The Good Girl

The Good Girl 2002

• Director: Miguel Arteta
• Based on novel: no
• Cast: Jennifer Aniston, Jake Gyllenhaal, John C. Reilly, Mike White, Tim Blake Nelson, Deborah Rush, Zooey Deschanel, John Carrol Lynch
• Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
• Jennifer Aniston – Cake, He’s Just Not that into You, Management, Rumour Has It, Derailed, Friends, Bruce Almighty
• Jake Gyllenhaal – Zodiac, Brokeback Mountain, Day After Tomorrow, Moonlight Mile, Donnie Darko, October Sky, Homicide Life on the Street
• John C. Reilly – A Prairie Home Companion, The Aviator, The Hours, Chicago, Gangs of New York, The Perfect Storm, The Thin Red Line, Georgia, Dolores Claiborne, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?
• Mike White – School of Rock
• Tim Blake Nelson – Detachment, Warm Springs, American Violet, The Darwin Awards, Holes, The Good Girl, O Brother Where Art Thou?, Hamlet, The Thin Red Line, Donnie Brasco
• Deborah Rush – Half Nelson, You’ve Got Mail
• Zooey Deschanel – 500 Days of Summer, The Happening, Almost Famous
• John Carrol Lynch – Shutter Island, Things We Lost in the Fire, Zodiac, Gothica, Anywhere but Here, A Thousand Acres, Face/Off, Feeling Minnesota, Fargo, Beautiful Girls, Grumpy Old Men
• Why?  Liked it the first time
• Seen:  Once before, now 16 July 2019

 Justine (Aniston) has a dead-end job in a retail bargain store, and a dead-end marriage to Phil (Reilly), a house painter who gets stoned with his workmate Bubba (Nelson) every evening.

She’s attracted to her younger colleague Holden (Gyllenhaal), who fancies himself the Holden Caufield of The Catcher in the Rye. His real name is Tom and he lives with his parents. They both hate their jobs, and the world.

Life gets complicated. Clandestine trysts, the unexpected death of a colleague, Bible studies, threats, neuroses, guilt, friction.

Sometimes life just really messes with us, you know?

This is probably Aniston’s strongest performance. Deschanel is good too. They all are.

4 ½ * of 5