‘The Mastermind’ Keeps Director’s Maddening Streak Intact

Kelly Reichardt’s “The Mastermind” stars Josh O’Connor as James Mooney, a thief who steals works of art right out of museums. Sarah, James’ mother (the always wonderful Hope Davis), questions his life choices and interrogates him over his recent actions. While James understands that what he’s doing is wrong, he has no intention of stopping. Released in theaters last fall and now on the Mubi channel, “The Mastermind” represents my latest failure to get into Reichardt’s films. She’s an acclaimed director whose movies have yet to connect with me. Her latest isn’t a slow burn; it’s just slow. It’s deja vu all over again, as it’s another year, another opportunity for me to give a new Reichardt movie two stars and dismiss it for being a mildly interesting slog. I’d like to get past this and fin