FOUR GOOD DAYS – Review

While most families have somehow forged closer bonds during the pandemic, with older children returning to the nest to “ride out” the lockdowns while making sure all health measures are taken, one problem continues to push loved ones apart, the ever=present scourge of drug addiction. In most of the crime dramas of the last century, addicts filled the gutters and alleyways while the pushers used all matter of violence to control those dark streets. Then a curious thing happened in the last couple of decades. The specter of substance abuse oozed into the supposed-to-be-safe suburbs and even rural areas. Some media commentators have labeled it the “opioid epidemic, an apt subtitle for this new “inspired by true events” family drama. But at its heart, it’s a look at the tested bond between mother and daughter that tries to remain strong during what they hope will be FOUR GOOD DAYS.

At a well-kept two-story home in clean. tree-lined neighborhood, Deb (Glenn Close) is jolted awake by someone pounding on the front door in the early post-dawn hours. She has a hunch about the visitor, so she persuades hubby Chris (Stephen Root) to stay in bed. Peering through the door’s “spy hole”, Deb sees her long-absent eldest daughter Molly (Mila Kunis). After opening the door “just a touch”, Deb is greeted with pleas from the disheveled Molly to let her come in and “crash” for a day or so. Ah but this has happened before, so Deb insists that Molly gets “clean” and kicks her drug addiction before she offers shelter or money. Molly remains steadfast and refuses to walk away to a clinic or hospital, then proceeds to “camp out” on the front doorstep. Deb and Chris go about their day (luckily it’s her day off as a masseuse at the local casino’s spa, and he’s retired), though she observes Molly through different windows. Early the next morning Deb checks and a shivering Molly is still huddled near the door. Mom relents, and over a cup of coffee, Molly insists she’ll get clean with her help. The duo head to the hospital where a doctor suggests a somewhat radical treatment. He can inject Molly with an opioid antagonist, which will prevent her from being high. Oh, but there’s a big catch. Her system has to be clean of any drugs for the next four days, otherwise, the “blocker” could prove lethal. They both agree and return home and begin a grueling 96-hour battle of wills, one that may finally save Molly and mend the shattered relationship with Deb and the rest of the family.

The role of a middle-aged, still working-class mother (and grandmother) feels like a decent fit for the talented Close, whose tired but still engaged (watch them dart about in several unlikely settings) eyes reveal Deb’s pain and regret. And still, she draws us in with that glimmer of hope, wanting us to also believe that this lifeline to Molly will be the one that returns her to the sober world. It’s not until the story’s frantic final act that the source of that regret is revealed, as Deb blames her past decisions (including an escape from an abusive first marriage) for leading her daughter down a destructive path. Close projects quiet strength, but still reveals Deb’s fragile, uneasy state. She’s got a compelling screen sparring partner in the definitely “cast against type” Kunis who graduated from sultry comic bombshells in TV’s “That 70’s Show” and films such as EXTRACT and FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL to one of the manic BAD MOMS, though her dramatic screen work has been rare. She totally commits to Molly, eschewing any sense of glamour with her deep grey sunken eyes, chipped “parking lot” teeth (which Molly tries to hide in her early scenes), and stringy bleached-blonde green-tipped hair. But it goes behind the looks. Kunis has a look of scheming desperation creeping through her “half-mast” dark eyelids. We never quite know if she really wants to be clean, or if she’s just going through the motions while waiting for a chance for her inner demons to strike out. Regret also figures into her demeanor, as she seems to ponder all the years spent in limbo as she chain-smokes in Deb’s open garage over a TV table jigsaw puzzle (that’s an apt metaphor for Molly). Another pleasant dramatic surprise is the always-watchable Root who makes Chris more than the affable supportive second spouse. It kills him to see his love going down a familiar path of heartbreak which spurs him to fight, even if it means angering her, at one point prodding her with “You wanna’ fight me? Go ahead!!”. Kudos are also due to another usually comic actress Carla Gallo who plays Molly’s sardonic kid sister, whose mother Deb almost ignores in her Molly mission (Deb’s never in the moment with her). There’s a lot of truly creative casting at work in this film.

They’re all guided with great sensitivity by director Rodrigo Garcia who also co-wrote the screenplay with Ed Saslow, which is based on his acclaimed 2016 Washington Post piece “How’s Amanda? A Story of Truth, Lies, and American Addiction”. The story tends to flit about, perhaps trying to compress too much in that very long weekend. Yes, we can accept those dental “temps”, but a chance drug store meeting with a high school teacher, leading to Molly addressing an often disinterested class feels a bit rushed. That’s especially the case when one of her demands leads to a perilous trek into the “bad part of turn” (though tidier than most) that tries to amp up the suspense by taking Deb way out of her comfort zone. The tension continues with a third act twist, leading to a fairly standard rehash of the TERMS OF ENDEARMENT hospital clashes. In turn, this dovetails into a denouncement that comes off as flat and compromised. Perhaps the final fadeout shot wants to proclaim that the challenge is far from done, but it feels a tad cold. Still Close and Kunis make an interesting “home’ team, and for their fans, FOUR GOOD DAYS is a worthy exploration of a health crisis that continues to claim lives and families.

2.5 out of 4

FOUR GOOD DAYS opens in select theatres and screens exclusively in the St. Louis area at Landmark’s Plaza Frontenac Cinemas beginning Friday, April 30, 2021.