Good Time

Let´s turn back the clock 9 years back in time. We are of course talking about the year of 2008. It was a year where many important events took place. This was the year when singer Amy Winehouse won her Grammy Award, this was also the year when Fidel Castro retired as the President Of Cuba. Let´s not forget that this was also the year when California legalized same-sex marriage. But let´s turn our heads for a moment on another moment of this year, that made headlines worldwide. This was the year that the first Twilight film was released in cinemas. Based on the book by author Stephenie Meyer. I saw the film, and i was not really impressed. A romantic vampire story, made for teenage audiences. My biggest issue with the film, is that i did not care about they characters, or the story. Of course we got more sequels on the way, and some of these sequels are really awful. Lead actors Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattison could not make any of the films any good, no matter how they tried. When the Twilight films finally ended with The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2, i was really happy. No more Twilight films....at least for a while. Actors Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattison went different ways, and tried making other films. Kristen Stewart proved herself, with roles such in the well made drama films such as Clouds Of Sils Maria, and perhaps her best performance in Still Alice. Robert Pattison did also try to find films outside his comfort zones. At first it did not seem to make any difference. Some of the films he made before the final Twilight films, were not any good, But, out of nowhere, i did not expect to see him in a film by legendary director David Cronenberg, known as the title Cosmopolis. This is actually a great film, and Robert Patison showed that he can act, only if he get the right character. He also did a good performance in the Australian film The Rover, with legendary actor Guy Pearce. Earlier this year, i was hearing very positive words about Robert Pattison´s performance in a film called Good Time. Especially when the film was nominated at the Cannes Film Festival. Is this the best film of Robert Patison´s career so far, or just as bad as his earlier work ?

Constantine " Connie " Nicklas ( Robert Pattison ) is a destructive criminal, who convince his mentally disabled brother Nick Nikas ( Ben Safdie ) , to help him with a bank robbery. Everything does not go as planned, and Nick is arrested. Connie manage to hide the money in a fast food restaurant, but he knows his brother can´t survive prison. To get Nick out, Connie needs more money. Some of the money he got from the robbery have been destroyed by paint, caused by dye pack. Connie asks his girlfriend Corey ( Jennifer Jason Leigh ) for help, using her mother´s credit card. This fails also, so Connie has to find another way to get the cash. He finds out his brother have been brutally beaten in prison, and taken to hospital. This is his chance to get his brother out, back on the streets. 

I had no big expectations going into the film Good Time. I thought that this would probably be another crime drama, we have seen so many times before. But i am so happy to say, i was wrong. In fact, this film is so good, i can barely believe that actor Robert Pattison could be this good, as he is in this film. It is like seeing him do a completely different transformation, as he is a completely different actor than before. As if he finally understood what acting is all about. This is a very violent, brutal, and really powerful drama film, that will leave a very emotional impact on you. The colors, the dialogue, the acting, everything falls into pieces in the right way with this film, and Good Time is probably one of the best drama films of this year. I can not say that the story is very original, but the film does manage to work because of very intelligent material. Directors Joshua Safdie and Ben Safdie have directed a couple of smaller films in the past, where perhaps the heroine drama Heaven Knows Best is their most known film. Good Time proves that they have really hit a really emotional journey, that you will not forget. The story of 2 brothers, where one of them is mentally handicapped, messing up their lives in a world of criminality, feels really heavy. And directors Joshua and Ben know how to make this story feel realistic, with a really brutal image. When you see Robert Pattison´s character Connie become frustrated, angry, sad, and can´t control his emotions, this is where we get to see the quality acting a film like this needs. The world is a shitty place to be, especially if you have no future, and all you know is to be a criminal. Legendary actor Jennifer Jason Leigh is also really good as Connie´s girlfriend Corey, a woman with no self esteem, and is stuck. Ben Safdie as mentally disabled brother Nick, is one of those characters that will affect you. To see him fall deeper, into problems he can´t handle or understand, is really sad. Just the idea to force a mentally disabled brother to do crimes, is really disturbing. Good Time is a film that got me completely stuck, because of the powerful performances and the brutal portraits of people with no hope. This is a film i will remember for a long time, and that does not happen very often. I don´t know why Robert Patison have not been nominated for more awards, i seriously doubt you have ever seen him as good, as he is in Good Time. If there is one drama film you should see this year, it is Good Time. 

Rating: DDDD