmaker's typically striking visuals as well as a top notch supporting cast including Tom Noonan as Francis Dolarhyde - the hunted killer known as the Red Dragon or the 'Tooth Fairy' - along with three-time Oscar nominee Joan Allen (The Contender, 2000) as his blind love interest."

Cruel Hands
The film opens Friday, July 24, only in movie theaters, via Dark Sky Films.

An Australian thriller looks and sounds quite intriguing, per the trailer. Also, Dark Sky Films is a reliable distributor of inviting genre fare.

Official synopsis: "A mother and her young son escape from an abusive husband to an isolated farmhouse, only to find themselves trapped between him and a raging bushfire that surrounds them."

Pinocchio Unstrung
The film opens Friday, July 24, only in movie theaters, via Viva Pictures in North America and Altitude Film Distribution in the UK.

My initial instinct about a horror version of a friendly children's movie that already saw a couple of versions in the past couple years was decidedly apprehensive. Then I watched the trailer and changed my mind about the possibilities, especially hearing the voice of the awesome Richard Brake.

Official synopsis: "A dark coming-of-age reimagining of Pinocchio, this unsettling tale follows the iconic puppet's disturbing journey toward becoming real."

Opening This Week celebrates the cinematic experience, in movie theaters and at home.