Good Grief (2024)

 

Streaming Service: Netflix

Movie Name/Year: Good Grief  (2024)

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance

Length:  1h 40min

Rating: R

Director: Dan Levy

Writers: Dan Levy

Actors: Dan Levy, Ruth Negga, Himesh Patel, Luke Evans, Celia Imrie, Arnaud Valois, David Bradley, Mehdi Baki, Emma Corrin, Jamael Westman, Kaitlyn Dever, Yoli Fuller, Noé Besin, Cyrielle Debreuil, Nigel Lilley, Gabriel Marc

 

IMDb Blurb: When his husband unexpectedly dies, Marc's world shatters, sending him and his two best friends on a soul-searching trip to Paris that reveals some hard truths they each needed to face.

 

 

Cat’s Point of View:

Good Grief landed at the #19 spot on my Top 20 Movies to Look Out For list this month – only because I wasn’t sure, at the time I wrote the article, how ready I was to process the emotions this dramatic comedy would entail. Loss is a tricky topic to work with and often filmmakers dive deep into the dark places and mine the feelings of sadness and that void left behind in the wake of the tragedy.

 

One of the reasons I didn’t hesitate too much about rooting for Good Grief was the fact that the trailer made it clear that this wasn’t going to be solely focused on the sadness. I’ve had Murphy’s Law come knocking too much – as have we all, really in this post-pandemic age – to be dwelling on pain and I actively tend to avoid films that do. Dan Levy’s (Schitt's Creek, Happiest Season, Haunted Mansion) feature directorial debut promised some levity and a story about friends being there for each other. It appeared to be a good example of how our relationships with our friends provides us a support network… regardless if we, or our friends, are ourselves dysfunctional. I think the beauty of this is that it is because this can be so in spite of that very fact, as well.

 

 

I was very happy that Good Grief delivered exactly what I expected and wanted it to.

 

Sure, it was still a sad story, but it didn’t end while adrift on those feelings. Good Grief left me with a feeling of hope, and affirmations about how real true friendship can flourish even if the friends, individually can be messy in their own lives. Further, it realistically reflected how sometimes our lives can both get messy by our own doing because of our own choices, but also in the face of all of our best efforts to avoid such. At its heart, Good Grief was primarily a friendship drama touching on how those relationships can be impacted by the way we process grief.

 

It resonated on a really profound level.

 

 

I loved the cast, the story, and the visuals were stunning. (Not to mention that the variety of accents present was a feast for the ears.) Honestly, Good Grief didn’t even feel like a nearly 2 hour movie. I was easily invested enough that I just lived in that story and simply didn’t feel the passage of time. That’s saying a lot for my fidgety ADHD self.

 

I want to see more of Levy’s work hitting the screen. I have long admired his comedic delivery and thought it was about time his character went from being the best friend in the wings to center stage.

 

Even if you haven’t seen his work before, if dramedies are your thing, I’d recommend giving Good Grief a chance.

 

 

Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score – 77% 

Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score – 74% 

Metascore – 60% 

Metacritic User Score – 6.4/10 

IMDB Score – 6.4/10 

 

Trust the Dice: Cat’s Rating – 4/5 

 

Movie Trailer: