Ahead of its Cannes premiere, Metrograph revealed the official trailer for Good One, the coming of age drama film starring Lily Collias as 17-year-old Sam contending with the competing egos of her father and his oldest friend during a weekend backpacking trip in the Catskills.
Also starring in the movie are James Le Gros, Danny McCarthy, Sumaya Bouhba, Diana Irvine, Sam Lanier, Peter McNally and Eric Yates.
Release Date
Directed by India Donaldson, Good One world premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival and will screen at the 2024 Directors’ Fortnight, the parallel section of Cannes Film Festival, before opening in theaters on August 9, 2024.
Synopsis
In India Donaldson’s insightful, piercing debut, 17-year-old Sam (Collias) embarks on a three-day backpacking trip in the Catskills with her dad, Chris (Le Gros) and his oldest friend, Matt (McCarthy). As the two men quickly settle into a gently quarrelsome brotherly dynamic, airing long-held grievances, Sam, wise beyond her years, attempts to mediate. But when lines are crossed and Sam’s trust is betrayed, tensions reach a fever pitch, as Sam struggles with her dad’s emotional limitations and experiences the universal moment when the parental bond is tested.
Selected in both Sundance and Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight, Good One is an emotionally expansive work that probes the limits of familial trust, understanding, and ultimately, forgiveness.
“Growing up I always felt a strong need to keep the peace,” Donaldson recalls. “I was quite often praised for being nice or easygoing but those are double-edged compliments that can also feel like insults when you’re young. And then as I got older, I started to realize this impulse wasn’t really serving me in my life or my relationships. In writing this story, I wanted to really grapple with that pull young women feel to form themselves around the needs of others.”
Reviews
Screen Rant review called the film ‘a quiet, compelling coming-of-age story that boasts a strong central performance’ writing, “Written and directed by India Donaldson, Good One is a slow-burn movie that employs details to build tension as it thoroughly explores the relationship between a father and his daughter, as well as the power dynamic that settles in between male adults and a teenage girl. The film is compelling and quietly thought-provoking as it peels back the layers of the relationships at the forefront, while also showcasing the discomfort that follows but isn’t always picked up on.”
Official Trailer
Watch the official Trailer for Good One