The Trailer:
Director: Naomi Foner
Cast: Dakota Fanning, Elizabeth Olsen, & Boyd Hollbrook
Synopsis: Two friends, Lilly (Dakota Fanning) and Gerri (Elizabeth Olsen), make a pact to lose their virginity before they head off to college and end up falling for the same guy, David (Boyd Hollbrook).
I'm going to tell you right now, I don't like this movie. It really could've been great, but the writing was just not up to par with the abilities/skill of the actors showcased. And it is apparent as they scrabble to capture something genuine in their characters only to leave as little an impact as possible. Literally all the characters are just stereotypical archetypes: the stuffy, distant parents, the hippie parents, the outgoing friend, the shy girl, the heartthrob. And instead of building up on these archetypes, the writers just decided to leave them as is, thus creating one dimensional, flimsy characters. In continuing to talk about the characters, I didn't like either Gerri nor Lilly; both annoyed me. Gerri annoyed me because she became oddly obsessed with David rather quickly and was obvious in her attempts to make him like her. Her young-adolescent-esque crush on David makes it seem as though he is the first boy she's ever come across in her life. And then Lilly annoyed me because she was so wishy washy in all her actions and statements. Example: after her mother kicks her father out for his infidelity, Lilly fights for him to stay, yet she won't even speak to her dad. Why fight for someone who you can't even look at or speak to?? Also, the way she treats her mother is so disrespectful and cruel. And then, also the fact that she falls so madly in love with David, who (in my eyes) is the creepiest dude. When David is introduced into the story, he is rude and bitter sounding, not the type of guy who I would want around. But alas, he is attractive which is apparently all that matters because he's also fucking weird! Let me elaborate. First of all, he takes photos of Lilly as she walks away from him upon their first encounter, then he watches her the next day to see which way she walks to work/home in order to post said pictures in places she'll see them. I get that this is supposed to be some romantic gesture, but it's just plain weird to me and maybe that's just me. Additionally, there is a strange scene where he asks Lilly to read to him. Again, I realize that this is somehow supposed to be romantic, but it just comes off as odd. I don't know, I just wasn't feeling this guy and didn't understand why both Gerri and Lilly were so infatuated with him. Come to think of it, all the men in this movie are creepy and weird and I don't know why. And finally, I just felt no connection to any of the characters. Since they were all so one-dimensional, I didn't care about any of the heartbreak, the grief, the betrayals that any of them felt. Blahh..
I suppose the theme of the movie is secrets and what they do to us, how they cause great rifts between people that is hard to repair. Or when we go searching for something, will we be truly fulfilled when we get it? I don't know, but both themes are never fully developed within Very Good Girls leaving me question upon the end "What was the point?". The only thing that is commendable about this movie is the music. I won't watch this movie again, and I suggest you don't watch it all. Side note: I'm sad that Peter Sarsgaard didn't have a bigger role, because I absolutely adore him. Okay, end, I'm done talking about this disappointing piece.
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