Deb (Glenn Close) seems to have her life together – she has a mildly successful job working as a beautician at a local casino, and her husband (Stephen Root) is always very supportive of her pursuits. They’re an ordinary suburban couple without much excitement in their lives – but Deb does carry a secret burden, in the form of her daughter, Molly (Mila Kunis), a drug addict who has been abusing substances for over a decade. When all of her resources deplete, and she is at her lowest point, Molly arrives at her mother’s door one afternoon, begging to be helped – but knowing how her daughter manipulates her and has a penchant for weaselling her way into the home to find resources to help fund her addiction, she goes against her maternal instincts and refuses to help her daughter, especially before she shows commitment to getting clean. Molly seems sincere this time, and yet another stint in rehab yields her with a possible solution, in the form of an opiate antagonist, a monthly injection that helps prevent drugs from affecting Molly, and thus removing her cravings for it. However, there is a requirement that she has to be clean for at least four days, or face some dreadful physical consequences that could be quite deadly – and therefore, her journey to having “four good days” begins, which entails her mother begrudgingly standing by her side, agreeing that her daughter needs to find a solution, but being cynical to the idea that she is capable of staying sober for that period, even if it is only a few days. Yet, they’re determined to work through it – they may have different approaches, and their opinions on how to handle it may vary tremendously, but the ultimate goal is the same, so they learn to put aside their differences and embrace the hard reality that the road ahead of them is filled with obstacles, but nothing that a good mindset and positive support system can’t overcome.

On the surface, Four Good Days doesn’t appear to be anything particularly special – it’s a by-the-numbers drama that touches on the theme of addiction, as filtered through the perspective of a mother-daughter relationships, and the challenges that they have to face in the recovery process. It’s not the first film about addiction, nor is it the most definitive word on the issue. Instead, it’s a solid, character-driven drama that is filled with honesty, and a pair of stunning performances that are perhaps better than the film they’re appearing in. Helmed by Rodrigo García, a director with a great deal of experience in these simple, human dramas, and told with an honesty that demonstrates a true control of both the narrative and the form it takes, which is often an afterthought for lesser films. Don’t be mistaken, Four Good Days is a flawed film, and its imperfections often come close to derailing it – but as soon as we start to look deeper, and understand that the message is more important than the execution in some ways, the sooner we realize how García made a very simple, lovely drama that is anchored by its impeccable humanity, and willingness to have some difficult conversations surrounding addiction, all the while functioning as a quiet meditation on a broken relationship undergoing the same challenges, but being confronted with a new set of obstacles that stand in their way between achieving their goals. The road to recovery is a long, terrifying one, and venturing down it alone can be daunting, and perhaps even entirely impossible – so the film’s incredible compassion, and willingness to not deflect from the reality of the situation, is what sets it apart from nearly every other similarly-themed story.

If there is a reason to seek out Four Good Days and give it a fair chance, it would be the performances given by Glenn Close and Mila Kunis, who lead this film with dignity and grace. On a cursory glance, they don’t seem to be doing anything particularly complex, or giving performances that we haven’t seen done a myriad times before. It’s easy to just perceive this as another one of Close’s very heavy-handed social dramas (especially under the guidance of Garcia, who has had a long working relationship with the actress, in films such as Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her and Albert Nobbs), until we see how she is turning in quite a decent performance. Deb is not much of a stretch for her – she’s a fiercely honest woman who abides by her principles, and isn’t an easy pushover. However, part of her moral grounding is compassion, which is the reason she surrenders to her daughter’s pleas, and helps her get the assistance she needs to recover. Close is wonderful – she’s sassy, but not a caricature, and there is real depth to her performance, which only proves why she is one of the finest actresses working today. She’s expertly joined by Kunis, who turns in a surprisingly complex performance of a woman trying to get clean, but not realizing how difficult it may be. Kunis avoids cliche wholeheartedly, regularly playing her role in a way that digs deep into the psychology of the character, showing the multitudes that many addicts have to endure while recovering – and through never playing to the rafters, but instead finding the truth in the experience, she is incredible, and proves how gifted she can be with very dramatic material that relies on her innate skills as an actress. The chemistry between Close and Kunis is impeccable, and they sell this film entirely on the strength of their performances, which is perhaps the sole flawless aspect of the film.

However, as solid as the two lead performances may be, there are some clear imperfections embedded in this film, and for some viewers, these may be difficult to overlook. Four Good Days does focus on some very common themes, and it unfortunately doesn’t do much to avoid becoming overly heavy-handed, having several moments that can be considered quite contrived, especially if one is used to this category of “message film”, where there is always some enormous issue being discussed, usually leading to immense confrontations that can ring as inauthentic in many ways. However, the film knows exactly what it is capable of, and doesn’t attempt to mislead us into thinking this is the definitive word on these issues. García quite smartly doesn’t try to make this an all-encompassing morality tale of addiction. It is certainly vague enough to qualify as being somewhat resonant to anyone who has known someone with a history of addiction, but it is ultimately a specific story of a mother and daughter relationship, rather than a sweeping odyssey of the trials and tribulations of drug addiction. Like any disease, there are different causes, consequences and solutions, and this film only offers its perspective on one situation, rather than commenting on everything. It helps recalibrate it to be far more simple and straightforward, and there is a sense of fragility that comes in realizing that, while the plot itself may not be all that deep (by all standards, Four Good Days hits all the expected targets), but it is reliable and solid, which makes a big difference. It may not qualify this as a particularly great film, but it helps avoid it descending into purely preaching to the choir, which is something many similar films have had to learn the hard way, since telling a touching but vital story and overwhelming the viewer with an endless stream of discourse are two very different approaches.

With a film like Four Good Days, you get what you pay for – a solid and reliable drama that centres on the dangers of addiction, and the long, difficult road to recovery all of those who decide to step away from substance abuse tend to face. Rodrigo García is a decent filmmaker who peddles in these simple, straightforward stories of ordinary individuals triumphing over adversity, and was thus a perfect person to bring this tale to the screen. Helped along by strong performances by Glenn Close and Mila Kunis, who put in a great deal of effort into otherwise thinly-written characters, and propelled by its heartfulness more than anything particularly unique, the film is a powerful testament to the human condition, a strong and interesting look into a mother and daughter relationship, as they try and work on resolving their past tensions while overcoming a current crisis, from which they’re both trying to emerge victoriously. Rather than being in conflict, they make the logical decision to work together, and the result is a beautiful story of taking on the challenges with a brave heart and open mind, which is often more than enough to face the many obstacles that stand in one’s way, especially in how we often look towards other for the support, guidance and courage to work towards a better future. If there is a message to Four Good Days, its to realize the compassion that resides in another, and not being afraid to take the leap towards resolving the issues, and finding the beauty in life, which is around us, rather than in any substance designed to alter our perception of reality.