The Good Neighbor (2016)

A pair of mischievous high school kids create the illusion of a haunting on an unsuspecting elderly neighbor while keeping his every reaction under surveillance. A series of coincidences leads to tragedy.

Director:

Kasra Farahani

Writers:

Mark Bianculli, Jeff Richard

Stars:

James Caan, Logan Miller, Keir Gilchrist

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
James Caan	...	Harold Grainey
Logan Miller	...	Ethan
Keir Gilchrist	...	Sean
Laura Innes	...	Caroline
Edwin Hodge	...	Officer Palmer
Bailey Noble	...	Carly
Lili Reinhart	...	Ashley
Anne Dudek	...	Elise
Mindy Sterling	...	Mae
William Charles Mitchell	...	Judge (as William C. Mitchell)
Dean Cameron	...	Defense Attorney
Nik Dodani	...	Sanjay
Luke Spencer Roberts	...	Ted Spiegelman
Ted King	...	Sean's Father
Billy Khoury	...	Neighbor

Storyline

Harbouring negative feelings of their cantankerous neighbour and cryptic hermit, Harold Grainey, the bored tech-savvy best friends, Ethan and Sean, decide to play a trick on him, under the guise of a psychological social experiment. Thrilled with the idea of becoming the next YouTube sensation, the boys embark on an audacious project to convince the man that his dark and vacant house is haunted and record his unmodified reaction with their advanced computer setup. Now, the stage seems set for the ultimate "Haunting Project". However, who is truly the good neighbour living across the street?

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Plot Keywords:

teenage prankster | fake ghost | hidden camera | prank | twist ending | 

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Taglines:

You never know who's watching.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Keir Gilchrist (Sean) and Nik Dodani (Sanjay) are currently in a show together called A-Typical where Gilchrist is the main character who plays a teen with autism and Dodani plays his best friend.

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Goofs

Although the experiment began on 9/19, 9/23 is described as "Day Six."

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Quotes

Harold Grainey: [as barking dog runs to fallen trash can] Get out of here! Get out of here, you half-breed.
[dog growls]
Harold Grainey: Shut up!
[as owner catches up]
Harold Grainey: Get him out of here!
Neighbor: Hey, come on - what's the problem here, man?
Harold Grainey: What's the problem? Well, the problem is that your dog is pissing a mess on my property. Let him piss on your property, okay?
Neighbor: [to still-barking dog] Come on, easy, easy...
Harold Grainey: Maybe I should teach him a lesson. Keep that son of a bitch on a leash, okay? Because the next time, if it happens again, I'm going to ...
[...]

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Connections

References Plan 9 from Outer Space (1957)

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Soundtracks

Forgetting You
Performed by James Carr
Written by Osbie Burnett McClinton
Courtesy of Ace Records, Ltd and Quinton M. Claunch DBA Rise Music Company

User Reviews

A surprisingly decent movie

This movie was a great surprise, I didn't know anything about it but found it on iTunes and took the gamble as the trailer was intriguing.It did not disappoint, what could have quite easily been another shaky cam mess of a home footage film turned out to be a real gem. This film builds nicely and despite the simple plot does a great job keeping you on the edge of your seat. The film is also edited in such a way that it keeps you guessing but then slowly feeds you the tid bits to keep you going. At no point was I bored watching this movie although I was worried it would be a bit of an Americanised college "bro" movie 5 minutes in, stick with it and enjoy where this goes. The film is based in two houses and given the limited location you'd think it would be quite easy to get bored by this however the director seems to ramp the tension up and down in all the right ways. I can't recommend this enough and it had my girlfriend in tears. Well worth a watch!

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 August 2017 (Spain)

Also Known As:

The Waiting

Filming Locations:

Santa Clarita, California, USA

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$90,573

Company Credits

Production Co:

Anonymous Content, Ball & Chain Productions, Star Thrower Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1