Capsule reviews for April 25

Blue Ruin

There aren’t any goofy answers or cash prizes in this ultraviolent family feud, as a vagrant (Macon Blair) learns of a tragedy within his family and returns to his Virginia hometown after many years to settle a score, determined to spare his relatives no matter the cost. But he’s forced into a desperate situation when his vigilante plan goes awry. The uneven but evocative script by director Jeremy Saulnier relies more on atmosphere than dialogue, and the result is a quietly powerful low-budget revenge thriller that gradually reveals secrets about its characters to ratchet up the tension. Blair is captivating as a conflicted antihero. (Rated R, 90 minutes).

For No Good Reason

Johnny Depp’s fascination with the mystique of Hunter S. Thompson continues with this modest documentary that sees him visiting British cartoonist Ralph Steadman, who is perhaps best known as Thompson’s illustrator and confidant. The film traces Steadman’s career, which includes works as an author and political activist, and it showcases numerous examples of his abstract sketches and macabre paintings for the uninitiated. The banter with Depp rarely serves much of an insightful purpose. But it’s most compelling when the focus is on Steadman, allowing him to describe his feelings about fame and his artistic process — or perhaps more accurately, the method to his madness. (Rated R, 89 minutes).

Locke

Tom Hardy drives a BMW for the duration of this experimental real-time thriller, which turns into a repetitive exercise overloaded with gimmicks and contrivances. Hardy plays the title role, as a construction foreman who spends his nighttime drive on the phone with various people upset with him — his mistress who is giving birth to his child, his wife who finds out about the mistress, and his contractors who are left scrambling when he suddenly walks off the job. As the only actor whose face is on screen, Hardy rises to the challenge of the format, yet the film fails to generate much suspense or sympathy. (Rated R, 85 minutes).

Walking With the Enemy

An unheralded tale of true-life World War II heroism is given standard melodramatic treatment in this earnest epic that takes place in Hungary, a country facing a political crossroads during the final months of the war. That’s where Elek (Jonas Armstrong) is a Jewish man who disguises himself as a Nazi officer in order to find his displaced family, only to realize he might have the opportunity to save more lives. It’s a story worth telling, with violence that’s often brutal and unsettling. But what’s more troubling is the attempts to manipulate emotion during the quieter moments with trite dialogue and an overbearing score. (Rated PG-13, 124 minutes).

Young and Beautiful

Familiar territory for French filmmaker Francois Ozon (Swimming Pool) is given a fresh approach in this erotic coming-of-age tale, which follows the sexual awakening of Isabelle (Marine Vacth), a teenager whose obsession with sex begins when she loses her virginity, leading to a secret side job as a call girl for middle-aged men. But emotional satisfaction proves more elusive. It’s a candid but insightful character study about adolescent impulses that feels more insightful than exploitative. Plus, Ozon’s morally complex and modestly provocative script is punctuated by an expressive performance by newcomer Vacth, who has the talent to accompany the qualities mentioned in the title. (Not rated, 95 minutes).