Watch The Good Night For Free

Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Former British pop star Gary Shaller (Martin Freeman) is struggling with a mid-life crisis. He's writing jingles for his more successful former bandmate Paul (Simon Pegg) and in a troubled marriage with Dora (Gwyneth Paltrow). He starts having dreams about Anna (Penélope Cruz). He learns to connect more with his dreamgirl through lucid dreaming with the help of Mel (Danny DeVito).Jake Paltrow got a lot of friends and his daughter to do his film. His directing skills are not good enough to make this cinematic. Even his visual flourishes lack a sharpness in their execution. The writing is not much in terms of drama. It's an idea looking for intensity. This does have a great cast although it's hard to buy Freeman as a former pop star. It's not his looks as much as his Office persona. On the other hand, Cruz is easily a dreamgirl and cool chick. There is a way to intensify this concept and story but this is not it.

It is probably wise to take it easy on first venture by writer/director personas who probably would not have had their initial film see the light of day (or dark of theater) were it not for the connections of a famous show biz family. But Jake Paltrow did indeed achieve this goal so with the idea in mind that this is an initial outing so its best to look for the reasons this little film works and the reasons it could be better.Gary Shaller (Martin Freeman) is an artist on the skids: he has a history of being a successful songwriter/musician but now is woefully stuck writing asinine jingles for second rate TV shows. His home life is no better as his wife Dora (Gweneth Paltrow) is a nagging discontent whiner. And he is now thirty-four years old with little hope for change. All of this is brought into clear focus by the quite opposite life of his best friend Paul (Simon Pegg) who seems to have it all right. Gary encounters dream whisperer Mel (Danny DeVito) who introduces him to Lucid Dreaming - and Gary somnolently discovers the beautiful, smart, sexy Anna (Penelope Cruz), the woman of his 'dreams' who crosses over being imagined and being real - and who adores Gary. And this discovery and the manner in which Gary deals with it forms the solution of the story.The idea of lucid dreaming has been used before (Inception, The Science of Sleep, Eternal Sunshine, etc), but the concept is strong enough that Jake Paltrow's offering of his version is not a problem. Many parts of the film are sweet, but in general it drags and refuses to flesh out the characters enough to make us really care. But as a story about choosing between dream life and real life, a bit of Shakespeare would help: 'We are such stuff as dreams are made on; and our little life is rounded with a sleep.' Grady Harp

I really like this film, OK it didn't quite have the plot 100% perfect and it got a little mucky. But I think that is good, because it had an interesting concept and it delivered on that concept enough to make me sit down after the credits started rolling and have a real think about it. That's what I look for in a movie and this one delivered.The movies main message is a man with a sad boring life going through a mid life crisis, trying to find an escape. He finds it in his dreams, now this is where the film gets me, because although I'm not depressed I too on many occasions I wish that I could go into a perfect world and never wake up. Now he must decide which one he wants, a real life or a dream world, this is where it gets a bit cliché but nothing you can't handle. Definatily a rental.

Penelope Cruz, & Gwyneth Paltrow, Danny DeVito & 2 UK actors Martin Freeman & Simon Pegg team up in this languid romantic comedy-dram.Jake Paltrow (brother of Gwyneth) both wrote & directed this. It is supposed to be a comedy, BUT I found little to laugh at or even smile about. It tends to verge into a dream state, then back to reality,much of it made little sense to me. Supposedly Freeman & Pegg are popular in the UK, I will hold off further opinion to I see another one or 2 movies with them in it.Most if not all of you never heard of the film,reason is simple.It played only in 2 theatres in the US. one for 3 weeks & the other for one week, Total gross (as per IMDb) under $25,000. the film cost about $ 15 million to make. I also was shown in various festivals.This is be a nice tax write off.Filmed in both London UK, & New York City.This type film would have been shown as part of a double feature when I was a lad. It definitely should never have been shown as a single feature.Ratings:**1/2 (out of 4) 67 points (out of 100) IMDb 6 (out of 10)