Good Grief

Dan Levy directing his first feature film was definitely a very exciting thing for me, given I am huge fan of Schitt's Creek. When Is aw the trailer, I did realize that this was going to be a big departure form his earlier work and is probably gonna present a more sensitive and slow burner going deep into one man's grief about losing his loved one over some period of time. I can see most people having mixed reactions to this, because dealing with grief is very personal and hence, when you represent that on big screen, some will connect and others won't. The one thing I would recommend is that leave all your notions about the actor and the writer from Schitt's Creek and try and see this from fresh eyes.

Levy plays Marc, who works and lives as an illustrator in London with his husband Oliver, a very famous author and writer whose books have been made into famous films and is a very very loved figure between fans and friends. On the night of Christmas party, Oliver has to leave for a book signing but that same night he dies in a car crash. Marc doesn't know what hit him and how to deal with this. His two closest friends Sophie and Thomas (who is also his ex from 15 years ago) stick with him through thick and thin, even though they have struggled in their own lives, but seem to honestly want nothing but peace for their friend. When it is closer to one year death anniversary, the friends push him to open the envelop that Oliver gave him before leaving. It turns out that Oliver has started seeing another guy (likely in Paris) and he wanted to explore that opportunity in their already open relationship. This hits like a bat in Marc's head but it's been a year of him living in grief and he doesn't know what to do. At the same time he finds from his lawyer and financial advisor that Oliver had an apartment in Paris. He decides to go to Paris for a weekend with his friends who have no idea about this newfound truth. This trip to Paris is gonna be a game changer not just for Marc but also for Thomas and Sophie since they have a lot to deal with themselves. 

Though it isn’t quite as emotionally affecting as its title implies, Good Grief avoids wallowing in pain and sadness and tries to stay emotionally intelligent and thoughtful. It simultaneously examines how you can truly love someone, whether romantically or platonically. and still hurt them, and how it’s still important to form close relationships, even though that pain remains a risk. And this could be true for friends or lovers or a stranger that you just meet (like Marc does with a French man at an art gallery). Levy pays equal attention to Marc’s romantic relationships and his friendship with Sophie and Thomas, making him feel like a whole person who exists beyond just his identity as a husband. But this is also where the flaws are. The film focuses on the friendship without telling us too much about these friends and making Marc fall in love again where him an this new Parisian guy go around the city talking philosophy started to get too much even for me. You definitely cannot find fault in anyone's acting and the characters are written in a way that they feel more everyday and people you an easily connect with. The film is very stylishly shot both in London and Paris. Even in grief, we get to see Marc in the best of jumpers and clothes that you wish you had. 

It must have not been easy for Levy to figure out his next step after a very successful show. I think somewhere the writer/director Levy got mixed up in showing us the heartache of grief without overdoing it while also emphasizing the importance of friends in life. This slow paced film about grief, love and friendship, in some ways an admirably ambitious first step into feature-length storytelling from my beloved Dan Levy but it does test your patience at places and you wish it. Moved on slightly faster and they talked less philosophy. Overall a worthy debut but it feel al title short of expectations for me. (6/10)