April 3, 2023 · Watch the official trailer
No one actively chooses to be an addict.
It’s not a decision that someone wakes up one day and says “I’m going to drink until I black out” having never done it before or take so many pills that they can’t function without them. It’s a process that happens gradually over time without being fully aware of what’s happening.
But the underlying causes and effects of addiction to any number of vices has often been a cinematic tale for filmmakers to sink their teeth into.
Writer/director Zach Braff of “Garden State” and “Scrubs” fame came out of the COVID-19 pandemic with the notion to tell a tale of grief and pain through hope, humor and understanding looking at a more emotional world than non-addicts might realize, all through the eyes of a young woman hopelessly lost in the opioid crisis.
“A Good Person” follows Allison, a successful pharmaceutical sales rep whose life irrevocably changes when she’s involved in a tragic car accident that leaves her addicted to oxycontin as a way to heal her physical and emotional pain.
Along the way, she is faced with some bittersweet consequences when she encounters an old acquaintance with his own tragic tale interwoven with Allison’s.
In a role written for her, Florence Pugh is absolutely masterful as Allison. There’s so much empathy and understanding that radiates off of Pugh’s performance as the young actress becomes overwhelmed with the burden of Allison’s grief and inability to accept guilt.
It’s a turn that truly mines the depths of what high-functioning addiction can look like without playing the role melodramatically, a straightforward examination of a woman’s fragile emotional state attempting to rebuild her life by any means necessary while struggling with mental health and an addiction to painkillers.
Oscar winner Morgan Freeman brings his usual gravitas and likeability to Daniel, a fellow addict with close ties to Allison. But for as much as Freeman is a steady presence in the film, Pugh’s singular magnetism overshadows a lot of the straightforward nature of Freeman’s performance and the unlikely friendship they develop over the course of the film doesn’t fully come together.
Because “A Good Person” deals so specifically about addiction largely from the perspective of addicts, it somewhat feels like the point of view of those suffering alongside addicts becomes somewhat muddled.
Braff introduces secondary characters like family members and friends, especially Molly Shannon as Allison’s mother Diane, but the anguish they go through watching their loved ones’ pain doesn’t hold the same weight as what Allison and Daniel deal with. For a film well over two hours in length, “A Good Person” has one too many moving parts to showcase this side of addiction.
Braff’s screenplay does a solid job of breaking up some of the more dramatic themes with an infusion of wit and humor that Pugh knocks out of the park while maintaining Allison’s inner turmoil. These brief moments of levity help to change the pace of “A Good Person” without knocking the wind out of the sails of the overall narrative.
Pugh also contributes two songs she wrote and performs in the film in the voice of Allison that help showcase her fragile state of mind while offering a semblance of hope for the future. If the Academy wants to start highlighting in more earnest original songs that have genuine impact on the narrative in the films they are sung for, both “The Best Part” and “I Hate Myself” written and performed by an A-lister like Pugh should get a larger spotlight.
While it certainly is destined for life as a casual watch on a streaming service months from now, “A Good Person” is a quality feature for the first quarter of 2023 and something audiences might consider taking a chance on either theatrically or in an at-home viewing.
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