g-boyle3 I found good time max to be a very enjoyable movie. Although it may have been very ominous at times I think there is something very glamorous in this portrayal of self destruction. It was an audacious attempt at the triple threat( write, star in, and direct) which I believe paid off and is worthy of a good review. James Franco plays a genius whos addiction to drugs prevents him from making the most of his abilities and doing something useful with his life. He makes the role of callous, self absorbed drug abuser seem exuberant and his character is oozing with charisma. His older brother is also a genius however it seems his work ethic and outlook on life is somewhat different to max's. This movie takes us on an adventure involving max's drug fuelled rampage and everyone else is just along for the ride. I think this movie only touches on one profound question... when does the party end? everything else was just far-fetched and entertaining. If you take this movie for what it is, a great effort at something that has been done one hundred times before, not to be taken too seriously, you will enjoy.

LeonLouisRicci It could be instructive to have one of your nerdy genius friends develop an algorithm to determine the relationship between the amount of screen time given to shots from a character's video camera in relation to the erosion and downfall of the quality of a movie.It is a lazy, cheap, modern trend that has added nothing to the enjoyment or purpose of a film. It could even be responsible for the increase in the sale of headache remedies. Please, stop, no more.The "auteur" of this film also uses another of the most irritating involvements in modern screen history. The presentation, for all of us to enjoy, the purging of bodily fluids, vomiting, urination, defecation, drooling, nose running. It makes one sick just to write about it let alone see it in high-definition. Name one movie that showing these eliminations of waste, that wasn't a waste, that actually made a point and developed the plot or was essential viewing for the audience.So, having violated two of the most egregious and useless modern mechanisms of self-conscious exploitations to the max and making us endure, once again, another attempt at a profound "personal picture", one can not help but to say, it would have been better to hold it in.

ethan-b-uk You gather the plot: Two brothers, one studious decent and hardworking, the smarter one being a rebel etc etc. From the various movies throughout the decades this Cain & Abel-ish by-play has been done over and over again. (James Dean, Brad Pitt are two actors that spring to mind). This movie has none of the complexity or character development of East of Eden or A River Runs Through It or Legends of the Fall and it is infinitely more forgettable.I see the various points the movie is trying to make and yes, it does make you stop and think about how pointless life can be and the merits of hard work and the merits and disadvantages of various drugs, but ultimately why bother ?The movie is a teensy bit poignant, somewhat artsy, the character acting is good and the movie manages to convey a seedy, life through a Handycam feel. I was vaguely bored throughout with this character study, wondering if anything would happen and after a fashion maybe it did maybe it didn't (I wouldn't want to add a spoiler!), but really - who cares ?There are far better movies around in hundreds of different genres, I feel like I wasted the evening. If I were to use a single word to review this movie, I would choose the word 'dull'.You may like it, but I found it rather boring from start to finish.

ronnycovert This movie can be interpreted on many different levels. Don't listen to the other comments bashing the movie and saying that it is a played again story or w/e and that it is just about drugs. It has very overt superficial metaphors about drugs; however, the rest of the movie (and why I think it was personally made) is really not about that at all. It is really mocking psychology and the conditioning of society. It shows, for a split second, that the main character's brother is watching those sick videos online. Why? My interpretation is that it is to demonstrate that all of this gruesomeness that we are exposed to makes it easier for us to be mechanical in our professions instead of seeing people as people. As far as the scene about logic, it is also reaching out to the people who were in the federally mandated 1% smart classes who are confused and frustrated because life isn't as predictable and mathematical and logical as it seems on a macroscopic level. You have to apply Heisenberg's uncertainty principle (along with all the other laws and principles of uncertainty) not just to physics but to life and leave room to change your plans and adjust along the way. One of the best movies I have ever seen. It just might go way above your head; it isn't for you it is for those people who are are having trouble coping with life not working out like a math problem. When you are critically analyzing a movie or writing your critical review's try not reading the back cover first (written by marketers and parapsychologists)