Starlet Reviews

...has a sunny SoCal vibe that belies its tawdry milieu

Full Review | Original Score: 88/100

Their friendship goes nowhere you might expect - Sadie doesn't teach Jane any hard-won life lessons, and Jane doesn't try to rekindle Sadie's lost youth. There are no montages here.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4

Either avoids or transcends nearly every cliché we've come to associate with American independent film.

Full Review | Original Score: B+

No amount of strong acting, however, can entirely compensate for the dramatic conveniences or every shrill appearance by Jane's cartoonishly despicable roommates.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5

Baker effectively juxtaposes two vastly different worlds, though he never makes the case that either is as significant as the gauzy visuals suggest.

Full Review

"Starlet" is achingly sad, shrewdly funny, and shockingly honest.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5

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.

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/5.0

This is confident, engrossing storytelling, and the actors are terrific.

Full Review

Starlet sneaks up on you.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4

Hemingway's very good at taking a girl who often seems like an insufferable L.A. stereotype and shading a range of values and feelings that exist somewhere in those thigh-high socks.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4

Where it counts, "Starlet" ... allows its characters room to maneuver within the potential cliches.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4

The film itself deserves praise for its portraits of these two women and the different worlds they inhabit.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4

Sean Baker's Starlet almost miraculously transcends this story's cornball trappings, with a minor-key muted humanism and bruised emotions roiling just beneath the surface. It's a hushed marvel of a movie.


Full Review

...consistently surprising in the way it mingles tender emotions with inherent tawdriness, casually incorporating graphic sex scenes with touching moments of innocent human interaction.

Full Review | Original Score: A-

The plotline is unpromising - young porn actress befriends crotchety old lady - and the setup is underwhelming. But stick with "Starlet," and you'll reap unexpected rewards.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4

The film is about as indie as indie movies get, with a homemade, washed-out look that drives home the genuineness of the performances.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5

Sean Baker's amiably oblique Starlet finds fresh ways to tell a familiar story.

Full Review

This slender film is bolstered by strong performances, particularly from Hemingway (daughter of Mariel) and her 85-year-old co-star.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4

Convincing performances from Hemingway and the charmingly crabby Johnson and an unhurried pace ensure that Baker's film achieves its modest goals.

Full Review | Original Score: B

A pair of powerful lead performances by big-screen newcomers boost this unassuming low-budget character study.

Full Review