Good Side of Bad (2025): Review and Summary | A Mundane Take On Mental Illness

Spoiler Alert: This summary and review contains spoilers.

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Good Side of Bad Plot Summary

With Florence jumping off a bridge and claiming she was being chased, it means that it is time for her maternal figure and older sister Sara to get into crisis mode. Peter, Florence’s brother, is called and told to tell their mother, Mary Ellen, what happened, and as a family, they try to navigate Florence going through a serious mental health episode.

Character Descriptions

Florence

Florence is a photographer who, after an incident that led her to jump off a bridge, it is questioned whether she is in the right mental state to be on her own.

Sara

Sara is the eldest of the siblings. She raised both her brother and sister because Mary Ellen was more focused on her career and drinking.

Peter

Peter is Sara and Florence’s brother who lives out in Los Angeles.

• The actor is also known for their role in “One Day At A Time: Season 3.”

Mary Ellen

Mary Ellen, when her kids were growing up, was a singer, but now she is a functioning alcoholic with dementia, likely in the last years of her life.

Dennis

Dennis is a fellow Delzie Mental Health Facility patient who bonds with Florence during their stay.

Other Noteworthy Information

Film Length	1 Hour 35 Minutes
Release Date	January 7, 2025
Initially Available On/Via	Digital
Advisory Rating	Not Rated
Genre(s)	Comedy, Drama, Young Adult
Distributor	Freestyle Digital Media
Director	Alethea Root
Writer	Ciera Danielle, Jules Bruff, Alethea Root
Based On Work (The Good Side of Bad) By	Beverly Olevin
Character Name	Actor
Florence	Lexi Simonsen
Sara	Jules Bruff
Peter	Alex Quijano
Mary Ellen	Tess Harper
Dennis	Myles Grier

• Movie Contains: Cursing, Self-Harm (Not Depicted But Told), Smoking

Good Side of Bad Review

Our Rating (79/100): Mixed (Divisive)

When it comes to “Good Side of Bad,” the main issue some may encounter is that it has a slice-of-life, voyeur-type style. This may allow it to not seem like it is exploiting or dramatizing what those with mental illnesses or their families go through, but it doesn’t necessarily compensate for avoiding the easy reach. There is something there with Dennis and Florence’s relationship, but it isn’t a core part of the film or even Florence’s journey.

This ultimately leaves you watching everyday people go through something that does disrupt their routine, but like anyone who has dealt with a family member go through a life change; while at first things can seem erratic and jarring, as time goes on, you get used to it. You may still get frustrated when you have your own stuff going on, but with having the tools you need, you get through it, and watching the characters of “Good Side of Bad” do so in such a realistic way may not be a good means to spend 90 minutes for all.

Audience

“Good Side of Bad” is geared towards those who don’t want movies about mental illnesses to be over-the-top and showy. It gives you a sense of what it is like to either experience symptoms or be part of that person’s support team, both when capable of helping and when overwhelmed because you feel like you are losing yourself in service to someone else.

Highlights

Dennis and Florence

When Sara has the means, she has Florence go to an in-patient hospital, and there, Florence meets a man named Dennis, who also has a mental illness. Together, as the two who seek normalcy through each other, they bond and craft a relationship. While complicated due to their mental health journeys, there is something sweet in how they become each other’s rocks and safe spaces while their medication gets calibrated.

I’d even say that, at times, you may wish this relationship had been given a more substantial focus.

On The Fence

Appreciating How Grounded This Is

There is a push and pull with how “Good Side of Bad” is handled in that, yes, the central focus is a sibling with a mental illness, but it isn’t overdramatized. Florence may see and hear things that aren’t there and have episodes throughout the movie. But, there is no push to go big or get dramatic; just a display of both the frustration of no one seeing what you do and, for Sara, having limited help because Peter lives too far away and Mary Ellen is dealing with her own issues that make her unable to help.

The combination gives you something that doesn’t feel like it wants anything but to provide you with a glimpse of what a select few go through, and in that, you can appreciate how the “Good Side of Bad” appears to want you to be a voyeur rather than be entertained by others suffering. Yet, while you should applaud it for not exploiting people with mental illnesses for entertainment value, there is a need to push that it doesn’t have a strong hook.

Yes, the performances are decent, but I wouldn’t say it is always easy to keep engaged with what is going on. Sara and Peter have a minimal personal life, with only hints of Sara’s life outside of Florence. Heck, even for all that is said of Mary Ellen, you don’t get much of a sense of the woman who delegated raising two kids to their eldest.

Combine that with “Good Side of Bad,” playing things more towards honesty; it reminds you of how mundane life can be. How, even with Florence’s struggles, you can get into a routine where you get riled up only to find yourself calming down like nothing happened.

So, if you’re the type who often seeks escapism or enjoys a more embellished version of what could happen and want that “How do they even deal with that?” factor, “Good Side of Bad” isn’t for you.

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