There is no question of where you are; all details between dirt and sky are early 70's like a Space/Time blizzard came and left everything in Vanderbilt jeans, Hals ton Tops; covering Times Square in sleaze and tight tank tops for fat guys in pastel leisure suits. This is not the swinging Studio 56, 70's; but the creepy, Times Square Porn theatres, Taxi Driver, Son of Sam, 70's; Dark and strange, where wealthy and powerful New Yorkers, Civil servants and Leisure suited Larrys' live under their own rules and law.Like Marcus Hinchly and Marc Smerling, the writers who took a big twisted story one may have read in Vanity Fair on hot Southampton summer beach; unraveled into a clear and coherent, cliché' free film; strung together with clever dialogue and cleverly created a non- narrator, narration, through the POV of a court room character brief / testimony.Frank Langella, who, with one look at an empty chair, early on in the movie, could have stolen the film outright , had it not been for for the careful editing of David Rodenbloom and Shelby Seigel, under Jarecki's umbrella; making sure the film, which is not about his character, Sanford Marks, remains that way, true to the story.Langella brings weight to every frame he's in; his charisma so apparent, it's not his fault really, that he commands every scene he's in, stealing the viewer's attention from what may be going on in the frame. see The Ninth Gate or Frost /Nixon - "it's 39.50 each, that includes a very generous tip" -The Father and son subtext; combined with the functional madness of real life Durst {David Marks] played by Ryan Gosling as you've never seen him is so very strange and un-nerving, it may make you shudder knowing that people like this exist all around you; everywhere you go, all the time.Kristen Dunst, shows her range in this film. This is not your friendly Spiderman love interest, but a woman pushed emotionally to her frayed ends, where, in one near silent dinner scene, she, with great countenance, shows us how she can move from a woman trying to salvage what she can from her relationship - to great disgust; sadness, fear, and hurt all on one look; all in reaction from a single line slung at her by Gosling's 'Durst'. We watch as the light Kristen Dunst brings to every role she plays, drains away into the black hole of Durst Gosling/Marks until she becomes a paranoid wreck; and rightfully so. Not every actress can do this, we take her for granted as an actress, but in thanks to Jarecki's direction we get to see what a truly great actress can do.Philip Baker Hall in the last third of the film is a treat to watch as he plays a strange homoerotic vet who befriends Gosling who at this point, has succumbed to his madness, but like a functioning alcoholic. Gosling as Durst, plays/wears his aberrations as the straight man in a twisted comedy duo.Kristen Wiig shines here, proving her talent stretches way past just comedy straight into the world of excellent dramatic acting be careful you may develop a crush on her "eat your salad"Jarecki shows us much, in All Good Things; the breakdown of a marriage, the strained relations of a father and son, wealth and its trapping, but more intriguingly, how a seemingly 'normal' man can hide the sociopathic madman inside, carefully, while unbeknownst to us, can live a functional and, again, subjectively 'normal' life. - In a world where there is a law in Texas of course where "improper disposal of a body" can get you a fine and/or 6 months in jail. What you may find most terrifying is that these people are all around us, they shop where we shop, eat at the same restaurants wear the same clothes; you've probably met a functional lunatic many times in your life. Although we may hide behind the great illusion and lie to ourselves that they are few and far between; that all murders and madmen eventually get caught and put far away from our children, friends and familys', yet Jarecki and his team show that this great conceit of ours, is totally wrong, just another lie we tell ourselves as we sign our lease's, leave our tips, show the bouncer our ID's, and run around central park in the evenings to avoid the crowds.All Good Things, Directed by Andrew Jarecki, shows this to us in a film that you may need to to see a few more times to get all the brilliant subtleties, and top star acting.

obviously well-acted especially with the talented young actor,Ryan Gosling as part of the cast.And the true story that inspired the screenplay provides plenty of drama and will provides lots of interest to the viewer.The movie just captures the emotion and complexion of this real-life unsolved mystery.

