You look into the face of Ryan Reynolds and you say, “I like this guy…I want him to win or at least come out okay…give me a chance and I might even admire him.” You look into the face of Ben Mendelsohn and you say, “This guy sweats too much…he might be winning tonight but he’ll definitely lose tomorrow, and he won’t stop smoking those Marlboros…drop him off at the nearest bus stop.” And yet — I’m being serious here — Mississippi Grind (A24, 9.25) is a really well-made film. I knew that right away when I saw it at Sundance. It’s worth seeing, even with Mendelsohn’s b.o. filling up the room.

I like Grind so much, in fact, that I might drive all the way out to Laemmle’s Town Center 5 in Encino and catch tonight’s 10 pm show. No, I don’t know why a film opening two months hence is playing on a single Los Angeles screen right now, but there’s a reason.