THE MASTERMIND ©2025 Mastermind Movie Inc All Rights Reserved
The Mastermind: Kelly Reichardt reinvents the heist film
For her second film presented in Competition, American director Kelly Reichardt directs Josh O’Connor for the first time in The Mastermind. In this heist film, the director of First Cow leaves her beloved Oregon behind to film in 1970s Massachusetts. A new unexpected theme that is once again a testament to the author’s eclectic range.
Josh O’Connor plays J.B. Mooney, an unemployed carpenter who reinvents himself as an amateur art thief. Set against the turbulent backdrop of 1970s America, in the midst of the Vietnam War and the women’s liberation movement, the young man plans his first big heist yet. When things go haywire, his life unravels.
Alongside the British actor — who also made an appearance on the Croisette this year for his role in the queer romance The History of Sound by Oliver Hermanus — we have the pleasure of seeing the lovely Alana Haim, who made her debut in Licorice Pizza by Paul Thomas Anderson four years ago, and whom we haven’t seen since. Both actors are featured for the first time under the direction of Kelly Reichardt, like the actress Hope Davis, who also walked the Red Carpet this year for Wes Anderson’s The Phoenician Scheme.
This heist drama has enough to pique the curiosity of Kelly Reichardt fans as it basically is a true departure from her usual minimalist and bucolic style. Already selected for Un Certain Regard in 2008 for the moving Wendy and Lucy, and in Competition in 2022 with Showing Up, — both showcasing the iconic Michelle Williams — Kelly Reichardt was also a member of the 2019 Feature Films Jury. Her filmmaking explores the American experience from a gentle and poetic perspective and often takes a particular interest in working-class characters living in small-town communities — reminiscent of Sean Baker’s sensibility.
