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''Goat'' is a 2016 American
drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...
film directed by Andrew Neel and written by
David Gordon Green David Gordon Green is an American filmmaker. He directed the dramas ''George Washington'' (2000), ''All the Real Girls'' (2003), and '' Snow Angels'' (2007), as well as the thriller '' Undertow'' (2004), all of which he wrote or co-wrote. In 2 ...
, Neel, and Mike Roberts; it is based on the book ''Goat: A Memoir'' by Brad Land. It stars
Ben Schnetzer Benjamin Schnetzer (born February 8, 1990) is an American actor. He was nominated for two British Independent Film Awards for his performance in the film ''Pride'' (2014). Early life Schnetzer was born and raised in New York City, the son of a ...
,
Nick Jonas Nicholas Jerry Jonas (born September 16, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. Jonas began acting on Broadway at the age of seven, and released his debut single in 2002; this caught the attention of Columbia Records, where Jonas ...
, Gus Halper,
Daniel Flaherty Daniel Flaherty (born June 11, 1993) is an American actor, known for his role as Stanley Lucerne on the MTV teen drama series '' Skins''. Life and career Flaherty started studying acting at age 11. When he turned 13, he booked his first short f ...
,
Jake Picking Jake Picking (born March 2, 1991) is a German-born American actor. He is best known for portraying Rock Hudson in the Netflix series '' Hollywood'' (2020), created by Ryan Murphy. He is also known for playing the role of Sean Collier in '' Patri ...
,
Virginia Gardner Virginia Elizabeth Gardner is an American actress who played Karolina Dean in the Hulu original series ''Runaways (TV series), Marvel's Runaways'' (2017–2019), Vicky in David Gordon Green's horror film ''Halloween (2018 film), Halloween'' (2018 ...
and
James Franco James Edward Franco (born April 19, 1978) is an American actor and filmmaker. For his role in '' 127 Hours'' (2010), he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. Franco is known for his roles in films, such as Sam Raimi's ''Spider-Ma ...
. The film had its world premiere at the
Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...
on January 22, 2016. The film was released on September 23, 2016, by
The Film Arcade The Film Arcade is an independent American film production and distribution company based in Los Angeles. History Founded in 2012 by Miranda Bailey, Jason Beck and Andy Bohn, The Film Arcade recently released Mike Birbiglia’s '' Don’t Think T ...
and
Paramount Home Video Paramount Home Entertainment (formerly Paramount Home Media Distribution, and originally Paramount Home Video) is the home video distribution arm of Paramount Pictures, a division of Paramount Global. The division oversees PPC's home entertainme ...
with a limited theatrical release and a same day video on demand distribution.


Plot

Reeling from a terrifying assault over the summer, 19-year-old Brad Land starts college determined to get his life back to normal. His brother, Brett, is already established on campus and is a member of a fraternity that lures Brad in with its promise of protection, popularity, and life-long friendships. Brad is desperate to belong but as he sets out to join the fraternity his brother exhibits reservations, a sentiment that threatens to divide them. As the pledging ritual moves into hell week, a rite that promises to usher these unproven boys into manhood, the stakes violently increase with a series of torturous and humiliating events. The pledges are taken to an off-campus site in the woods, where they are told they either need to drink large quantities of beer, or if they fail they need to sodomize and then kill a
goat The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the a ...
. They pass the test, and are told the hazing is over. During the crossing ceremony, Brad becomes upset that his brother did not attend and confronts him. Their argument becomes heated and they almost fight each other. Brett says Brad does not belong in the fraternity after seeing how bad the hazing process was. Events culminate when Will, Brad's pledge brother, dies of a heart attack while exercising on the track field and his body was shown to be covered in bruises from hazing. The pledges, particularly Brad, are warned not to reveal anything to the authorities. The university launches an investigation into Phi Sigma Mu and the fraternity is suspended from campus after someone had told the investigators all about the hazing process. The pledge master suspects Brad for leaking information to the university. Brad comes back to his dorm after class to find his goat defecating on the carpet with "Rat Fuck" shaved into its coat. After confronting the brothers at the house, Brad gets accused of speaking to the authorities but Brett steps in and reveals himself as the source of the leaks. Brett and Brad both go to the police station to identify Brad's attackers from 6 months ago. One of them is revealed to have been shot in a gas station robbery, while the other has yet to be identified in a line up. Brad lies and says none of the men are the one who assaulted him. The final scene is of Brad and Brett visiting the field where Brad was beaten. The film ends with Mark Mullens throwing a bone to the Goat along with Brad.


