Starring: Jennifer Aniston, Jake Gyllenhaal
Director: Miguel Arteta
Rated: M15+
JENNIFER Aniston, star of the hit TV show Friends and Mrs Brad Pitt, is a brave woman.
It would have been easy for her to find a more glamorous cinematic vehicle than The Good Girl.
Instead, she stars in a low budget, character-driven pic about a depressed woman who is surrounded by a circle of family and work colleagues who are more depressed than she is.
Justine (Jennifer Aniston) lives in a small Texan town. She works at the local cash and carry. Married at a young age to Corny (Mike White), they have been unable to have children.
Corny is addicted to marijuana. Justine dreams of a better, richer and more exciting life somewhere else.
Soon after Thomas (Jake Gyllenhaal) starts to work at the cash and carry, all his colleagues realise he is a strange loner. Justine falls for him and they start an affair.
She is racked by guilt and fear, temptation and desire. When they plan to escape from their humdrum lives their worlds fall apart.
Ironically titled, The Good Girl is a surprise package. It’s a rather bleak tale, but the strength of Aniston and Gyllenhaal’s performances enable it to be a very touching experience. Their southern accents, for example, are totally convincing.
The entrapment of Justine’s life is mirrored in the claustrophobic atmosphere Miguel Arteta creates in the film, not just in the all-seeing small town, but how the focus always remains on the mundane desperation of the characters.
We want Justine to have a happier life, but it is hard to see from where her salvation will come. She is a victim of her limited experience, low self-esteem and poor choices.
The Good Girl is not just heavy weather. There are several funny moments that are more so because of the suburban blandness which surrounds them.
The Good Girl is a strangely arresting independent film which is told with great care and restraint.
