NEW YORK. John Krasinski wrote, directed and plays a prominent role in the generally wholesome fantasy “IF” (PG, Paramount). Yet, while the good intentions behind his film are evident, it ends up registering as a sweet but flawed piece of entertainment, one that gets in its own way by trying too hard to be liked.

NEW YORK. A blending of historical facts and Southern gothic fiction proves unstable in the biographical and literary drama “Wildcat” (Unrated, Oscilloscope). As a result, director and co-writer Ethan Hawke achieves only mixed results as he seeks to introduce viewers to the life and works of Catholic author Flannery O’Connor.

NEW YORK. “We’re in the Nazi killing business, and cousin, business is a-boomin’” blithely declares Brad Pitt’s character, U.S. Army officer Lt. Aldo Raine, in the 2009 film “Inglourious Basterds.” The same might be said by the core cast of the fact-based World War II action comedy “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare” (R, Lionsgate).

NEW YORK. An understated tone bolsters the impact of the fact-based drama “One Life” (PG, Bleecker Street). The educational value and formative potential of the film’s uplifting story, a lesser-known chapter in the history of the Holocaust, moreover, make it probably acceptable for older teens, despite some off-color vocabulary in the script.

NEW YORK. In 1946, less than 30 years after her death, aged 67, Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini was canonized by Pope Pius XII. Four years later, she was named the patron saint of immigrants. To judge by the luminous profile “Cabrini” (PG-13, Angel Studios), however, she might just as easily be regarded as the patroness of the indomitable.