Synopsis: A discount store clerk strikes up an affair with a stock boy who considers himself the incarnation of Holden Caulfield.

Now for the Zone's Eye View:

By Laura Alber

Director: Miguel Arteta

Cast:Jennifer Aniston, Jake Gyllenhaal, John C. Reilly, Tim Blake Nelson

What a wonderful change of hats for Jennifer Aniston! The Good Girl, created by the talented team of Miguel Arteta and Mike White ("Chuck and Buck") has given us a beautiful dark tragedy/comedy and a vehicle for Aniston to show us just how great an actress she really is. Aniston is given the opportunity to wipe off the makeup and give the hairdresser a vacation to create a character who's plain, married, empty and BORED! As she calls it "in a funk". Co-star husband Phil is played by the incredibly talented (and underrated) John C. Reilly. Phil is an un-ambitious housepainter/pot head. Although he is good to Justine (Aniston) and truly loves her, he doesn't understand her need to have a more exciting existence. Enter co-star #2, Holden (yes, named after his idol Holden Caulfield), Jake Gyllenhaal. By the way, I couldn't help but notice the irony in the fact that I had just compared Jake's character in "Donnie Darko" to "Holden Caulfield on acid"! At just the right moment of The Good Girl, Aniston delivers a very non-intrusive and well-written and timed voice over. This never takes away from the film (as it often does) but rather, adds to it. 

Aniston plays Justine, a 30-year-old wife and Retail Rodeo employee whose life is on the fast track to nowhere. She hates her job, which she makes quite clear with her lackadaisical attitude at her post in the cosmetics department. Her slow southern Texas drawl rarely reaches above a monotone level and her wardrobe consists of overalls and a half hearted tied bun in her hair. Nothing in her life is exciting, including her pot smoking, but loveable husband (Reilly). It's said several times throughout the film "no one gets me". One day Justine saunters into her dull job and spots a new employee, Holden. He's mysterious, creative, intelligent and cute. Justine finds herself attracted to him despite their obvious age difference. What makes this familiar scenario so different and intriguing is its honesty. The script is so well written and the dialogue is believable, something not often found in movies these days. Possibly another thing that makes this film honest is the fact that despite Justine's unhappiness with her life, job and marriage, she is still trying to get pregnant. Proving that she believes having a child would solve her problems. (a solution we unfortunately see too often in the real world) Phil and Justine's attempts have proven unsuccessful and she blames his low sperm count on his pot smoking. With Holden, she has a chance to choose another alternative, other than having a baby, to spice up her life. 

I would highly recommend this film to anyone. We've all been "in a funk" at one time or another, so everyone should be able to relate. It's worth the watch just to see the wonderful performance from Jennifer Aniston. Arteta and White have certainly outdone themselves with this film. For those who thought "Chuck and Buck" was great - you're in for a treat! The Zone rates The Good Girl a 7 out of 10. 

DVD Features:

Presented in an aspect ratio approximately 1.85:1 and also in full screen. The picture was generally crisp considering this was a low budget indie film. The sound was presented in Dolby Digital 5.1, however there wasn't much need for surround sound with this film. But, the sounds were clear and the score was blended smoothly. As for the supplements, I was less than thrilled with what was offered. The DVD included a pretty extensive roster, but none that really stood out. 

-Commentary by director Miguel Arteta, writer Mike White, actress Jennifer Aniston
Arteta and White did one commentary for a scene specific piece. The low-key commentary provided little useful information. White commented a little on how he wrote the script and bits about his career. Arteta provided only a few notes to go along with the scenes. All in all, not a very interesting piece.
Aniston also provided a commentary on a few specific scenes. You can choose each one individually or "play all". Aniston spoke rather slow, and not very often. She did provide a few comments about her co-stars, and how she felt after reading the script for the first time. Occasionally she would pipe in during a scene with some specifics of the actual shooting of the scene. Again, not a great feature.

-9 deleted scenes with optional commentary
Nothing here really, just a few scenes that were cut for whatever reason, but nothing that would have helped the film anyway. 

-Alternate ending and outtakes with optional commentary
The alternate ending is nothing more than the same voice over, but with a different background. 

-Gag Reel (full screen addition on other side of DVD)
This feature is only available on the full screen edition, and is not worth buying another DVD for. All it consists of is the characters flubbing their lines and laughing. There are only a few scenes of this, and nothing very amazing. I am not sure why they chose to do it this way, but I was a little upset at turning over the DVD for this one segment that turned out to be a whole lot of nothing. 

At least the film is well worth watching, but don't expect much from the DVD supplements.