By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Miguel Arteta
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal | Jennifer Aniston | John C. Reilly | John Carroll Lynch | Tim Blake Nelson | Zooey Deschanel
Country: united_states
Year: 2002
Running time: 93
IMDB: http://us.imdb.com/Details?0279113
Clinton says: “The writer and director of Chlotrudis Award-winning CHUCK & BUCK return with a stunning ensemble cast, lead by a surprisingly good performance from Aniston. She plays Justine, a dissatisfied young woman stuck in a dead end job (working the cosmetics counter at a cheap-o drug store), a marriage that has lost its passion, and a general feeling of malaise about her humdrum life. Then she notices her new co-worker Holden, a dark
and broody teenager who keeps to himself and reads Catcher in the Rye (hmmm, wonder where that name came from?).
“Justine becomes enamored with this mysterious boy and soon they fall into a steamy affair. But, as you would expect from this writer/director team, there are several surprising events which twist the plot and the tone in unexpected directions. Aniston does a great job with a character whose flaws include lying, cheating and scheming, but who really just wants to be a good girl. Reilly is a standout (again) as her thick-headed husband, and the rest of the cast bring to life their somewhat quirky characters without seeming unrealistic. This is definitely a film to watch out for, less controversial then CHUCK AND BUCK, but still fiercely original and true ”
Laura says: “White’s clever screenplay is surprisingly funny and packed with innuendo. His heroine’s name recalls de Sade’s Justine, or The Misfortunes of Virtue while her husband’s, Phil Last, begs to have her final ‘ine’ added. He places us in Justine’s point of view (Aniston’s philosophical narration is well utilized), yet breaks through it with supporting characters’ observations. Justine thinks no one knows about her affair, yet when she offers Holden, presumably having sprained his ankle, a ride home, coworker Gwen advises ‘You should put some cold water on it so it doesn’t swell up and inflame.’
“Holden’s immaturity is underlined by his choice of meeting place (the Chuck E. Cheese). The Retail Rodeo’s Cheryl (Zooey Deschanel, ALMOST FAMOUS) deadpans hilarious product ‘endorsements’ over the store loudspeaker, while store manager Jack Field (John Carroll Lynch, FARGO)
uses it to memorialize employees with tastelessly appropriate song selections. Phil and his best friend Bubba (Tim Blake Nelson, O BROTHER WHERE ART THOU?) imagine wacky paint inventions from within a haze of marijuana smoke that will transport their lifestyle. Everyone is looking to escape and only White’s Corny, the Retail Rodeo’s security guard, offers an outlet through his bible study class.
“Arteta directs one of the best ensemble casts of the year, with Anniston’s natural delivery grounding the film. Gyllenhaal walks a fine line, keeping his pathetic, desperate loser from becoming unsympathetic. Reliable Reilly is perfectly cast as the decent guy who loves his wife and questions little. Blake Nelson draws a complex portrait of Bubba, a goofy lowlife whose gradually revealed motivations render him a creepy obsessive. Deschanel, Rush, Lynch
and White all work to define the absurdity of the Retail Rodeo workplace. John Doe (BROKEDOWN PALACE) and Roxanne Hart’s (ONCE AROUND) almost dialogue-free representations of Holden/Tom’s parents provide background for his character.
“Daniel Bradford’s (BOUNCE) production design and Enrique Chediak’s (BOILER ROOM) cinematography work together to visualize a dusty, remote place of strip malls, parking lots and small houses.” 4 cats
For Laura’s complete review: (http://www.reelingreviews.com/thegoodgirl.htm)
Marilyn says: “Jennifer Aniston appeared better than she is because of the fabulous supporting cast…she only had to not screw up bc everyone expects her to and suddenly, she is proclaimed a good actor. Time will tell…John Reilly was terrific and Jake Gyllenhaal who is everywhere…(LOVELY AND AMAZING, etc.) is showing his chops as an actor. He is the one to watch from this film.”
Michael says: “THE GOOD GIRL is a curious film. It is unrelentingly bleak, yet it’s funny. Focusing on a married woman in a dead-end retail in a podunk Texas town (played very well by Jennifer Aniston), THE GOOD GIRL explores the nature of our lives, the choices we make and what makes a person ‘good.’
“The quirky humor evident in Mike White’s screenplay is vaguely reminiscent of his award-winning CHUCK & BUCK. You laugh, sometimes uncomfortably, at the absurdity of a situation. The plot of THE GOOD GIRL doesn’t yield many surprises, but that’s not really the point. Justine is depressed. She’d like nothing else than to break free of her routine life. Actually, she’d like someone to come along and shake things up. Someone does, in the form of 22-year-old Holden (Jake Gyllenhaal), a brooding, poetic young man who works with Justine at the Retail Rodeo. Just as the object of Justine’s blind search arrives, she begins to make choices… most of them poor, leading to a crossroads in her life where she must escape in hopes of a better life, or remain and face the consequences of her actions.
“THE GOOD GIRL is populated with lots of great supporting performances, from the deadpan, wacky humor of Zooey Deschanel as Cheryl, Justine’s co-worker, Mike White as the Retail Rodeo’s bizarre security guard, Deborah Rush as cheerful Gwen whose life takes a shocking turn, John C. Reilly, embodying Justine’s pig of a husband Phil, and Tim Blake Nelson in a bizarre part as Phil’s best friend.
“Cinematographer Enrique Chediak uses the flat Texas landscape well, with the harsh retail lighting, Texas sun and moody rainstorm. Music evokes a beautiful floundering mood as well. After reflection, THE GOOD GIRL scores big with me.” 4 cats
Robin says: “John C. Reilly does a splendid job as the clueless Phil who doesn’t see the handwriting on the wall. He has his own share of frustrations, which he masks with pot and zoning out in front of the boob tube. He tries his best but it is never enough to change the course of their lives. Tim Blake
Nelson is nothing but outstanding as best friend Bubba, a man who we come to learn, is anything but a ‘bubba.’ Writer White appears as security guard
Corny, a bible-thumping, self-righteous Christian zealot whose damnation of Justine comes back to bite him. John Carroll Lynch as Jack Field, Your
Store Manager, has a small role as the Retail Rodeo boss but conveys honestly, kindness and caring in a convincing, realistic way. Zooey Deschanel as Justine’s cosmetic counter coworker Cheryl is the subversive of the store, always doing her best to shock the shoppers, whether over the loud speaker with her editorialized what’s-on-sale announcements or with her clients at the counter. Deborah Rush rounds out the cast as the long-timer at the rodeo
that meets an untimely end, an end that will gravely impact Justine on her road to perdition.
“The look of the film belies what must be a small budget, by Hollywood standards, as the filmmakers strive to create the look and feel of a town in the middle of nowhere, a wasteland that is both metaphor and, for the denizens of the town, reality. Cinematographer Enrique Chediak gives the film a washed out, grainy look that befits the locale – kudos, too, for making southern California look like rural Texas. Production design, by Daniel Bradford, complements the camera with the air-conditioned prison of the Retail Rodeo and the blue-collar house that Justine and Phil occupy. Costume designer Nancy Steiner gives just the right touch to her dressing, making the player look like they, too, shop at the Rodeo.
“Mike White’s deft combination of serious subject matter and dark, funny humor makeTHE GOOD GIRL a film worth watching. The steady hand of helmer Arteta, his behind the camera crew and the talented cast make this a little gem.” 4 cats
For Robin’s complete review: (http://www.reelingreviews.com/thegoodgirl.htm)