VOD critics’ picks, January 26–February 8, 2012

1. Project Nim
Dir. James Marsh. 2011. N/R. 93mins. Documentary.
The director of Man on Wire examines an ill-fated 1970s experiment in which a chimp was raised in a human household. Spoiler alert: He does not become a real boy. Available on Amazon Instant Video Tue 7.

2. In Time
Dir. Andrew Niccol. 2011. PG-13. 109mins. Justin Timberlake, Amanda Seyfried, Cillian Murphy, Vincent Kartheiser, Olivia Wilde.
Set in a future dystopia where time is the only currency (and the poor don’t live very long), Niccol’s bold, exciting chase picture is also the most flagrantly Marxist movie ever to emerge from a Murdoch studio. Available on demand widely Tue 31.

3. A Very Harold and Kumar Christmas
Dir. Todd Strauss-Schulson. 2011. R. 90mins. John Cho, Kal Penn, Thomas Lennon, Amir Blumenfeld, Danny Trejo, Elias Koteas, Bobby Lee.
Even without the 3-D or the yuletide context, this hilarious third adventure in the buddy-stoner franchise boasts a, uh, high joke count. Available on demand widely Tue 7.