Good Time
2017 · Directed by Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie
Original language: English
- crime
- thriller
- drama
The story
After a botched bank robbery lands his younger brother in prison, Connie Nikas embarks on a twisted odyssey through New York City's underworld to get his brother Nick out of jail.
What it’s like
Restless, jittery night-into-day New York in tight handheld close-ups, with the camera pressed so close to faces that every sweat bead and flinch registers. Much of it unfolds under sodium streetlight, neon signage, and the flat white glare of fluorescent hospital and bank interiors, colours bleeding into a synth-heavy score by Oneohtrix Point Never that pulses like a migraine. Editing is fast and abrasive, cutting on impulse, so the film feels like a jolt of adrenaline with little room to breathe. Its vibe is frantic, sleazy and darkly comic, a fever dream of bad decisions. Violence is sudden and real, with scuffles, gunfire and a couple of brutal beatings, plus drug use, crude language and a ticking sense of danger throughout; there is no gore for its own sake, but the tension rarely lets up. It suits a late-night, wide-awake watch rather than anything soothing. Best for viewers who want a grimy, propulsive crime film built on raw performances, especially a fearless one from Robert Pattinson, and who can handle unpredictable, uncomfortable tension.
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