Dan Levy Delivers A “Breathtakingly Human” Directorial Debut With Good Grief
Marc’s (Daniel Levy) life gets turned upside down when his larger-than-life husband Oliver (Luke Evans) unexpectedly dies in Good Grief. Grieving the loss of his husband, Marc and his two best friends, Thomas (Himesh Patel) and Sophie (Ruth Negga), go on a soul-searching trip to Paris. During their travels, some hard truths come out that each of them must face.
As Daniel Levy’s directorial debut, this movie has me questioning why he hasn’t been doing this all along. His writing and direction is breathtakingly human and real. His work isn’t flashy or overly glossy, but digs into real human emotion in an honest and sometimes uncomfortable way.
Dan Levy’s performance was amazing by no surprise, but Negga and Patel really shined in their roles. They are able to convey a constant tone of compassion while still being able to articulate painful emotions to their grieving friend. The main themes throughout are grief and friendship and supporting each other in times of loss. What this film does so well is depict the contradictory feelings that arise when you know someone is grieving, but they do things that are destructive or wrong in their other relationships. One person’s grief doesn’t negate others feelings and experiences.
There are some really awkward and tense scenes in which Marc’s friendships are tested, but in the end all of these difficult conversations are based in love. Sophie and Thomas are great supporters of Marc after his husband’s death, but after a year they begin to push him towards a life free from his grief and loss. They sympathize with his anger, sadness, and often times avoidance of feelings, but in the end they know he must move on in order to live a fulfilling life.
There is often this misconception that after a certain age, you will have your life all figured out. Good Grief does an amazing job of portraying the messiness that all stages of life hold. Just because you’re in your thirties, doesn’t mean you have the job, partner, home, money, and family you hope for. Adulthood and having your life together are not necessarily synonymous and you will go through waves of uncertainty in your life. There is no expiration date on happiness and it is never too late to change your path.
One of my favorite lines is from Negga’s character Sophie. While they’re on the ferris wheel, she says, “People feel things that are inconvenient.” No matter the situation, life is messy and feelings aren’t something you can always control. You can have emotions that are inconvenient or even inappropriate at times, but that doesn’t invalidate those feelings. You can love, hate, miss, and detest someone who has died and none of it is right or wrong. Our lives are far more complex than we care to think and feeling everything is what makes us human.
Good Grief is streaming on Netflix.