records results in a psychological examination of a powerful New York family, obsession, love and loss. The film relates incidents that began in 1972 and end in 2003 and at this time the truth is still unknown. Director Andrew Jarecki uses a superb cast and a fine sense of voice-over narration to interweave the puzzling history with the gradual dissolution of each of the characters involved. Sanford Marks Frank Langella is one of the wealthiest owners of Manhattan real estate, the current head of a family that has long dominated the New York scene with its power and money. Marks is aging and is relying on his son David Ryan Gosling to take over the family business: he sends David out to the brothels, and filthy hotels and porn houses to collect rent. David is reticent to be a part of his father's business: he is a deeply disturbed young man, having witnessed his mother's suicide leap as a child. David meets a tenant in one of the properties - Katie McCarthy Kirsten Dunst who longs to go to medical school but at present has no income to support that dream. The chemistry between the two is magnetic and despite David's father's objection that Katie is not of 'their kind of people', David decides to marry Katie and move to Vermont to open a Health Foods store - a move that makes the couple ecstatic, but is financed by Sanford Marks who eventually convinces David to sell his haven and move to New York to stay with the family business. In their Manhattan home and in their country lake front home! the couple flourishes until Katie mentions she'd like to have children - a force that drives David back into violent behavior resulting form his witnessing his mother's suicide: David can't understand why Katie would want anything but the obvious life of wealth they enjoy. The shell is cracked and the subsequent events include Katie becoming pregnant only to be forced by David to terminate the pregnancy, Katie's disappearance after uncovering the facts about the sources of wealth of the family, David's descent into drugs and irresponsible behavior, and ultimately his leaving New York for Galveston, Texas where he lives a life disguised as a woman, his only friend being another old runaway Melvin Bump Philip Baker Hall who David engages to do away with a 'problem confidant' Lilly Rabe , after which Bump is killed and dissected and tossed into the river. The murders are never solved nor is the mystery of Katie' disappearance. A trial the source of the voice-over throughout the film has been the lawyer's interrogation of David in the year 2003 fails to resolve anything and the film ends with the message that David Marks is at present a real estate broker in Florida. Frank Langella is superb as the heartless father who drives his family like cattle in the quest of power and wealth. Ryan Gosling offer a multifaceted performance of the deeply disturbed David and is match by Kirsten Dunst's bravura performance as Katie, the simple bright girl whose life is quashed by a powerful family's sickness. The brilliant cast, including the performances by Philip Baker Hall and Lilly Rabe - daughter of the deceased Jill Clayburgh , has excellent cameo roles by Diane Venora, Trini Alvarado, David Margulies, Nick Offerman and many more. This is a tough film to watch because at the bottom of it all is that it is true and the cases are unsolved. It makes us cringe but it is a very fine film. Grady Harp

