Director Patrick Rea and writer Michelle Davidson offer audiences a complex and deep narrative that only spans a little under ten minutes. In such a short time, director Patrick Rea is able to convey so many emotions by sheer body language alone. He films intricate moments involving human contact and gestures that often times manage to speak waves about these characters without suffering through clunky exposition.
“Good Conduct” sets down on Aidan who has gone to visit his father in a penitentiary. We’re not sure what his father Chuck did to end up in jail, but we know it had something to do with his temper. Chuck, from the moment we meet him, is a powder keg ready to explode, who is struggling to keep his temper in check. Aidan is the only person who seems to understand that, and is incredibly uneasy, to the point where he even jabs inadvertently at his father, who laughs off every comment and retort. Whether or not Chuck means it can only be understood by Aidan, but Chuck promises when he leaves prison things will be better and much different. Rea once again explores the gestures that both characters make toward one another, and their implication toward their future actions.
While Chuck may proclaim he’s a changed man, there’s a lot of anxiety in his movements that express his actions as performed for the sake of leaving the confines of prison. Meanwhile subtle moments involving Aidan really speak waves, including his flipping of a coin and his notice of a young boy visiting his own father in prison. This not only causes him to reflect upon his past, but also come to a conclusion to take immediate action in the final striking scene. With memorable performances by Scott Corden and Chris Bylsma, “Good Conduct” is a fantastic short character study about a father and a son with a history of violence in between them, and what a son will do to protect his mother.