The kind of social mobility our society affords means fortunes may rise, but also fall. Some from 2013’s spring movie roster—the biopics jOBS and 42—have something of a patriotic flavor about them, recounting inspirational tales of success, while others—such as Jeff Nichols’ Cannes-coronated melodrama Mud and The Place Beyond the Pines, featuring Ryan Gosling —flag-pin–puncture the breast. It’s a clutch of flicks that mirror the diversity of the American experience itself.
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