Cast

*
Nick Jonas Nicholas Jerry Jonas (born September 16, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. Jonas began acting on Broadway at the age of seven, and released his debut single in 2002; this caught the attention of Columbia Records, where Jonas ...
as Brett Land *
Ben Schnetzer Benjamin Schnetzer (born February 8, 1990) is an American actor. He was nominated for two British Independent Film Awards for his performance in the film ''Pride'' (2014). Early life Schnetzer was born and raised in New York City, the son of a ...
as Brad Land * Gus Halper as Chance *
Daniel Flaherty Daniel Flaherty (born June 11, 1993) is an American actor, known for his role as Stanley Lucerne on the MTV teen drama series '' Skins''. Life and career Flaherty started studying acting at age 11. When he turned 13, he booked his first short f ...
as Will *
Virginia Gardner Virginia Elizabeth Gardner is an American actress who played Karolina Dean in the Hulu original series ''Runaways (TV series), Marvel's Runaways'' (2017–2019), Vicky in David Gordon Green's horror film ''Halloween (2018 film), Halloween'' (2018 ...
as Leah *
James Franco James Edward Franco (born April 19, 1978) is an American actor and filmmaker. For his role in '' 127 Hours'' (2010), he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. Franco is known for his roles in films, such as Sam Raimi's ''Spider-Ma ...
as Mitch * Austin Lyon as Dave *
Jake Picking Jake Picking (born March 2, 1991) is a German-born American actor. He is best known for portraying Rock Hudson in the Netflix series '' Hollywood'' (2020), created by Ryan Murphy. He is also known for playing the role of Sean Collier in '' Patri ...
as Dixon Rowley *
Brock Yurich Brock may refer to: Businesses * Brock Motors, a short-lived automotive company founded in 1921 in Amherstberg, Ontario * Crowne Plaza Niagara Falls – Fallsview also known as the Brock Hotel, a hotel in Niagara Falls, Ontario * Brock Hotel Corp ...
as Wes * Will Pullen as The Smile *
Eric Staves Eric Staves (born November 30, 1990) is an American actor. He is best known for his character on the film ''Goat'' where played the character Ben Baity. Personal life Staves was born November 30, 1990 in Liberty, Missouri. He graduated from ...
as Ben Baity * Connor Harris as Mark Mullens * Chase Crawford as Goat Boy * Jamar Jackson as The Breath * Chewie as The Goat