background, while David comes from billions of dollars of old New England money. The two fall madly in love and are married soon after, but their relationship deteriorates over the next decade. David becomes abusive toward Katie, and they eventually end up living in separate houses as Katie studies at medical school while David works in New York City under his dad's company. In 1982, Katie vanishes without a trace. Fast-forward to 2000, and David is living under the identity of a woman in Texas; the deaths of friend/publisher Deborah Lehrman and the gruesome murder of elderly Malvern Bump reignite interest in Katie's 18-year-old disappearance. They all have one thing in common: David Marks.The entire film, penned by Marcus Hinchey and Marc Smerling, plays out like a feature-length segment of "Unsolved Mysteries", except with award-worthy performances and stellar storytelling. I personally see this as a positive thing; I am, after all, a big fan of true crime tales and unsolved murders. The circumstances of the characters and the entire realm of which this takes place makes for not only a fascinating biographical narrative; but a love story, murder mystery, and a period piece. The cross-decade stretch the film makes also gives the audience a sense of relevance, since this man's history of crime or innocence? spreads across time. On top of the weird fascinating aspects of this story, it was superbly acted, which makes it even more of a treat. Ryan Gosling takes a turn as a semi-sociopathic husband, and he carries the film gracefully he's played the psycho role before, see "Murder by Numbers" . He plays that balance of sympathetic and downright evil to a tee, even when he's dressed in drag in a masquerade to hide his identity. His blonde wig, trench coat and sunglasses evoke an eerie image very similar to the villain in Brian De Palma's 1980 thriller "Dressed to Kill". Gosling aside, Kirsten Dunst is the real winner here. Her role as the vulnerable, goodhearted wife-turned-victim is played so well that it would catch any of her "Spiderman" fans off guard. Dunst is a capable actress, but she often chooses shallow films that don't exactly showcase that— this surely wasn't one of them. She is the window into David's psychosis, and we see the deterioration of their marriage through her eyes; after she's vanished, her presence is felt like a ghost looming over the rest of the film. This is really Dunst's movie, and she gives what is easily one of the best performances of her career here.The most disturbing scene in the movie, in my opinion, is one of extreme suggestion involving Katie— on the night of a grand fight between she and David at their lake house, a neighbor is making tea in the middle of the night. The neighbor looks out her window at the Marks' house, and sees all the lights are oddly turned off, except for a single basement window, lit with an eerie fluorescent blue. We, as an audience, can only imagine what happened to Katie in that basement, and it's nothing short of horrifying. The modern day sequences, much in contrast to the retro '70s/'80s vibe the first act of the film has, are extremely well-done, too, and the court-centered narrative is largely accurate in terms of what actually happened in this case. The entire film, in fact, is surprisingly accurate, which is nice to see for a change; very little artistic liberties or fabrication, if any, is embedded in the script. It's nice to see a true crime film tell it like it is; the truth is often more interesting than dressed-up fiction. The sad truth here is that, in reality, Robert Durst hardly paid for his crimes; he spent nine months incarcerated for "improper disposal of a corpse" when he dismembered Morris Black renamed Malvern Bump in the film after killing him in "self defense" in 2001. Susan Berman's renamed Deborah Lehrmen in the film shotgun murder at her California home in 2000 is still unsolved. And Durst's wife, Katie, who vanished in 1982, has never been found— god only knows what happened to her. The mere fact that this man has been able to dodge any punishment for these murders is frustrating, and paints him as quite an evil enigma.Overall, "All Good Things" is one of the best movies I've seen this year. I'd say that seeing it for Dunst's performance is reason enough, but it's also a treat for true crime buffs and people who are familiar with this decades-long story of secrecy and murder. While it may lack the conventional thrills and spills of fictional psychothrillers, "All Good Things" maintains a chilling, picturesque truthfulness to it, and for that, is a real winner in my book. 9/10.

in the 1970's where he is a rich guy trying to run away from his father Frank Langella control, a powerful man who wants a brilliant future for his son by working along in the family business, a real estate deal; Kathy is a girl trying to succeed with a desire of studying medicine and she wants to start a family with David. They both love each other but then David begins to change from a loving man to a guy who barely has time for his wife, becoming more sinister to her, and working with his father in some complicated business. And then...Better not say much of what happens next.Since "All Good Things" is a film combining multiple genres into one thing some people will get confused, frustrated, annoyed by the way the story is following. It's like the same situation where someone is driving a car trying to reach a destination, then this vehicle gets lost into somewhere, the driver makes turns and turns but in the end the people in the car will reach their destination. I'm not saying that this movie is bad conducted or anything similar but for the most of it you'll be asking yourself lots of question of what some thing happened and or why the story moved in this way or that way. The part of the romance takes a fast time to develop, then it moves to a drama mixed with a thriller that goes speeding in intensity. Both parts are interesting well made, both parts know how to hold the viewer's attention. The way the story is conducted is surprising, you never know what's gonna happen next but there was some things that were unbelievable even for a film based on true facts. Gladly, most of what happens in the third act of the film are implications so you can believe it or not.What makes of "All Good Things" a more appealing film is the great performances of Ryan Gosling and Kirsten Dunst, they're always talented in everything they made and here both gave brilliant performances. I wish that could have more romantic moments between the two but the story had to jump fast to the complications of the couple. The supporting cast includes Philip Baker Hall, John Cullum, Diane Venora and Kristen Wiig. And I must mention the music composing work by Rob Simonsen, one of the most interesting scores created in this past years, not only his tense music for the film but the selection of 1970's music, mostly Steely Dan songs. I enjoyed it and recommend you to watch it, but don't take it too much seriously. I wish I could say more about the plot or and the change of direction of the characters but I prefer to let you watch it, see it for yourself and have your own opinion on it. 9/10

never over acting. This movie deserved a much wider audience maybe even nominations for the leads. You can also watch the documentary about the real couple.

