Goat

Like the underrated film about fraternity initiation, Will Canon's "Brotherhood: Are You In or Out?, the high rating for 'Goat' can be justified, not only due to its fine writing, directing and acting, but also because of its sincerity in portraying the hazing ritual of college fraternity life. It is a dramatically heightened look to be sure, but common to both movies, is a cautionary moral and deeply serious tone as an important underlying feature. Yet equally as stressed, if not more so, is the friendship aspect of the undertaking, examined on its most intimate level, and shown as the raison d'être for joining," Goat" writers emphasize.

The story revolves around a young man, of superb acting skills, Ben Schnetzer, able to portray excitement, need, and doubts about pledging. The director's close-ups demand talent to convey these outer and inward thoughts and Schnetzer is remarkable at demonstrating the hopes and consequences, the price of participating in the tradition. Equally as fine a performance is Nick Jonas' older brother of the main character, who must shift from initial excitement for his sibling's decision to join, an unfolding doubt as to rightness of doing so, to a sudden and dramatic turnaround in attitude toward the whole system.

Jonas brilliantly battles against his own loyalty to the institution and to the President of the organization, another excellent acting performance of Big Brotherism and Big Torturer all at once, a shifty character in a leadership position, who got the position by equal parts charisma and beguilement. James Franco is in one memorable scene as a returning Elder and as always, adds poignancy and searing reality that is right on target to his role (he was more the concept-generator-producer in this one) The film holds back very little in its authentic portrayal of what such an enterprise might be like, and that lends a great deal to its value as a film, a sober reflection on one of the most popular social activities of today's college life.