The Good Girl

Playing a sad woman trapped in a drab job at the Retail Rodeo and a dreary marriage to a housepainting pothead (John C. Reilly), glamour girl Aniston is surprisingly believable — and surrounded by an equally terrific supporting cast, including Gyllenhaal as the mopey young checkout guy she falls for and Zooey Deschanel as a sarcastic coworker. Despite an unsatisfying ending, Mike White’s script offers funny dialogue, and director Miguel Arteta (who collaborated with White on ”Chuck & Buck”) reinforces the humor as well as the bleakness. It may be a downer, but The Good Girl is a smart little movie with big-time performances.