Starlet (2012)

(Spoilers)"Starlet" is a bit difficult to rate. It has a lot going for it and on the whole was a fairly good parable even if the ending is obvious and out-in-the-open despite its intended juxtapose. It had a chance to be an excellent movie but takes some dings due to a couple mis-steps by the storytellers that seem amateurish and rather disappointing. The 2 major annoyances for me were the awful in-your- face Porn scene with graphic smut that went "beyond the pale", and to a lesser degree the lower quality picture, camera-work, and shakiness. Sadly those are highly fixable problems. I enjoyed the acting, storyline, and the accompanying music a lot. Loved the relationship with the 2 leads and the Hemingway with the dog did it better than Witherspoon in comedy "Legally Blonde". Anyway, so the movie is like reading a good story that has been terribly proofread, and with glaring, obvious errors. Good though and Recommended. 7/10

Our story starts with a young woman, Jane (Dree Hemingway), going to yard sales in search of items to brighten her drab bedroom. She meets an older woman named Sadie (Besedka Johnson)who sells her a thermos. Jane discovers that it contains about $10,000. This is the jumping off point for the story of Starlet.The entire film is a story of revelation. We follow the natural progress of the women's lives and the development of their relationship. As they learn about each other, the viewer learns about the entirety of their lives. Jane is a cheerful woman who embraces life with a smile. Sadie is rather gruff and distrusting. The contrast in their personalities is rather a reverse of the Harold & Maude story (which the director cites as an influence).Some of the revelations are mundane, some are surprising. Through it all, the unlikely pair forges what might be a friendship. The film is about the nature of friendship. What does it mean? Does it entail responsibilities as well as benefits? What are the commonalities necessary for friendship?The director, Sean Baker, seeks cinema verite. The result feels like a slice from the lives of two distinctly different women. One is at the beginning of her adult life, the other is at the end. But neither has a real family, so there may be common ground after all.Meslissa Maeve is a standout as Jane's roommate, Melissa. And a special mention should go to Boonee who plays Jane's dog, Starlet (actually the pet of the director) and steals some scenes.The last revelation comes in the final scene. It is a scene much discussed on the message boards. Personally, I loved the scene. It is beautiful and revelatory at the same time.

Watched this having never heard a word about this film and despite there not being a lot going on it was strangely captivating. Possibly because the acting feels very genuine and the plot / character development was steady paced and fully believable. Ending was well done as well and it leaves the final statements about the film and Sadie and Tess's relationship and assumption as to where things go completely up to the viewer.Spoiler: I was shocked during the sex scene as I've never seen full penetration complete with ejaculation in a real movie before and I'm still conflicted as to whether or not this added to the movie or not. I'm curious to know about how others reacted to this level of detail as well.

'Starlet' refers to an adorable Chihuahua of the same name, owned by Jane (Dree Hemingway), an actor of the adult entertainment variety. Perhaps Jane aspires to be a starlet herself but is content when we first meet her, to room with two other denizens of the adult entertainment industry, coke-addicted Melissa and her pimp, Mikey, in a small but comfy San Fernando Valley apartment.Director Sean Bake has propelled Jane on a journey of redemption when she meets Sadie, an elderly woman, who is selling some of her personal items at a garage sale. After Jane buys an old vase from Sadie, a veritable curmudgeon, she brings it home and suddenly discovers $10,000, in rolled up $100 bills, hidden inside. Jane finds the money does come in handy and decides to keep it. But by the same token, she feels guilty and then attempts to befriend the old woman, perhaps as an act of penitence.At first Sadie is extremely suspicious of Jane's motives, culminating in Sadie's pepper spray attack on Jane, as the friendly porn actress drives her home. But now Sadie feels guilty how she treated Jane and decides to allow Jane into her life. There are forays to Sadie's weekly bingo game and later out to the cemetery, where Sadie wistfully places flowers on the grave of her long-deceased gambler husband (perhaps the husband stashed the money in the vase without Sadie's knowledge; or perhaps Sadie just plain forgot the money was inside the vase).Meanwhile, there's a sub-plot involving Melissa, who has a meltdown over her alleged mistreatment at the hands of her porn industry boss, with level-headed Jane coming to her rescue. When Starlet drags out the purse containing the pilfered cash, Melissa discovers the stash and decides to help herself to a few hundred for a few car down payments. Jane of course doesn't even notice. Eventually, the second act crisis involves Melissa, in a fit of jealousy, revealing to Sadie that Jane took her money.Jane and Melissa perhaps represent the dichotomy in the adult entertainment world. Porn actresses such as Jane, despite their involvement in a world that many consider sleazy, can still operate with their head above water. Case in point: her humanitarian concern for Sadie. Melissa, on the other hand, represents the dark side of porn--she is narcissistic, angry, jealous and vindictive. Mikey perhaps is more the comic relief--even both Jane and Melissa find that the pole he installs in the living room (for pole dancing), is ridiculous.Starlet's central problem is the poorly developed Sadie. She's played by Besedka Johnson, a neophyte, discovered at a local YWCA gym. Johnson can do little with a character that is so one-note and who we find out so little about. Some may find the relationship between Jane and Sadie to be touching but ultimately it really doesn't go anywhere. I would go so far as to say that the appeal of the relationship is strictly sentimental at its core. Nonetheless, Sadie's decision not to listen to Melissa's tirade against Jane, and ending up going with her to Paris, is proof of the film's inherent optimism. In the end, my feelings about 'Starlet' are ambivalent. I found the scenes involving the machinations within the adult entertainment world to be somewhat interesting. Less so with the perfunctory relationship between Jane and Sadie. 'Starlet' wins points because it suggests that even a porn actress can have a good heart. It also does well in examining the flip side: the aforementioned dark side of porn, embodied by the character of Melissa. Ultimately, the relationship between the principals proves to be too ordinary and lugubrious, to be considered dramatically effective.