A GOOD PERSON – Review

Now that we’re a few days into Spring and the temps are rising and the sun’s breaking through, it’s easy to forget that for many it’s always dark, cold, and gloomy no matter what’s displayed on the calendar. Just as the movie theatres are slipping into escapist blockbusters a new drama isn’t waiting for the somber. late in the year, “award time”. It is worth seeking out as it’s a showcase for two acclaimed actors. One is a “star on the rise”, gaining a reputation for compelling work over several genres. The other is a screen veteran, an Oscar winner who has achieved iconic status over the last five decades. The story that brings them together poses an interesting and very complex question: can someone whose act of carelessness resulted in a fatality, ever possibly be thought of as A GOOD PERSON?

When we meet Allison (Florence Pugh). her future looks bright and shiny. The twenty-something is a pharmaceutical rep and a pianist/lounge singer (a “side hustle”). But she’s most excited about her upcoming nuptials to the adoring Nathan (Chinaza Uche). Soon after their engagement party, she’s driving Nathan’s sister Molly and her hubby Jesse to her wedding gown fitting. While maneuvering through construction zones on the busy highway Ally glances down at her phone, when a backhoe lurches into her lane leading to tragedy. When she awakes, Ally’s in a hospital bed with her single mom Diane (Molly Shannon) hovering over her. Before she can stop him, an over-eager state trooper bursts into the room and drops a bombshell on Ally: she’s the only survivor of the accident. Across town, Nathan and Molly’s retired policeman widowed papa Daniel (Morgan Freeman) gets the same news as he’s dropping his granddaughter Ryan (Celeste O’Connor) off at her high school. Cut to several months later as Ally now lives with her mom (the engagement crumbled) who implores her to get off the couch and get a job as they battle over Ally’s increasing reliance on prescription painkillers. When her docs “cut her off”, Ally becomes desperate to “score”. Meanwhile, Daniel is so frustrated as the caregiver to the angry rebellious Ryan that he’s about to “fall off the wagon”. When Ally finally hits “rock bottom”, she asks Diane to contact her dad about paying for a rehab facility. As he’s completely MIA, Ally bicycles to a local church to attend an addiction support meeting. Inside she’s stunned to see….Daniel, who begs her to stay. Could this chance reunion lead to defeating their inner demons and be part of the healing process, or perhaps a friendship?

After being universally praised in last year’s flawed fantasy flick DON’T WORRY DARLING, Ms. Pugh (I’m not calling her Miss Flo, as a leaked phone video call revealed during that PR mess). proves how her considerable talents can take flight with much better material. Ally is a complex, troubled figure but never a victim, as Pugh shows how her physical and emotional scars are slow to heal. We see her in the depths whether literally wrestling with her Mom over “Oxy” or degrading herself at a neighborhood pub with a cruel former classmate (a very good Alex Wolff), but Pugh conveys this as her much-needed “wake-up” call, though her heavy-lidded eyes show us that she’s not out of the fog quite yet. With her new support team, Ally goes past the “survivor” role to real maturity and self-reliance. A big part of that is her initially hesitant relationship with Daniel, and could Pugh ask for a more compelling scene partner than the forever fantastic Freeman? After dropping in for cameos in too many forgettable action flicks, it’s great to see him sink his teeth into this “meaty meal” of a man, reminding us of his deserved regard amongst his acting peers. Freeman does bring some humor to the grizzled ex-cop, especially in dealing with a modern team (loved his “crate” gag), but Daniel has his own challenges as he tries to push through the ever-closing walls of regret and remorse. Like Ally, he must contend with the damage he’s inflicted on others, particularly his son Nathan. Uche is superb as the young man whose grief over the loss of his sister is acerbated by the horrors of his past, still bearing the never-healed cruelty of his father. But he shows how his healing may start with the ending or at least ease the rift. Speaking of parent/sibling squabbles, how great is it to see the comedy powerhouse Shannon flexing her dramatic muscles as Ally’s often flighty (Her “Etsy” plan is hilarious), but steely strong mother Diane? Often wearing her “work duds” (company logo shirt and khakis), she goes from “walking on eggshells” to firmly giving her kin a “kick in the keister”. Kudos also to O’Connor as the often exasperating furious Ryan and Zoe Lister-Jones as the support group’s compassionate but tough (she has a keen BS radar) Simona AKA “Mama”.

It seems logical that this impressive stellar cast would be brought together by another actor, as Zach Braff steps behind the camera to guide them through his screenplay. Making expert use of the New Jersey locations, Braff captures the gritty working-class spirit of the area’s neighborhoods. Though a brutal accident puts the story in motion, he prefers to treat it as bursts or snippets of a waking nightmare for Ally, effectively illustrating how the brain reacts to such intense trauma. Plus he allows the characters to frustrate us, to let their interactions get ugly and often “messy”, as they sometimes fall into old destructive patterns. Save for a convoluted near-catastrophe in the city which brings most of the characters careening together (and violence threatens), Braff avoids the melodrama, opting to show how time can really heal (perhaps the third act is too reliant on montages). He’s made a solid foundation, but it’s the ensemble led by the inspired pairing of Pugh and Freeman that is the real strength of A GOOD PERSON.

3.5 Out of 4

A GOOD PERSON is now playing in select theatres.