Good Dick

  A woman who is living as a shut-in enters into an unlikely romance with a video store clerk who tries to draw her out of her shell.
  Marianna Palka, who wrote, directed and stars in the movie, sells her character's dysfunction well, the viewer gets to feel that this is a woman with deep seated issues, which makes the film all the more compelling as we begin to root for the clerk who is trying his best to win her heart. Jason Ritter plays the part of the clerk, an affable every-man who begins on something of a creepy note, as we see him stalking the reclusive woman. It's not a huge issue for the movie, but I wondered if there wasn't a better way for the clerk to insert himself into the woman's life, as some of the opening scenes are slightly off-putting.
  While the movie doesn't give us much backstory about its characters at first, we do learn more as the movie progresses. The clerk is homeless, and used to be a drug addict, and then there of course comes the revelation about the woman towards the end of the movie, which I will not spoil here.
  The two leads aren't the only characters in the movie, but all the secondary characters don't get much backstory. We get to spend a little time with the other clerks at the video store, but the focus of the movie is really on the two main characters and their bizarre romance. The woman has a penchant for soft-core porn, which the two eventually watch together, but not as a prelude to sex.
  There are a lot of comedic moments, including a scene where the woman comes up behind the clerk and beings to simulate some rough doggy style, which I found surprisingly funny and surprising as it comes out of nowhere.
  As a fan of indie movies, and films generally about troubled and unusual characters I have to say I enjoyed my time with Good Dick. (Insert "That's what she said" line here.) It's a sweet story about an emotionally troubled woman who is eventually redeemed by the power of love, and it is funny at times and touching at others. Recommended.