Good Time is right up my alley — just the kind of movie I can really get into. If only it were any good. Though it did hold my interest throughout, I don’t think that’s enough on its own to recommend a movie. In many ways, Good Time seems like a film school senior project that should have been left in film school.
The entire film is rather pointless. I kept waiting for it to reach some sort of greater level, but it didn’t. And the flaws! SPOILER ALERT!! SPOILERS FOLLOW – SKIP to the next paragraph to avoid. It’s called a dye pack for a reason. It doesn’t just rinse off with water. And handcuffs aren’t so easily foiled.
The many hackneyed sequences, e.g. the search at Adventureland, contribute to the sense of one gaffe after another over-running Good Time. There was a good idea here, but it was half an idea. That is, half as much as necessary for a whole movie. I’m seeing a lot of this with A24 — let’s hope it improves. 5/10
Comparison Notes: recommended: Buffalo ’66; not recommended: Fruitvale Station, Room