Ever wandered through an established art gallery and thought about prying those valuable masterpieces from the wall and running out the door, all in broad daylight? That’s what Josh O’Connor’s character cooks up in The Mastermind. But it’s not the entire story of Kelly Reichardt’s latest, with the writer/director leaning on the art heist genre to take a deeper look into the reasons behind such a decision — and follow a family man on the run during social and political upheaval in America.
Set in ’70s Massachusetts and loosely based on the high-profile Worcester Art Museum robbery, The Mastermind plays out such a scenario with charming realism, wholesome comedy, and a rich, seductive score. But its most valuable asset is O’Connor, whose magnetic performance is as hilariously deadpan as it is moving.
The Mastermind plans a highly cosy crime.
Josh O’Connor in “The Mastermind.”
Credit: Mastermind Movie Inc. All Rights Reserved
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