Capsule reviews for March 17

All Nighter

As with many all-nighters, the evening starts with some good-natured shenanigans and devolves into behavior we’d rather forget. This comedy follows a father (J.K. Simmons) desperately trying to reconnect with his estranged daughter (Analeigh Tipton). Out of desperation, he enlists the help of her ex-boyfriend (Emile Hirsch), a banjo-playing slacker still getting over the breakup. The ensuing odyssey includes encounters with eccentric acquaintances who don’t seem to know where she is or how to reach her. Amid the mayhem, the two lead performances provide some solid laughs through an amusing odd-couple chemistry, although the repetitive concept loses steam pretty quickly, settling for low-brow predictability. (Rated R, 86 minutes).

Frantz

There’s plenty of cross-cultural contemporary resonance in this black-and-white period piece from French director Francois Ozon (Swimming Pool) about a German widow (Paula Beer) whose soldier husband was recently killed in World War I. She strikes up a friendship with a French veteran (Pierre Niney) who visits her husband’s grave despite the animosity between their countries, eventually learning of a mutual connection. From there, Ozon’s screenplay — inspired by Ernst Lubitsch’s 1932 drama Broken Lullaby — explores grief and deception through plentiful flashbacks and the ability of survivors to find common ground. Although the pace is slow, the well-acted film generates emotional investment through intimacy and broader insights. (Rated PG-13, 113 minutes).

Mean Dreams

The late Bill Paxton shines as a corrupt small-town cop in this otherwise mediocre coming-of-age story in which he plays the abusive single father of a teenage girl (Sophie Nelisse). It’s no surprise, then, that he doesn’t take kindly to the poking around of Jonas (Josh Wiggins), a boy whose family just bought the farm down the road. Jonas hatches a plan to steal some drug money and run away with his first love to escape their family troubles. As directed by Nathan Morlando, (Citizen Gangster), the well-acted film works best in its quieter, character-driven moments, which are overwhelmed by clichés and contrivances along the way. (Rated R, 104 minutes).

Personal Shopper

French director Olivier Assayas (Clouds of Sils Maria) offers a kaleidoscopic view of grief and paranoia with this riveting character study. And if its disparate components might disorient viewers, imagine what they do for Maureen (Kristen Stewart), a psychic medium working as a shopping liaison for a Paris fashion maven (Nora von Waldstatten) while being stalked via text message and trying to reconnect with the ghost of her recently deceased twin brother, with whom she shares a heart condition. That’s a lot to digest, and the film’s atmospheric ambiguity can be frustrating. Still, Stewart balances strength and vulnerability and garners sympathy for her character’s plight. (Rated R, 105 minutes).

The Sense of an Ending

What it lacks in suspense, this modest drama from Indian director Ritesh Batra (The Lunchbox) — about the power of memories and the haunting nature of guilt — compensates with terrific performances and compelling character dynamics. Anthony (Jim Broadbent) is a slightly curmudgeonly London shopkeeper forced to confront his past after the death of an acquaintance, specifically a painful love triangle during his college years that might not have ended the way he thought. The abundant flashbacks don’t propel the mystery forward as intended, yet when it remains focused on the present, Broadbent and the other actors (including the wonderful Charlotte Rampling) convey a subtle emotional resonance. (Rated PG-13, 108 minutes).