The weekend after American Thanksgiving tends to be pretty quiet, but smaller distributors are stepping up with some very strong films. Well, mostly.

Antibirth: I think Danny Perez’ weird-ass horror movie tries a little too hard to be weird-ass, but there are moments when Natasha Lyonne finds something really moving in the material. Also, if you see it stoned you’ll probably love it.

The Apology: Susan was a big booster of Tiffany Hsiung’s scathing exploration of Japan’s atrocious “comfort women” scandal at Hot Docs; now that it’s opening commercially, make sure you don’t miss it.

Lovesick: Winnipeg filmmaker Tyson Caron creates the strangest Trotsky reunion ever, with Jacob Tierney as a mopey artist still pining over his ex (Jessica Paré) even as she prepares to marry another man (Jay Baruchel). Bland and uninventive, but I will watch that cast do just about anything.

The Other Half: Tatiana Maslany and Tom Cullen are simply terrific in Joey Klein’s two-hander about broken people finding solace in one another. Also, Joey is this week’s SEMcast guest, so check that out too.

Theater of Life: Peter Svatek’s heartening documentary follows Massimo Bottura as he opens a soup kitchen in the middle of Milan’s 2015 world expo.

Things to Come: The other great Isabelle Huppert performance of the year is packaged in Mia Hansen-Love’s subtle drama about an aging academic facing a life changes. Fun fact: Huppert’s character is at least a decade older than the one she plays in Elle. No makeup required; she just does it.

There! Go see something!