GOOD ONE
Directed by India Donaldson // 90 mins // Feature Film
In India Donaldson’s insightful, piercing debut, 17-year-old Sam (Collias) embarks on a three-day backpacking trip in the Catskills with her dad, Chris (Le Gros) and his oldest friend, Matt (McCarthy). As the two men quickly settle into a gently quarrelsome brotherly dynamic, airing long-held grievances, Sam, wise beyond her years, attempts to mediate. But when lines are crossed and Sam’s trust is betrayed, tensions reach a fever pitch, as Sam struggles with her dad’s emotional limitations and experiences the universal moment when the parental bond is tested.
Read our 2024 Chicago Critics Film Festival filmmaker questionnaire with India Donaldson!
“Collias grounds “Good One” in every single scene, leaving those woods a victor in both character and performer.” – Brian Tallerico, RogerEbert.com
“Subtly dark, humorous, and wise, Good One leans into its wilderness backdrop in all of its liberating (and, sometimes, paradoxically claustrophobic) properties.” – Tomris Laffly, Harper’s Bazaar
