Joe Russo

Although “The Gray Man” by no means breaks the espionage thriller mold, particularly striking performances prevent it from plunging altogether into tedium.

This reductive crime drama centers on a complex and ruinously aimless couple — an opportunity wasted on the Russo brothers, victims both of poetic karma and their own tragically inept work.

Ten years into its chokehold on blockbuster culture, Marvel Studios is finally reaching the ostensible end of a rainbow with “Avengers: Infinity War.”