Production

In October 2014, it was announced that
James Franco James Edward Franco (born April 19, 1978) is an American actor and filmmaker. For his role in '' 127 Hours'' (2010), he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. Franco is known for his roles in films, such as Sam Raimi's ''Spider-Ma ...
would produce the film under his
Rabbit Bandini Productions Rabbit Bandini Productions is a film and television production company founded in 2003 by actors/filmmakers James Franco and Vince Jolivette. The name comes from combining the titular hero from John Updike's Rabbit tetralogy with the hero of John ...
banner, while Andrew Neel would direct from a screenplay written by
David Gordon Green David Gordon Green is an American filmmaker. He directed the dramas ''George Washington'' (2000), ''All the Real Girls'' (2003), and '' Snow Angels'' (2007), as well as the thriller '' Undertow'' (2004), all of which he wrote or co-wrote. In 2 ...
, with revisions by Neel and Mike Roberts.
Christine Vachon Christine Vachon (; born November 21, 1962) is an American film producer active in the American independent film sector. Christine Vachon produced Todd Haynes' first feature, ''Poison'', which was awarded the Grand Jury Prize at the 1991 Sundan ...
and David Hinojosa was reported to produce under their
Killer Films Killer Films is a New York City-based independent film production company founded by movie producers Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler in 1995. The company has produced a number of the most acclaimed American independent films over the past tw ...
banner while John Wells would serve as an executive producer. In January 2015,
Nick Jonas Nicholas Jerry Jonas (born September 16, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. Jonas began acting on Broadway at the age of seven, and released his debut single in 2002; this caught the attention of Columbia Records, where Jonas ...
and
Ben Schnetzer Benjamin Schnetzer (born February 8, 1990) is an American actor. He was nominated for two British Independent Film Awards for his performance in the film ''Pride'' (2014). Early life Schnetzer was born and raised in New York City, the son of a ...
joined the cast of the film. In May 2015,
Virginia Gardner Virginia Elizabeth Gardner is an American actress who played Karolina Dean in the Hulu original series ''Runaways (TV series), Marvel's Runaways'' (2017–2019), Vicky in David Gordon Green's horror film ''Halloween (2018 film), Halloween'' (2018 ...
joined the cast of the film.


Filming

Filming began on May 4, 2015, in
Finneytown, Ohio Finneytown is a census-designated place (CDP) in Springfield Township, Hamilton County, in southwest Ohio, United States, just north of Cincinnati. The population was 12,741 at the 2010 census (down from 13,492 in 2000)."Finneytown CDP Quickfac ...
, a small suburb outside
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
,
Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
.


Release

The film had its world premiere at the
Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...
on January 22, 2016. Shortly after,
Paramount Home Video Paramount Home Entertainment (formerly Paramount Home Media Distribution, and originally Paramount Home Video) is the home video distribution arm of Paramount Pictures, a division of Paramount Global. The division oversees PPC's home entertainme ...
and acquired worldwide distribution rights to the film, with Paramount partnering with a third-party in the U.S for a theatrical release with Paramount handling same-day VOD with its sister network
MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
having the first TV window. The partner later was revealed to be
The Film Arcade The Film Arcade is an independent American film production and distribution company based in Los Angeles. History Founded in 2012 by Miranda Bailey, Jason Beck and Andy Bohn, The Film Arcade recently released Mike Birbiglia’s '' Don’t Think T ...
. It was screened in the Panorama section of the
66th Berlin International Film Festival The 66th Berlin International Film Festival was held from 11 to 21 February 2016, with American actress Meryl Streep as the President of the Jury. The Honorary Golden Bear for lifetime achievement was presented to German cinematographer Michael ...
. The film was screened at the
Seattle International Film Festival The Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF), held annually in Seattle, Washington since 1976, is among the top film festivals in North America. Audiences have grown steadily; the 2006 festival had 160,000 attendees. The SIFF runs for more th ...
on May 27, 2016. The film was released on September 23, 2016.


Critical response

On
review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, the film holds an approval rating of 79% on review aggregator
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
based on 76 reviews, with an average rating of 6.53/10. The site's critical consensus reads "''Goat'' isn't an easy watch, but its thought-provoking themes, talented cast, and all-out intensity offer rewards for viewers willing to tough it out." On
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
the film has a score of 64 out of 100 score, based on 25 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".


References


External links

* {{IMDb title, 4437216 2016 films 2016 drama films American drama films American independent films 2016 independent films Drama films based on actual events Films about brothers Films about fraternities and sororities Films about hazing Films based on autobiographies Films directed by Andrew Neel Films produced by Christine Vachon Films set in universities and colleges Films shot in Ohio Killer Films films Paramount Pictures films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films