but still… I was not expecting the turn of events and the explosive transformation, well rather the revealing of the true nature of Dave Marks, played by Gosling, in the shocking unfolding of that character. He delivers another fine impressive performance.Not only is the disappearance, who won't doubt it's a murder, of Katie Marks, Dave Marks' loving wife an unexpected development, it is made that more astonishing because of Dunst excellent portrayal of the blindly loyal and devoted wife. I'm sorry for writing that last comment, but you were warned my review might contain spoilers.Frank Langella, always brilliant when playing the role of despicable characters, at least in a number of movies I remember from his 47 year career, does it again. The revelation by Gosling's character, at the end, to that of Langella's character, was one of the best 'capsule moment' I've seen in a long long time, even if the few words spoken are not a complete surprise, they deliver a truth too obvious and too insidious to have contemplated it before they were mentioned. If you watched this movie in a theatre, perhaps you may have observed the ever slowing rate of popcorn consumption passed the midway point; it was not due to anyone reaching the bottom of the container, with a few exceptions, it was what good dramas do. They captivate and get your full attention. It's harder to swallow during those moments, isn't it?

and Kirsten Dunst.Set between the 70s and last decade in New York City, David Marks Gosling falls in love with a pretty working class girl Katie Dunst , whose marriage and union is perfect on the surface, if not for the objection of his real estate tycoon father Sanford Marks Frank Langella whose elitist status and snobbish behaviour brings about some tension as he frowns upon his son's lack of ambition and choice of wife from a lower social standing. I felt the story played out somewhat like Revolutionary Road as we witness the disintegration of a beautiful relationship, as slowly but surely David reveals a much darker side to his being that in some instances will shock you as he dishes out unadulterated violence on his wife.I suppose it's a different era then with the stigma of a divorce, on one hand Katie's separation allowed her to pursue her studies in medical school, while on the other perhaps it was the money, which never once stood in the way to corrupt her affections for him, much needed now to fuel her lifestyle of drug addiction. Harbouring hopes to bear a child for the Marks family, this was keenly rejected by David, and pointing to the very first signs of trouble, as it keeps you guessing just how his traumatic witnessing of his mother's demise had shaped his psychological well-being. Hints were dropped of course, and it's nothing short of chilling in Hitchcockian terms.As with all real mysteries, this film can only suggest what could have happened without being obtuse or definitive about it, with routines played out that only formed speculation. Andrew Jarecki, better known for his superb documentary Capturing the Friedmans, almost played this out in documentary fashion, as we catch glimpses of a much older David narrating to lawyers just how events had unfolded, albeit shedding little light on the atrocities that were committed, whether with his involvement, or not. Gosling shines in the role here as he tackles the mentally disturbed David sliding into a worsening condition, with that non- remorseful demeanour hiding a creepy secret that's primed for a surprise in the last act.But between the two, Kirsten Dunst outshone Gosling. She launched her career starring opposite the likes of Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt in Interview with a Vampire, and after arty fare like The Virgin Suicides, would probably be better known for her on-off relationship with Jake Gyllenhaal then, and of course her role as Mary Jane Watson in the Spiderman blockbuster trilogy. She disappeared for a while to check into rehab for depression, and returns with what is arguably her best performance and role to date, playing the wide-eyed girl full of hope and dreams to be married, but finding out in a snap that her beau is definitely not what he seems, plotting an escape that didn't quite go her way, and what more her character's mysterious disappearance which takes her out of the equation in the narrative.It is the strong portrayals by the leading cast members that make All Good Things compelling to sit through, with the thought that something similar had already happened, an open case without a resolution, and one of the mysteries that continue to remain unresolved.