Review of Good Time (2017) by Juji O — 03 Sep 2017

'Good Time' (2017) Review.

Have you ever stayed out late up till sunrise, walking with a small group of friends around the city? You're walking from destination to destination, making up the next destinations as you make it to the current one. Maybe you'll even trespass into an abandoned building together, having a bit of fun while still feeling a little anxious about getting in trouble, or about falling asleep at work or school, that will probably be starting in a few hours, due to staying up so late. This movie explores that late night adventurous mood, except making it more cinematic by including crime, drugs, and breaking out prisoners.

Before walking into this film, having only watched a trailer and reading nothing else of it, I thought this film was going to be a heist film with characters racing against time to get the money they need. I walked out of this movie with my expectations subverted, having watched a great movie that I didn't even know I wanted. Being produced by A24, this movie was somehow even less conventional than what I expected. .

This film is more of a small-scale adventure film than a heist movie. It is not a story about brotherly love, but it is the story of a man and the things he's willing to do in order to free his brother from jail. It is the story of the people he meets along the way, and the people he crosses in order to get what he wants. It's the story of a man running around Queens, New York, moving from uncomfortable situation to uncomfortable situation. It is a story of a man's one night long travel through the city. This movie does not have a large Goonies-like adventure, however walking out of this movie leaves you feeling like the protagonist just went through one, therefore an adventure movie is the closest thing I can relate this too. But even so, I've never seen an adventure movie quite like this, so grounded, and even so stylish.

This is a very stylish movie. One of the first things you'll notice about the film is it's synth, dreamlike score, and it's style of cinematography and lighting. There is loads of close up shots, and shaky, documentary-like shots. Almost the entire movie is neon lit. This movie, along with their previous film Heaven Knows What, shows that the Safdie brothers have a very keen directorial style, and fortunately it's a very aesthetically appealing one too.

Typically with indie films, people think they are pretentious when they see that their stories aren't as appealing as it's style. Although virtually every shot in this movie is dripping with great lighting and camera work, I started to forget about it very early through the run-time. This movie is not a style over substance kind of film. Even with it's style, the pacing, it's story, and it's acting outmatch it in terms of where my attention will be headed. Along with the masterfully crafted mood of the movie, the acting here is just as masterful.

In his defense, I never thought Robert Pattinson did a bad job in the Twilight saga, I just thought the script and the direction was bad. But if you walked into this movie expecting to see him play a handsome, stoic, and mysterious protagonist like in Twilight, then you'll be disappointed. However, if your sense of what makes a good movie doesn't rely on cute romances and characters with with conventional morals, then you're in for a ride. I never saw Robert Pattinson in this movie, I only saw the sly, manipulative con artist trying to help his brother. This is clearly his best performance so far.

A24 is on its way to becoming my favorite production company. If they keep on producing films like this and 'It Comes at Night', that may happen very soon. In terms if technical quality, this movie is damn near perfect. This is one of the best movies of the year, and I'll be giving it a.

17/20.