The Mastermind

I watched this at London Film Festival and it was really testing my patience. I do not understand what compelled its makers to do this movie? It was a bland plate of nothingness miming serving you food while all you're getting is air!

Quite a shame since I loved Josh O'Conner in Challengers and La Chaimera but this was a complete miss despite his not-so-bad American accent.

The premise of this movie is great, which I won't recap here. All the actors are great and there are some of my favorites here: Josh O'Connor, Hope Davis, Abi Hoffman. It's the pace that killed this movie for me. I get this is more of a character study than a heist movie, but still, long panning shots of a boarding house room or two characters walking down a country lane while it snows, did nothing to advance my understanding of the character or advance the plot. It really felt like a 60 minute short film stretched to 90+. That said, the performances are well-crafted and interesting.

As the poster already tells you: this is a Kelly Richardt movie, so you should know the reason her name is bigger than the title itself. If you don't know what kinda movie she makes, that's probably not for you. She's the queen of stillness, and If you are only watching expecting to be a action/thriller movie you are mistaken. Clearly the bad reviews left here are from people who never saw her work.

The Mastermind is a cinematic experience I was compelled tc review purely out of frustration. I gave it a low 3 stars, with those ooints being awarded only because the unintentionally quirky pehavior of the actors made me laugh in a few places. If you finc humor in simpleton behavior in a serious context, you might get a chuckle, but don't mistake this for a comedy-it clearly isn" meant to be one, The film drags, relying on the predictable indie film trope of unnecessary long silences and a repetitive, mood-killing score Every scene felt like filler, with a profound lack of character development and a story that simply refused to progress. I kept expecting a payoff that never materialized.

The ending was perhaps the most frustrating element. It wrapped up with a blunt non-conclusion, leaving gaping plot holes and zero character development, as if the entire film were merelv a prelude to a continuation that mav never come.

For a regular cinema-goer like myself, watching the apparent lack of effort put into the plot and conclusion was insulting. I don't 'ecommend seeing The Mastermind in any scenario, maybe while you're sitting in the throne.

Surprised myself by giving this a relatively high rating but, having endured 'After the Hunt' the day before, I found this film full of interest and subtlety.

Yes- there are extended scenes during which I felt perplexed as to their detail and longevity and yet I remained focussed and intrigued.

No- I didn't 'get' the anti-war connections or some of the relationships and yet this did not deter me from wanting to continue.

Yes- some left and missed the irony - I think- of the ending. I'd like to see it again to consolidate my thoughts.

An oddity but well worth an open-minded viewing!