Bizarre Friendship Forms in Center of ‘Starlet’

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HollywoodChicago.com Oscarman rating: 3.5/5.0
Rating: 3.5/5.0

CHICAGO – Sean Baker’s “Starlet” is about an incredibly unlikely friendship between two women six decades apart and, like a lot of acclaimed independent films, it plays like an interesting short story adapted to celluloid. The first forty-five minutes of Baker’s debut really work, as the writer/director works with his two talented leads to craft an interesting character study. When the film has to get into more depth regarding its characters futures and pasts, it falters a bit but there’s still a lot to like here.

Jane (the beautiful Dree Hemingway, daughter of Mariel) is a porn star, although that’s not even revealed until well into the film in an explicit way that would earn the flick an NC-17 if it weren’t unrated. Jane’s life seems relatively empty, smoking down in her non-descript apartment with her two easily distracted roommates, Melissa (Stella Maeve) and Mike (James Ransome). They play video games, fall asleep on the couch, and walk Jane’s dog, Starlet. Melissa is also a porn star and Mike is into some shady business, including homegrown porn, although they seem more headed for inevitable disaster than Jane, a girl who has a sweet personality and a good head on her shoulders even if she’s becoming more well-known for what’s between her legs.

Starlet
Starlet
Photo credit: Music Box Films

Trying to add a little energy to her boring room, Jane goes to a yard sale, where she finds a thermos that she plans to use as a vase even if its owner, Sadie (first-time actress Besedka Johnson, who was reportedly found at an L.A. YMCA and convinced to star in her debut flick), keeps telling her it’s not a vase. When Jane gets home, she finds ten grand hidden in the thermos. She tries to take it back to Sadie but the woman is the definition of irascible. She’s not in the mood to talk to Jane for even a second but the young lady won’t give up. It’s almost as if she’s trying to get closer to Sadie to see if she should give back some or all of the money that Sadie has yet to notice is missing. So Jane ends up pushing her way into Sadie’s life, driving her to the grocery store and showing up at bingo. The two form a friendship.

For a long time, there’s little more than the growing, unique dynamic between Sadie & Jane to fuel “Starlet.” There’s a subplot about Melissa’s life falling apart as she can’t seem to get the work she needs to pay the bills but it’s really a drama about a young woman and her new friend who’s old enough to be her great grandmother. When the film takes a turn to reveal more darkness in Jane’s life and Sadie’s secret, Baker’s screenwriting stumbles a tad, losing some of the realism of the first two acts in favor of contrivance and a last-scene twist that doesn’t really feel earned.

Starlet
Starlet
Photo credit: Music Box Films

There’s a lot to like here on a performance level. Dree Hemingway and Besedka Johnson have natural screen presences and their dynamic doesn’t feel nearly as forced as it would with less talented actresses or director. It’s natural in a way that’s engaging. We’re curious about these people and enjoy spending time with them, which is not something that can be said about most odd couples in indie dramas.

Once again, “Starlet” reminds me of quality short fiction. A young porn star and a lonely old woman learn something from each other. If you just look at the core relationship – the way it’s portrayed by two talented actresses and the way it’s conceived in the script – there’s a lot to like about “Starlet.” The porn industry material, the meddlesome roommates who scream trouble, Sadie’s secret – these issues don’t resonate as much as two completely different people brought together by a yard sale.

“Starlet” stars Dree Hemingway, Stella Maeve, James Ransome, and Besedka Johnson. It was written and directed by Sean Baker and was released in Chicago on December 7, 2012.

HollywoodChicago.com content director Brian Tallerico

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

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