For her no-nonsense maiden feature, writer-director Nia DaCosta tries her luck at the tested and proven “one last score before calling it quits” crime drama. The result is Frozen River minus the tension. Ollie (Tessa Thompson) has paid her debt to society for running prescription drugs across the Canadian border, ostensibly to help those unable to afford insurance. Now, weeks away from finishing her probation, she finds herself interviewing for a gig that would liberate her from the cracker-infested North Dakota oil town she calls home. One hitch: sister Deb (Lily James) — pregnant with a second baby and in need of money to pay for either its birth or a back-alley alternative — is the motivation needed to once again send Ollie packing to Canada. At one point, Ollie remarks, “Your choices are only as good as your options.” DaCosta should have kept her characters’ options open. As distinguished as the two leads are, neither is given much room in which to outplay the issues at hand. (2018) — Scott Marks
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