Good Dick Review

Marianna Palka writes, directs and stars in this studiously offbeat American indie. She’s a hollow-eyed loner who silently frequents the erotic section of a local video store. A bored employee (Palka’s real-life beau Jason Ritter) becomes fascinated, and energetically pursues her to faintly comic effect. The mystery around Palka’s character is initially intriguing, but too little is revealed up to the simplistic finale, and this isn’t as insightful as it hopes to be. However, the only slightly smutty Good Dick (yes, that is what the title refers to) has charm. Ritter’s character — a romantic reformed druggie — is one to root for, and this entertains enough to get by, marking Palka and Ritter as talents to watch.