Max e a Vida Boa

I saw this at the Waterfront Film Festival in Saugatuck, Michigan.

Directed, co-written and starring James Franco, Good Time Max is about two brothers Max and Adam (Franco and Matt Bell) who are geniuses. Adam is training to be a doctor and is very focused on his career. But Max is immature and gets involved with the drug world. After a drug deal goes bad, Max plans to flee New York and go to California. Convincing Adam to go with him, the brothers set out for a new life.

Though the acting is decent, it's a clichéd movie that has been done many times before. It's the typical man gets involved with drugs, tries to quit, then somehow finds his way back into them. Don't worry, I'm not giving away spoilers, because a lot of that happens early in the film.

A worthy effort for James Franco, I can't imagine it being easy to direct, write, and star in a film, so he made a good attempt. But I wish the story was better, it's just way too familiar.

This movie never would have seen the light of day without an A lister to head the cast as actor, writer and director. Poorly executed on every level. 1) These guys are supposed to be geniuses, but how do we know? Easy, Franco/Max reminds us of it throughout the film ("I'm a genius") and he solved a fairly easy math problem (easy for anyone who is good at math), and his brother is a surgeon. None of that really works and it makes all the other observations about how a genius deals with being a genius hollow an empty. 2) Max is the life of the party and the guy everyone likes yet the movie shows someone who is just obnoxious, cocky and annoying to watch. 3) The drug scenes dont offer anything insightful or new whereas a movie like Requiem for a Dream shows the upside and the down side of extreme drug use. Anyone who has done meth knows that if you are up for 3 days, you are down for 3 days. And the doctor using prescription drugs seems like they took that right out of Requiem with the mom and her diet pills. 4) The characters are mostly cliches, and poorly acted. It plays like amateur hour. Even Franco seems like he's reaching. And to be honest, he works best in dumb comedies (though I thought he was good in 11 23 63) 5) This movie would have worked better as a satire. Or a meth version of Pineapple Express. But it doesnt know what it wants to be and ends up falling flat on all sides as it tries to go for a deeper meaning.

Really the tale of two cocky brothers and their respective falls from grace (via drug addiction) and later redemption. One brother, a self-proclaimed genius played by James Franco is your typical sensitive but intelligent man-child. The other brother is a hard-working future doctor who becomes less judgmental as he himself falls prey to addiction while dealing with the stress of living up to his family's expectations for both children. Not too heavy handed as drug fables are want to be, and all in all a pretty realistic sketch of the family dynamics that drug problems bring about. I'd recommend it to anyone interested in such character studies and commend James Franco for his efforts in what was obviously a labor of love.

This film tells the story of two genius brothers, one grows up to become a surgeon, the other becomes a drug dealer.

I guess it's quite common for two brothers to diverge on their paths and throwing their lives away - at least in films anyway. The story is told in a linear fashion, it plainly tells the effects occurring in their lives. Max is the messed I up one, while Adam is the high flier. However, they are both unsympathetic, and I don't find myself caring for them. Towards the end, I was confused as to what the video tape contains that leads to the character's downfall. Hence, I was left with the feeling of confusion and apathy towards the characters. That being said, "Good Time Max" is a better effort than the other films directed by James Franco.

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.