Overview

• Critics highlight Josh O’Connor’s performance as the film’s emotional anchor, bringing charm and quiet sadness to JB Mooney.
• Reviewers single out Rob Mazurek’s jazzy score and Christopher Blauvelt’s ‘70s-evoking cinematography as key to the movie’s tone.
• Coverage describes a grounded heist setup that shifts into a patient character study, with some reservations about a subdued latter half and thin supporting roles.
• Kelly Reichardt says she reworked the project from a 1972 story about two teenage girls to a 1970 portrait of JB to capture the cusp between decades.
• The Mastermind opens in theaters on Oct. 17, following festival and press conversations that have framed its genre subversion and intent.