The Good Girl (2002)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Miguel Arteta

Writer (WGA):

Mike White (written by)

Release Date:

25 August 2002 (Canada)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

It's her last best chance... is she going to take it?

Plot:

A discount store clerk strikes up an affair with a stock boy who considers himself the incarnation of Holden Caulfield.

Plot Keywords:

Discount Store | Burglary | Masturbation | Thief | House Painter

Awards:

5 wins & 15 nominations

Cast

Jennifer Aniston	...	Justine Last
Deborah Rush	...	Gwen Jackson
Mike White	...	Corny
John Carroll Lynch	...	Jack Field, Your Store Manager
Jake Gyllenhaal	...	Holden Worther
Zooey Deschanel	...	Cheryl
John C. Reilly	...	Phil Last
Tim Blake Nelson	...	Bubba
Jacquie Barnbrook	...	Heavy Set Woman
Annie O'Donnell	...	Haggard Woman
John Doe	...	Mr. Worther
Roxanne Hart	...	Mrs. Worther
Jon Shere	...	Lester (as Jonathan Shere)
Alice Amter	...	Big Haired Woman
Jean Rhodes	...	Old Woman

MPAA:

Rated R for sexuality, some language and drug content.

Runtime:

93 min

Country:

USA | Germany | Netherlands

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Finland:K-15 | Iceland:12 | Portugal:M/12 | Ireland:18 (re-rating) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Canada:14A | Germany:12 | Ireland:12 | Japan:PG-12 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Singapore:R(A) | Spain:13 | UK:15 | USA:R (certificate #38723)

Filming Locations:

Glen Capri Motel - 6700 San Fernando Rd., Glendale, California, USA

Company:

Flan de Coco Films

Trivia:

To make Jennifer Aniston look more worn down, Miguel Arteta made her wear wrist weights for several weeks prior to filming, she also wore them during some of the scenes.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Justine is watching TV right after Phil fixed it, the guy speaking in the Atlantis commercial repeats a line

Quotes:

Phil Last: I don't know what to say about Jesus... I'm stoned.
Justine: Just let the other people do the talking.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 2003 IFP Independent Spirit Awards (2003) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Ride Ride

Nonchalant both about its brains and its humor

Jennifer Aniston excels as small-town cashier, stifled in a rudderless marriage and miserable at her boring job, who has an affair with a younger co-worker, leading to a series of confounding personal events. Black comedy is initially bright and biting, subtle about its comedic elements and characters while gently satirizing the middle class aesthetic. Unfortunately, the film takes a wrong turn late in the second-half and never quite recovers, leading to an emotionally unsatisfying finish. The performers are all terrific, especially John C. Reilly as Aniston's pot-smoking husband; but, as the screenplay loses steam so do the actors, and the final events are mechanically offbeat--engineered to be quirky. *** from ****