Parents' Guide to By Any Means

There's no question that a movie about racists trying to control Black people is relevant, but this drama's approach to this topic is disappointingly blunt and graceless. By Any Means takes place two years after the events depicted in the Oscar-nominated Mississippi Burning (1988), a movie that had good intentions but drew criticism for telling its story through a White perspective. This film aims to make up for that through the character of Strider, who's played with anguish and determination by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. But, like Mississippi Burning, this movie also pairs two characters: one who does things by the book, and one who bends the rules, and Wahlberg gets the showier part in the latter role. Saddled with distracting prosthetics, he blares his performance with an aggressive "Noo Yawk" accent and a brawling attempt to dominate every moment. And he more or less succeeds, as the movie ultimately seems to agree with him: Rules are for suckers, and only violence wins the day. His character never learns anything or concedes an inch on any idea.

Yes, the movie still offers powerfully significant moments, such as Esposito's front-porch speech about voting ("if a vote don't mean nothin', how come they so hell-bent on not lettin' us have it?"). But, especially given the movie's shaky "based on a true story" origins, By Any Means could have been much better had it spent more time asking questions about what it all means.