Capsule reviews for Jan. 26

A Ciambra

Italian neorealism is alive and well in this gritty coming-of-age docudrama from director Jonas Carpignano (Mediterranea), which provides another vivid examination of life on the socioeconomic margins for one gypsy family in the Calabrian peninsula. Like his relatives, streetwise teenager Pio (Pio Amato) is a petty thief and con artist always on the run from authorities. His quest to gain clout and support his family leads to an uneasy partnership with a community of Ghanaian refugees also subjected to cultural outsider status. Even if it’s difficult to sympathize with these characters, Carpignano captures his setting and benefits from expressive performances by his cast of non-actors. (Not rated, 118 minutes).

American Folk

In today’s divided times, we could learn a thing or two from the ordinary kindness and compassion in the days immediately following the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. That seems to be the point of this heartfelt but ultimately slight and meandering story of two folk musicians (Joe Purdy and Amber Rubarth) who meet on a plane rerouted to Los Angeles on that fateful morning. Needing to get to New York for separate obligations, they carpool across the country in a beat-up mustard-yellow van, meeting quirky strangers along the way. Contrivances threaten to derail the otherwise subtle, unassuming charm in this exploration of Americana. (Rated PG, 99 minutes).

The Clapper

There’s not much to applaud in this misguided offbeat comedy from director Dito Montiel (Man Down) that fails to generate sufficient humor or poignancy from a broad satirical target. It follows Eddie (Ed Helms), who makes a meager living as a seat-filling infomercial audience member. He flirts innocently with a gas-station clerk (Amanda Seyfried) before gaining unwanted notoriety from a talk-show host (Russell Peters) who sees through Eddie’s silly disguises and tries to expose him. From there, Montiel’s script aims more for sincerity than mockery, although he never provides his characters with much depth beneath their eccentricities, thereby limiting the emotional capacity of the material. (Rated R. 89 minutes).

Please Stand By

Authentically depicting the various facets of autism on the big screen has always been a tricky challenge, which is only reinforced by this earnest drama from director Ben Lewin (The Sessions). It benefits from a committed portrayal by Dakota Fanning as Wendy, who’s prone to outbursts and obsessed with Star Trek. The latter prompts her to flee her Oakland group home for Hollywood, where she wants to meet the deadline for a scriptwriting competition. During the ensuing road trip, melodramatic contrivances compromise any genuine audience empathy for Wendy or her plight. She feels more like an eccentric plot device shoehorned into a formulaic wish-fulfillment fantasy. (Rated PG-13, 93 minutes).

Vazante

This deliberately paced Brazilian historical drama rewards patience with its sumptuous black-and-white cinematography and affecting story of prejudice that carries contemporary resonance. It takes place in 1821 at a remote mountain farmhouse, where a slave trader (Adriano Carvalho) becomes a widower before marrying his dead wife’s teenage niece (Luana Nastas). That unscrupulous behavior carries over to his dealings with the slaves on his property, whose discontent quickly turns daily life on the property into violent chaos. In her debut feature as a solo director, Daniela Thomas offers an evocative and harrowing glimpse into the past that contains enough insight to compensate for its uneven narrative momentum. (Not rated, 116 minutes).