The Good Girl

Miguel Arteta 2002

I hate Jennifer Aniston. She's pretty and thin and rich. I didn't have huge faith in her being able to carry a film but in "The Good Girl" she gives it her best.

You can almost see her trying to restrain herself, as if she'll suddenly break out in a flurry of 'Rachel' mannerisms. She is competent and at times genuinely moving but I never found myself really believing that she was this downtrodden and misunderstood woman.

Jake Gyllenhaal is the personification of troubled youth and damn sexy too, but after his excellent work in "Donnie Darko", this felt like a bit of a come down. Although he is essentially carrying the film, I just had the fear that he would be stuck playing young men with problems for many movies to come. Gyllenhaal has this look about him, you're never quite sure whether he's about to fuck his co-star or beat them to death with a hammer. His whole performance is about what is going on under the surface.

John C Reilly and Tim Blake Nelson are also brilliant but vastly under used.

"I saw in your eyes that you hate the World. I hate the World too"