MovieChat Forums > The Good Girl (2002) Discussion > Justine (spoilers) What do you think?

Justine (spoilers) What do you think?

posted 16 years ago by little_miss_mo
14 replies | jump to latest

Was she really a "good girl" who was disappointed by the cards life had dealt her and got herself into a complicated situation or was she just a horrible person?

Did she love Phil at all and was just bored by him OR was she incapable of loving anyone? What feelings did she have for Holden?

I'm inclined to think that she started out not really wanting to hurt anyone but as things got heavier and more serious and as the sh** hit the fan, she manipulated circumstances to cover her own a**. I think she was bored with her life and disappointed with the way things turned out. But every time I watch this movie and hear her whine about how horrible her husband is and how she gave up all of her dreams to keep him and how lame her job is, I wonder why she didn't just CHANGE herself? She could have found another job, she could have gone back to school, she could have talked with her husband. Phil loved her very much; I think he would have gone along with her getting a different job or going to take some classes.

I don't know if she loved Phil. I would hope she did, because though he was stupid and annoying and disappointing, he really did love her and for the most part, he treated her well. For the ending's sake, I hope she at least cared for him a little. Especially since by the end they have a baby. (Oh and that's another thing- are we sure it's Holden's? It could have very well been Bubba's!)I think she used Holden for her own enjoyment.

I'm still thinking about it. What do you think?

[–] roxist 16 years ago

I think she did love Phil but she was depressed when she saw him doing nothing but getting stoned all day long, and then she realised her life wasn't the way she thought it would be.
And then, there was Holden who was the chance to escape, to be young again and start over. Altough she realised she wouldn't run away with him because she couldn't picture a future with him, she kept the relationship because it made her feel less lonely. That's how I see it.

[–] Leviphiliac 16 years ago

I think she was just a sociopath.

[–] Sethslvr 16 years ago

I have actually not figured out what she was...
Holden was awesome and who cold have resisted him??

It costs alot of money to look this cheap...Dolly Parton
Everyone deserves a chance to fly

[–] mrellim1960 13 years ago

What aspect of Holden's did you find most irresistible? His alcoholism? His mental challenges? His high profile, fast track employment history and future? Or was it because the actor was physically attractive? Someone posted above that Phil could never have landed a wife as physically attractive as Aniston. Could we be any more shallow? These are two of the least attractive characters in recent cinema, excluding slasher, horror, aliens etc. The producers should have had the courage to cast these leads as much more "common" looking people, thereby avoiding viewers such as Apolosgirl to completely miss the movie's intent because Jake's dreamy.

[–] Sethslvr 13 years ago

It really was not the "dreamyness" of Jake...but Holden was appealing to me.

Move, and I'll sock ya one!

[–] moonlight100 13 years ago

If she was a sociopath, she would have let holden eat all the berries to cover her ass.

[–] dini0519 15 years ago

She wasn't so much good as she was just very average and I found her a sympathetic character for the most part. She did stay with her husband in the end, but she just couldn't resist temptation.

Dini

[–] its_a_Kristina_thing 14 years ago

I would definitely say that the baby is Holden's, because the doctor said that Phil was infertile, and, Justine's breasts started feeling sore the day after she slept with Bubba. Had she been pregnant with his child, she wouldn't have started feeling sore until weeks later.

I think that, like a lot of couples, deep down Justine did love Phil, there were just a lot of things that she didn't LIKE about him. I don't really know how to explain it, but you know how you see married couples that love each other, but don't like each other? I think they were one of those couples. When it came down to it, she did love him, which is why she stayed with him.

I think that Justine didn't makes changes regarding her job and marraige for a lot of reasons.
-She was well aware of the fact that she was depressed, and knew that no matter what changes she made she would eventually end up unhappy
-She was afraid of change (although she complained about her life, she ultimately was afraid of change, because her future would be uncertain that way- at least if things stayed the same she knew how her life would turn out. She wanted excitement, but not uncertainty and instability. If that was what she wanted, she would have run away with Holden)
-She knew that no matter what she said to Phil, he would remain the same

I think Justine didn't manipulate circumstances to save herself, in my opinion, while she was with Holden, she realized that he was severely depressed and a disturbed, potentially suicidal individual who would end up hurting himself and/or hurt others (and she was right about that). She saw how childish, needy, and misunderstood he was, and even worse, how harmful he was to society and himself. He would end his life regardless of being in prison or on the run from police. At least if she turned him in, she wouldn't waste the police's time with chasing him when she knew exactly where he was.

[–] jeffoc 13 years ago

I think Justine was one of those unfortunates who just lacked strength. All her energy was absorbed by her heavy and complex thoughts and views. Her pain was real and it needed relief. her drug of choice turned out to be Holden. She couldn't hide in a cloud of pot smoke so she used a person and the results were disastrous. Ultimately, she survived though (survived, not flourished) and Holden didn't. Being a pretty female does have its perks. Justine (age 30)was coming to realize this was a temporary gift and seized on it.

Glove slap, baby, glove slap!
Glove slap, I don't take crap!
Glove slap, shut your big yap.

[–] lamont-hard 13 years ago

Hate to say it like this but for Holden she was just an easy target for sex. It could have been just about anybody that came along at that time. After wards she got caught up in the whole thing and had no backbone to stick by what she had started because for most women it eventually catches up to you. Even had everything turned out good with her and Holden there would have been something else to come up because she would not have left her husband for the right reason. Was she now going to go back to school since she would have been with Holden i don't think so. She could have done that with her husband. She would have never forgiven her self for what she did to her him and would have probably left him to go back to where she started. Lusting someone before you make a quality choice of to love and be with them usually spells disaster. Witch is what she got from a man killing himself over what he thought was rejection. but was really someone coming to there senses of I like and care for you deeply [witch is very Different from I'm in love with you and want you in our lives] but you are not right for me and my child.

[–] furious_georgina 13 years ago

I think Justine just felt trapped in her life. Can you imagine if she had actually tried to leave Phil? You seen how upset he got when he found about the affair. He never once thought of leaving her because he adores her. She would never have been able to build up the strenght to leave him.

Holden gave her an escape and a "secret". When she finally realised he was unstable and "at best a child and at worst a demon" she knew she would have to dispose of him. Because like Phil he would never had let her go so she had to go to drastic measures because she never had the strenght to leave either of them.

What happens in the meadow at dusk? NOTHING!, EVERYTHING!

[–] lamont-hard 13 years ago

She may have left Phill but not had been happy after doing so.It would have eventually caught up to her. The one thing I do give her credit for was she figured out that Phill was the best choice then taking a chance on the other guy. Phill had his issues but not to the lovers level as evident of him committing suicide without even knowing weather she may just simply have been late getting there. This fact is overlooked by so many. In the end she used good common sense, Risky, but still good, as the end of the film indicated. The film could have been titled the better choice.

[–] Echo_in_big_sky 12 years ago

I think she was as messed up as any of them. She was willing to let Holden eat blackberries that may have been tainted. She was willing to let another man,the Bible guy, get beat to a pulp, and she was willing to betray Holden so she could be rid of him and wrap up her own loose ends nice and tight. She was a very psycho woman.

Always the officiant, never the bride. http://www.withthiskissitheewed.com

[–] leader (1720) 4 years ago

She was not a psycho she was simply operating for survival by that point.