Good One | |
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![]() Release poster | |
Directed by | India Donaldson |
Written by | India Donaldson |
Produced by |
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Starring |
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Cinematography | Wilson Cameron |
Edited by | Graham Mason |
Music by | Celia Hollander |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | Metrograph Pictures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 89 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Box office | $105,026 [1] [2] |
Good One is an 2024 American drama film, written, directed, and produced by India Donaldson in her directorial debut. It stars Lily Collias, James Le Gros and Danny McCarthy.
It had its world premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival on January 21, 2024, and was released on August 9, 2024, by Metrograph Pictures.
Queer high school senior Sam plans to go on a weekend-long camping trip in the Catskills with her father Chris, his best friend Matt, and Matt's son Dylan. Resentful of Matt following his parents's divorce, Dylan refuses to go, so the trio leave without him. Matt appears good-humored, while Chris often teases him.
While driving there, Sam repeatedly asks to drive, but Chris rebuffs her. On the first night, Matt realizes he has forgotten his sleeping bag and a trio of young men that camp next to them join them for dinner. Envious of the places they have been, Chris half-jokingly resolves to hike through China.
The next night, the men drunkenly discuss their divorces, where Matt mentions cheating on his wife with a woman he was training at his job. After Chris goes to bed, Matt suggests that Sam keep him warm, and she quickly goes to her tent.
She tells Chris about the incident the next day, but he dismisses her concerns and suggests they go swimming. They do, but she becomes uncomfortable when she sees Matt sleeping in his bathing suit. She fills his backpack with rocks and hikes back to the car alone, with the men catching up to her some time later. Chris presses Sam to drive them home, and she considers locking them out of the car but lets them in. Chris puts a rock he collected from the trip on the dashboard as they leave.
The film had its world premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival on January 21, 2024. [3] [4] In February 2024, Metrograph Pictures acquired distribution rights to the film, their first acquisition since expanding into theatrical distribution of films. [5] It also screened at New Directors/New Films Festival on April 4, 2024. [6] [7] and will screen at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival in the Directors' Fortnight section. [8] [9] It was released on August 9, 2024. [10]
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 97% of 79 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.80/10. [11] Metacritic , which uses a weighted average , assigned the film a score of 87 out of 100, based on 27 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". [12]
For The Hollywood Reporter , David Rooney wrote that "Donaldson is careful not to make the men unsympathetic, but at the same time, Collias' body language and the telltale flickers across her expressive face suggest that Sam isn't entirely comfortable with her prescriptive gender role as the designated nurturer and caregiver — the good one, as the title indicates. While it remains between the lines of the screenplay, there's significance in Sam's identity as a young queer woman ready to focus on her own relationship and future, not thrilled to be bolstering the fragile egos of two middle-aged men." [13]
Award | Ceremony date | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref. |
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Sundance Film Festival | 18 January 2024 | U.S. Dramatic Competition | Good One | Nominated | [14] |
Independent Film Festival Boston | 8 May 2024 | Grand Jury Prize for Best Narrative Feature | Won | [15] | |
Cannes Film Festival | 25 May 2024 | Directors' Fortnight | Nominated | [14] | |
Camera d'Or | Nominated | [16] | |||
Champs-Élysées Film Festival | 25 June 2024 | Grand Jury Prize for Best American Independent Feature Film | Won | [17] | |
Melbourne International Film Festival | 25 August 2024 | Bright Horizons Award | Pending | [18] |
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