"Get Out" is a horror movie that couldn't be more timely or terrific.

Sometimes movies are so of the moment, they seem prescient. Such is the case with "Get Out", a new horror film from writer/director Jordan Peele of "Key & Peele" fame. It's a story about racism, rights, and caste systems in theaters at a time when such issues are at the top of our politic discourse. But as timely as Peele's themes are, it's his film's clever choices that counter the worst clichés of the genre that make this so right, right now.

Peele turns one egregious horror cliché after another on its ear. He doesn't rush his scares, his characters are three-dimensional, and the sense of slow-building dread is more palpable than any big set pieces you'd find in most modern frighteners. It's shrewd entertainment, imbued with empathy, intelligence and plenty of dark comedy. It's only March, but 2017 already has one of the year's best films in "Get Out."