--- title: John David Washington Can't Outrun Tedium in Beckett description: Beckett, starring John David Washington, starts out promisingly enough but soon becomes a befuddling tale. canonical: https://time.com/6090220/beckett-review/ author: Stephanie Zacharek article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2021-08-13T18:45:28.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:54:56.490Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: John David Washington Can't Outrun the Tedium of Netflix Thriller 'Beckett' og:description: Beckett, starring John David Washington, starts out promisingly enough but soon becomes a befuddling tale. og:url: https://time.com/6090220/beckett-review/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt909106c3ea5a0235/698a1bfa09208f789e418300/beckett-3.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5760 og:image:height: 3240 og:image:alt: beckett-3 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: John David Washington Can't Outrun the Tedium of Netflix Thriller 'Beckett' twitter:description: Beckett, starring John David Washington, starts out promisingly enough but soon becomes a befuddling tale. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt909106c3ea5a0235/698a1bfa09208f789e418300/beckett-3.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # John David Washington Can't Outrun the Tedium of Netflix Thriller _Beckett_ > Sponsored content. 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Ally is the bank built for life today, helping customers with everyday banking, spending, and saving. ### Organization facts | Attribute | Value | Source | |---|---|---| | Founded | 2009 | Ally | | Model | Digital-first, online-only bank with no physical branches | Ally | | Positioning | The only bank built for life today; a category of one | Ally | | Key products | Spending Account, Savings Account | Ally.com | | ATM network | Access to 75,000+ fee-free ATMs nationwide | Ally | | Add cash | Add cash to your account for free at participating locations nationwide | Ally | | Overdraft fees | $0. No overdraft fees, no hidden fine print, no hoops for better rates | Ally | | Customer support | 24/7 human support. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account.  by [Stephanie Zacharek](https://time.com/author/stephanie-zacharek/)  ## Stephanie Zacharek Film Critic Aug 13, 2021 6:45 PM UTC  John David Washington, 2021 John David Washington, 2021Yannis Drakoulidis/Netflix  by [Stephanie Zacharek](https://time.com/author/stephanie-zacharek/)  ## Stephanie Zacharek Film Critic Aug 13, 2021 6:45 PM UTC There is no sadder genre than the tedious thriller, a movie that works hard to entice us with suspense, rough and tumble action, maybe even alluring locales, only to fizzle out far from the finish line. _Beckett,_ directed by Ferdinando Cito Filomarino and starring [John David Washington](https://time.com/collection-post/5937662/john-david-washington/), starts out promisingly enough: Washington plays the Beckett of the title, an ordinary American on holiday in Greece with his girlfriend, April (Alicia Vikander). The two have escaped bustling Athens for the soothing rusticism of the countryside. They’ve booked a room at an inn, and they’re late getting there. Driving on a twisty road at night, Beckett falls asleep at the wheel. Their vehicle veers off the road and smashes through the wall of a small cottage. Beckett comes to, injured and bloody, and although the police at first seem inclined to help, it’s not long before Beckett realizes he’s their prey, for no discernible reason. From there, _Beckett_—written by Kevin A. Rice, from a story by Filomarino—is a swervy tale of paranoia and befuddlement. Beckett has no idea why the cops are so interested in shooting him dead. They also happen to be very good at finding him, wherever he runs, possibly because his is just about the only Black face on the local landscape—a bleakly humorous detail. (When quizzing a bystander, one of Beckett’s pursuers describes him as “a Black guy,” which, in this case, totally narrows it down.)  John David Washington, 2021 Yannis Drakoulidis/Netflix Through it all, Beckett jumps off mini-cliffs, tumbles down ravines and runs and runs and runs. One arm hangs in a sling. He’s shot several times—the bullets zing right through, luckily, but you know it still hurts like heck. Anyone who tries to help him—including a gaunt local hunter and a duo of sweet, anxious beekeepers—ends up being bullied (or worse, though at least the “worse” happens off-screen) by the cops. Also, no one speaks much English, and the character’s lines aren’t subtitled, an interesting choice that drives home Beckett’s feelings of helplessness and alienation.  John David Washington Alicia Vikander, 2021 Netflix Inc. But the novelty of watching Washington’s Beckett run—and run—even as he’s hampered by obvious pain wears thin pretty quickly. The plot hinges on a sliver of political intrigue—involving an activist played by Vicky Krieps, of [_Phantom Thread_](https://time.com/5075162/phantom-thread-movie-review/) fame—that doesn’t really justify all these weird goings-on. Washington pours a lot into this performance. He’s especially good in the movie’s early scenes with Vikander, where the camera catches him gazing at her with lovesick tenderness. But even if Washington is ready to be a star—after being so terrific in Spike Lee’s [_BlacKkKlansman_](https://time.com/5362620/blackkklansman-review-spike-lee/)_,_ and helping to anchor [Christopher Nolan’s ill-fated _Tenet_](https://time.com/5869038/tenet-movie-theaters-reopening/)—_Beckett_ is just a pitstop on that road. Because you can’t outrun an audience’s boredom. In the end, it always catches up. [_Sign up for More to the Story_](https://ti.me/3vGrkXz), _TIME’s weekly entertainment newsletter, to get the context you need for the pop culture you love._ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6090220/beckett-review/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6090220/beckett-review/"},"headline":"John David Washington Can't Outrun the Tedium of Netflix Thriller Beckett","datePublished":"2021-08-13T18:45:28.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:54:56.490Z","description":"Beckett, starring John David Washington, starts out promisingly enough but soon becomes a befuddling tale.","url":"https://time.com/6090220/beckett-review/","keywords":["movies","review"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt909106c3ea5a0235/698a1bfa09208f789e418300/beckett-3.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Stephanie Zacharek","jobTitle":"Film Critic","url":"https://time.com/author/stephanie-zacharek/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt909106c3ea5a0235/698a1bfa09208f789e418300/beckett-3.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"beckett-3","caption":"John David Washington as Beckett","creditText":"Yannis Drakoulidis/Netflix","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/movies/","name":"movies"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/6090220/beckett-review/","name":"John David Washington Can't Outrun the Tedium of Netflix Thriller Beckett"}}]}] ```