Good Time
Are you ready for a Good Time?
Country
Production
Budget
$2 000 000
Box office
$3 286 100
Director
Actors
Robert Pattinson, Benny Safdie, Buddy Duress, Taliah Webster, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Barkhad Abdi, Necro, Peter Verby, Saida Mansoor, Gladys Mathon
All actors and roles (10)
All actors and roles (10)
Scenario
Producer
Terry Dougas, Sebastian Bear-McClard, Oscar Boyson, Paris Kasidokostas Latsis, Jean-Luc De Fanti
Camera operator
Composer
Artist
Sam Lisenco
Audition
Jennifer Venditti
Short description
After a botched bank robbery lands his younger brother in prison, Connie Nikas embarks on a twisted odyssey through New York City's underworld to get his brother Nick out of jail.
What's left behind the scenes
- Robert Pattinson's hair was dyed so often that at some point it simply began to fall out. Initially, it was dyed black (to make him look more like Benny Safdie, who played his brother), then bleached, and then dyed black again – and this happened several times. The scenes were filmed in a bathroom where he applied the dye in front of a mirror, but this scene was cut from the film because it slowed down the overall pace. When filming wrapped, the actor shaved off all his hair.
- With the exception of Robert Pattinson and Benny Safdie, none of the actors involved in the film were given a script; they were simply told to improvise in each scene. Pattinson and Safdie were given the script, but were still instructed to react to the lines and actions of other actors as much as possible.
- The filming locations were not cordoned off, allowing free access, and this decision was made for the sake of authenticity and to avoid attracting unnecessary attention to the filming. Robert Pattinson was not recognized during filming, and no passersby ever tried to film what was happening on their cell phones. The crew was instructed to answer all questions about what was happening by saying that they were filming a movie for social services, and that the film didn't even have a title yet. When Pattinson stepped out of frame during filming, he remained in character so as not to be recognized. He was so convincing in his portrayal that during the filming of a scene in the security guard's house towards the end of the film, local residents asked him in the elevator if he worked as a security guard for Bradley Cooper, as they had heard that a film with that actor was being shot somewhere nearby.
- During pre-production, when it was necessary to determine if the makeup and costumes were in order and looked realistic enough, Robert Pattinson went shopping in New York and talked to passersby on the street. In addition, he spent a lot of time – already out of character – in Queens, working on his pronunciation and talking to people who had recently been released from prison. He asked some of them to read several pages of the script aloud, recorded it on his phone, and then listened to the voice of a 'local' before going to sleep.
- The scene where Connie enters the hospital was indeed filmed in a hospital emergency room with real patients.
- The Safdie brothers didn't like how the fake money looked – and a lot of money was needed for the bank robbery scene – so they asked the props department to figure out a solution. According to Josh Safdie, a whole factory for producing counterfeit bills was set up. One day, Robert Pattinson, who regularly went outside in character and costume, unintentionally paid with a fake bill for a pack of cigarettes.
- Initially, Eric Roberts played the role of the bail bondsman, but the scene was reshot with a real bail bondsman named Eric Paquet. Paquet has been a bail bondsman for 20 years, runs his own office in Queens, and is married to Astrid Corrales. He was initially approached for permission to simply use his office, but the Safdie brothers later asked Paquet and Corrales to play in the scene, and the scene was reshot.
- The role of Connie Nikas was written specifically for Robert Pattinson, who contacted the Safdie brothers after randomly stumbling upon a poster for their previous film, “Heaven Knows What” (2014), with Ariel Holmes in pink lighting. He was so intrigued by the photograph that he wrote to Josh Safdie at an email address, even though he didn't know them, saying he would like to work with them. A face-to-face meeting was arranged a few weeks later, and Josh Safdie liked both Pattinson himself and his enthusiasm, so Safdie immediately sat down to write the script.
- The title “Good Time” is a phrase from prison slang. It refers to a reduction in a prison sentence for good behavior.
- The subway scene was filmed during rush hour on a real train with real passengers who, naturally, didn't even realize they were being filmed. Instructions were sent to Pattinson via text message for secrecy, and all his actions were filmed with a camera.
- The directors of the film, brothers Benny and Josh Safdie, found out that the film had been selected for the competition program of the Cannes International Film Festival because Robert Pattinson once sent them a picture of a Japanese electronic toilet. Pattinson himself learned about this from the festival director but couldn't tell the brothers, as they were in an important meeting at the time, so he simply sent them the picture. The Safdie brothers and the actor had made a bet on such a toilet some time ago – if the film got into Cannes, Pattinson would buy one for the Safdie brothers. Several weeks later, the toilet was installed in the office of the brothers' Elara Pictures company.
