A Good Person

Florence Pugh is going to need to start bringing a chiropractor with her to set because A Good Person is yet another example of a film where Pugh's performance carries the entire film. In the case of Don't Worry Darling, she made an average film watchable, however, in the case of A Good Person, she takes a good, solid film and takes it to the next level. A Good Person is a great movie - it just so happens that its best element, its strongest strength is Pugh herself. Pugh's excellence in roles is becoming a trend, I can't remember a movie from her career where she wasn't the standout. She showcases time and time again why she is one of the best actresses working right now, and it is especially noticeable in this film. In moments where the script is lacking, or another actor might not be doing enough, Pugh's performance completely covers it up. Frankly, I am stunned by her skills as an actress, especially in how she can sell nearly any scene with ease. The movie on its own is good, but it is Pugh's complex and nuanced performance that makes it a great movie.

A Good Person left me on the verge of tears for most of its runtime. Go in expecting yourself to cry at one point or another. I cried, I laughed, and then I cried again. It tells quite a moving story, working through themes of tragedy and addiction. The story overall is quite simple as it really is nothing we haven't seen before, but the movie finds its strength in its portrayal of its themes. It's a raw, honest, human story about two battered and bruised souls whose fates are intertwined trying to find some solace in their lives. Two good people who have been broken by their addictions, by life. The film hits you where it hurts while also reminding you what a gift it is to be alive and have other, good people in our lives, despite all the bad things. Now, let's be real. The subject matter has all been covered before, it's nothing revolutionary. We really have seen everything before, and perhaps in better ways. The movie is too long, it drags in some places and overall nears becoming a tonal mess in some places.

Despite this, writer/director Zach Braff managed to truly craft an effective, emotional, and moving film. It purely is a good film. Part of the reason it doesn't become a rambling mess is that Pugh and Freeman are so damn good. Frankly, this movie is an excellent example of why casting matters. Without these two, I don't know that this movie would have been as good as it was. It probably would have been fine, but their presence 100% elevated the film in so many ways.

A Good Person is a good movie. You know the type: the kind that you come out of just feeling good. It may not be the most refined or revolutionary film, but it is good. It works. It had everything I wanted from it plus some phenomenal performances. It reminds me of the tone of shows I am loving right now: Ted Lasso and Shrinking. Sure, this movie might be a little darker than those, but they still are all from the same vein. Mental health, grief, and addiction. This one takes less of a comedy-drama approach and more of a dramatic approach, but it sure does work. It's sad but so worth watching, if only for Florence Pugh's amazing performance!

To start, I LOVE Florence Pugh. She had me at Midsommer and I've been a huge fan since. She definitely was the amazing talent in this movie. I chose my title because, as many of you probably do, you scroll through the other posts and then come up with your own take and THIS MOVIE - is one that is much better if your life has been somewhere close to where Allie's (Pugh) life took her. This is a story of grief, guilt, love, hate - it really runs the gamut. Admittedly, the story doesn't bring anything new to the table but I don't think it has to. I believe that when you can see yourself through Allie's story - it's pretty gripping. How did Allison Janney say it in 'The Help' - 'love and hate are two ends of the same horse'? I guess you're going to love this movie or hate it. As a woman of 50+ years that has had my own rocky road, I'm blown away at how well FP acts out the character of Allie. She's so young and it usually takes real life trauma to unearth those acting chops.

I vote you watch this. Zach Braff (director) punched out a great story.

Leave it to funnyman Zach Braff to play a subtle joke on all of us: casually and quietly dropping a superbly-written, powerfully-acted emotional gut-punch of a film the same day that we also get the gleeful carnage-fest that is John Wick 4. What a good weekend for movies this is turning out to be.

A Good Person tells a story of addiction recovery that has certainly been done many times before, but rarely do we ever see it done with this much tact, wit, and genuine power.

Florence Pugh and Morgan Freeman both arguably give some of their finest performances here, with Pugh bleeding raw grief and Freeman sporting visible scars of grief so convincingly. Their friendly chemistry is tangible and compulsively watchable. If they were all this movie had to rely on, they would carry it easily.

Thankfully, though, the film also has the finest screenplay I've seen this year. The dialogue has an engaging charm to it but never loses its authenticity, carrying character development for EVERY character effortlessly and subtly through natural conversation.

When writing a comedy about a topic as bleak as this, it's very difficult to balance tones, but Braff makes it look easy. His film switches quickly between heart-wrenching and gut-bustingly funny many times within a scene, and often blends these tones together while never once coming across as insensitive or mean-spirited.

Braff clearly cares about his characters, and wants us to find the humor in their situations because he loves them and wants them to be happy.

My only complaint, if it even is a complaint, is that I found the ending to be a little too...nice, easy, and clean. A little bow gets wrapped on top of the ending of an emotional rollercoaster of a story and it seemed like the only contrived part of an otherwise beautifully authentic tale of recovery through genuine purpose.

Just got back from watching this and I found it a very moving, if rather sad and tragic story.

Morgan Freeman adds his charismatic presence to any film he is in, and this is no exception with 'A Good Person'. Combined with a great performance from Pugh they really 'nail' the intensity of the tragedy.

A story of one brief moment of inattention leads to a tragedy that ripples out to many others. An aftermath of grief and blame and addictions . In part rather gritty although to a degree rather neat and tidy portrayals of addictions.

I found it a great story and I was riveted for the whole 129minutes, which passed in a blink.

I'd give this film a very solid 7.5/10 and well worth the price of a cinema ticket.

Would I watch it again? Actually probably not, i'm glad I watched it once and certainly well worth a watch, but the subject matter is rather to depressing for me to watch it again.

I found myself falling in and out of love with this film. At times it is very punchy and powerful and full of gut wrenching emotion. But too often these moments surrender to more formulaic story beats and slightly cliche and over the top drama. The result is a strong film, but I can't help but think an opportunity was missed.

Narratively I think there are a few missteps that detract from the emotion of the whole piece. It gets bogged down in the Morgan Freeman angle of the story which takes the focus away from the more compelling Florence Pugh angle. This makes the whole thing a little bloated, which weakens some of its emotional punches. It is a strong story and still very emotional nonetheless, but it fails to fully get into some of the interesting issues it raises.

The story may not blow you away, but the lead performance definitely will. I might as well just prepare some boiler plate text for any reviews I write for a Florence Pugh film as she is always brilliant. In every film I see her in every second she is off screen seems like a second wasted. There are so many moments in this film where you feel like it is just you and her as she connects you to the character and the story in such a masterful way. Well worth seeing this film for her alone.

Despite not quite living up to my expectation, A Good Person is a solidly good film. Pugh shines in a powerfully written role, but the whole piece could have done with a little more refinement.