‘Good Time’, ‘Ingrid Goes West’, ‘The Nile Hilton Incident’
Good Time opened in limited release in 2017 as a taut, neon-soaked crime story that still commands attention years later. Directed by Joshua Safdie and Ben Safdie, the film follows Constantine Nikas through one frantic New York night after a botched bank robbery lands his brother in jail. Robert Pattinson delivers the central performance, supported by Jennifer Jason Leigh, Barkhad Abdi, and Ben Safdie himself. The picture earned a 91 percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics highlighting Pattinson’s intensity and the Safdies’ propulsive direction. Worldwide earnings reached roughly 4.1 million dollars against a modest budget.
Streaming and Availability Updates
Viewers today can locate several of these titles through subscription services and physical media rather than hunting for festival or arthouse screenings. Good Time and Ingrid Goes West sit on major platforms according to current distributor listings. A Taxi Driver and other catalog titles have also circulated again through renewed home-video editions, giving later audiences the chance to catch up without waiting for repertory runs.
Director and Cast Career Trajectories
The Safdie brothers moved from the kinetic energy of Good Time into higher-profile projects that kept their nervy style in the spotlight. Pattinson’s turn here has been cited in subsequent profiles as a turning point that widened the range of roles offered to him. Other performers in the slate, from Aubrey Plaza in Ingrid Goes West to Kang-ho Song in A Taxi Driver, continued to build on the visibility these films provided.
Cultural and Social Impact
Whose Streets? documented the Ferguson protests that followed the shooting of Michael Brown, preserving firsthand accounts from activists still referenced in ongoing conversations about policing and accountability. A Taxi Driver revisited the 1980 Gwangju Uprising through the eyes of an ordinary Seoul cab driver, underscoring a pivotal moment in modern South Korean history that remains part of national memory and civic education.
Horror Franchise Context
Annabelle: Creation extended the reach of the Conjuring series with a 307-million-dollar worldwide gross on a 15-million-dollar budget. That performance helped push the larger franchise past the one-billion-dollar mark at the box office, cementing the doll’s place inside an expanding universe of interconnected releases.
The Nile Hilton Incident unfolds in Cairo weeks before the 2011 Egyptian revolution. A police detective assigned to a singer’s murder uncovers connections that reach the ruling class, forcing him to decide how far he will bend the rules. Written and directed by Tarik Saleh, the cast includes Fares Fares, Mari Malek, Yasser Ali Maher, Slimane Dazi, and Hania Amar. The film won the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize at Sundance and collected five Guldbagge Awards, including Best Film.
Ingrid Goes West follows a troubled young woman who mistakes online validation for real connection. After moving to Los Angeles, she inserts herself into the orbit of an Instagram influencer played by Elizabeth Olsen. Aubrey Plaza leads the cast alongside O’Shea Jackson Jr., Wyatt Russell, and Billy Magnussen. The directorial debut from Matt Spicer took the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award at Sundance 2017 and later claimed the Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature.
Planetarium tracks two American sisters with supposed psychic abilities who attract the attention of a French producer in late-1930s Paris. Natalie Portman and Lily-Rose Depp headline Rebecca Zlotowski’s period drama, which examines the collision of ambition, illness, and the early film industry. The Trip to Spain sends Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon on another round of restaurant stops and celebrity impressions, this time along Spanish roads. The Only Living Boy in New York follows a young man who learns of his father’s affair and decides to intervene, with Callum Turner, Jeff Bridges, Kate Beckinsale, Pierce Brosnan, and Cynthia Nixon in the ensemble. Annabelle: Creation returns to the origins of the possessed doll, placing orphanage residents inside a house already haunted by loss. A Taxi Driver dramatizes the real events surrounding the Gwangju Uprising, with Kang-ho Song earning Best Actor honors at Fantasia for his portrayal of the driver who becomes an unlikely witness.
These releases from 2017 continue to surface in conversations about performance, social documentary, and franchise expansion. Their combined record of awards, earnings, and renewed availability keeps the slate relevant for new viewers seeking context on how the year’s independent and studio titles aged.
