| Good Dick | |
|---|---|
 Film poster | |
| Directed by | Marianna Palka |
| Written by | Marianna Palka |
| Produced by | Cora Olson Jennifer Dubin Jason Ritter |
| Starring | Marianna Palka Jason Ritter Tom Arnold Mark Webber Martin Starr Eric Edelstein |
| Cinematography | Andre Lascaris |
| Edited by | Chris Kroll |
| Distributed by | Gravitas Ventures |
Release dates |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $39,924[1] |
Good Dick is a 2008comedy drama film written and directed byMarianna Palka. Palka also stars in the film, oppositeJason Ritter.Good Dick premiered in the Dramatic Competition of the 2008Sundance Film Festival.
Avideo storeclerk stalks, spies on and manipulates a reclusive woman, who often comes to the video store where he works to rentsoft-core porn. Eventually, despite his strong optimism, her dislike of sex and resulting defensiveness drives them apart. It is revealed toward the end of the film that her dislike of both sex and relationships was fueled bysexual abuse at the hands of her father. The film ends with a confrontation with her father, and ultimately Ritter's character reuniting with her.
The film competed in the Dramatic Competition at the2008 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, U.S.A..[2] The film was given a limited release on October 10, 2008 byGravitas Ventures.
Writing forThe A.V. Club, Noel Murray gave one of the film's most negative reviews, calling it "indie-quirk to the motherfucking core. Not a single line or gesture has anything to do with the world in which real people live."[3] By contrast, inThe New York Times, Jeannette Catsoulis said the film "surmounts its indie-movie quirkiness with exceptional acting and a sincere belief in the salvation of its wounded characters."[4] In theLos Angeles Times, Carino Chocano felt that the film "carries its messed-up, highly improbable premise so lightly and gracefully that it ultimately comes off as a sweet, plausible and curiously grounded love story -- and touchingly old-fashioned for a movie about the adventures of a serial masturbator and the homeless kid who stalks her."[5]
As of June 2020[update],Good Dick holds a 50% rating onRotten Tomatoes based on 42 reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "Marianna Palka's quirky indie debut centered on two dysfunctional loners is hit and miss, but has enough originality to see it through."[6]Good Dick has aMetacritic average of 54 based on 11 reviews, which the site describes as "mixed or average reviews".[7]