- During filming, Josh Safdie was arrested for driving a vehicle that aroused suspicion in the police without a license. Peter Verby, who played the psychiatrist in the film, is actually a criminal defense attorney and represented Safdie's interests in court after filming ended. He also represented the actor Buddy Duress, who was released from prison shortly before filming began.
- Robert Pattinson's performance as Connie was influenced by John Alpert's documentary 'One Year in a Life of Crime' (1989).
- Robert Pattinson's performance in the role of Connie was influenced by John Alpert's documentary "One Year of a Criminal Life" (1989).
- While preparing for the film, Robert Pattinson and Ben Safdie worked at a car wash in Queens, New York.
- Robert Pattinson's hair was dyed so frequently that at one point it simply began to fall out. First, it was dyed black (to make him look more like Ben Safdie, who played his brother), then lightened, and then dyed black again—and so on several times. Scenes were filmed in a bathroom where he applied the dye in front of a mirror, but this scene did not make it into the movie as it slowed down the overall pace. Once filming was completed, the actor shaved his head entirely.
- With the exception of Robert Pattinson and Benny Safdie, none of the actors in the film were given the script; they were simply told to improvise in every scene. Pattinson and Safdie were given the script, but were still told to react to the lines and actions of the other actors whenever possible.
- The filming locations were not cordoned off, allowing free access; this decision was made for the sake of authenticity and to avoid drawing unnecessary attention to the shoot. No one recognized Robert Pattinson during filming, and not once did any passerby try to record the events on a cell phone. The crew was instructed to answer all questions by claiming that they were filming a movie for social services and that the film didn't even have a title yet. When Pattinson stepped out of frame during filming, he remained in character so that he wouldn't be recognized. He was so convincing in character that while filming a scene in a security guard's house toward the end of the movie, local residents in the elevator asked him if he worked as a security guard for Bradley Cooper, as they had heard a movie with that actor was being filmed nearby.
- During pre-production, to determine if the makeup and costumes were correct and looked realistic enough, Robert Pattinson went shopping in New York and chatted with passersby on the street. Additionally, he spent a lot of time—already out of character—in Queens working on his pronunciation and talking to people who had recently been released from prison. He asked some of them to read a few pages of the script aloud, recorded it on his phone, and then listened to the 'native' voice before going to sleep.
- The Safdie brothers were unhappy with how the fake money looked—and a lot of money was needed for the bank robbery scene—so they asked the props department to find a solution. According to Josh Safdie, an entire factory for producing counterfeit bills was set up. Once, Robert Pattinson, who regularly went out in character and costume, unintentionally paid for a pack of cigarettes with a fake bill.
- Initially, the role of the bondsman was played by Eric Roberts, but the scene was later reshot with a real bondsman named Eric Payette. Payette has worked as a bondsman for 20 years, has his own office in Queens, and is married to Astrid Corrales. Originally, they only approached him for permission to use his office, but the Safdie brothers later asked Payette and Corrales to act in the scene, and the scene was reshot.
- The role of Connie Nikas was written specifically for Robert Pattinson, who contacted the Safdie brothers himself after accidentally coming across a poster for their previous film, 'Good Time' (2014), featuring Arielle Holmes in pink lighting. The photo intrigued him so much that he emailed the Safdies—despite not knowing them—to say he would like to work with them. A few weeks later, an in-person meeting was arranged; Josh Safdie liked both Pattinson and his enthusiasm, and Safdie immediately set to work on the script.
- The subway scene was filmed during rush hour on a real train with actual passengers who, naturally, had no idea they were being filmed. To maintain secrecy, instructions were sent to Pattinson via text message, and all of his actions were captured on camera.
- The film's directors, brothers Benny and Josh Safdie, found out that the movie had been included in the competition program of the Cannes Film Festival because Robert Pattinson once sent them a photo of a Japanese electronic toilet. Pattinson had learned the news from the festival director but couldn't tell the brothers as they were in an important meeting, so he simply sent them the picture. The Safdie brothers and the actor had previously made a bet regarding such a toilet—if the film made it into Cannes, Pattinson would buy one for the Safdies. A few weeks later, the toilet was installed in the office of the brothers' company, Elara Pictures.
- During filming, Josh Safdie was detained for driving a vehicle that raised police suspicion while not possessing a driver's license. Peter Verby, who played the psychiatrist in the film, is actually a criminal defense attorney; he represented Safdie in court after filming concluded. He also represented actor Buddy Durress, who had been released from prison shortly before filming began.
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