Good Time (2017) Directed by the Safdie brothers 7B
Responsible for the incarceration of his mentally challenged brother after a botched robbery, Connie (Robert Pattinson), a garden-variety low life, desperately seeks to come up with bail money by just about any means possible short of murder. Racing against a self-imposed clock, Connie bounces from one precarious predicament to another, casually leaving a mess behind him wherever he goes for others to cope with. Thanks to a flashy style involving a lot of ultra-close ups, wide angle lenses, hand held camera work and feverish editing, Good Time is an immersive experience, a bit like Victoria in that respect (minus the single take approach, though). As the desperate older brother, Pattinson is excellent. On one level, Connie seems to realize the havoc that he is wreaking, but he so focused on bailing out his brother he can't help but continue to careen dangerously from one desperate move to the next. The movie is aided immeasurably by an original electronic/ambient/progressive/fusion/rock score that loudly pumps even more adrenaline into an already supercharged atmosphere. Good Time is an exhilarating night at the movies to say the least.
Best of '17 so far
1) The Death of Louis XIV, Serra, Spain/France
2) After the Storm, Koreeda, Japan
3) Get Out, Peel, US
4) Good Time, the Safdie brothers, US
5) Staying Vertical, Guiraudie, France
6) Dunkirk, Nolan, US
7) Graduation, Mungiu, Romania
8) Our Time Will Come, Hui, Hong Kong
9) Violet, Devos, Belgium
10) Frantz, Ozun, France
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