People are scared, desperate animals, capable of horrible lies and deceit — and uncompromising love. Directors Josh & Benny Safdie understand the anxiety that exists in this delicate balance, and with the help of Robert Pattinson, transfer it perfectly to screen in their 2017 film, Good Time. Constantine Nikas lies his way into an all-night scramble for $10,000, money he needs in order to fix his mistakes and protect his brother, and with each new avenue he hustles his way down, he finds himself deeper and deeper in trouble.
The Safdie style is all close-ups, always going, no breathing room, and the score by Oneohtrix Point Never echoes that sentiment. Every shot in the film is laden with fear, energy, sweat. The colors of nightlife swirl from scene to scene; the harsh, pale lights of hospitals and White Castles threaten to expose Connie scurrying through the shadows, knowing he has to move — fast — down the high-wire path he's chosen to take. At the heart of the fear, the desperation, the flux and flow of sheer panic, Connie's actions are driven by his pure love for his brother — but we find out how dangerous love from a damned person can be. What it can make them do.