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Smooth Talk Photos

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Movie Info

Fifteen-year-old Connie (Laura Dern) spends the summer before her sophomore year fixating on getting male attention. While her mother, Katherine (Mary Kay Place), nags her about painting the house and favors her older sister, Connie spends her days going to the mall with her friends. One day, while the rest of her family is having a barbeque, Connie is confronted at home by a handsome, dangerous stranger, Arnold Friend (Treat Williams), who has been watching her.
  • Rating:
    PG-13
  • Genre:
    drama
  • Original Language:
    English
  • Director:
    Joyce Chopra
  • Producer:
    Martin Rosen
  • Writer:
    Tom Cole
  • Release Date (Streaming):
  • Runtime:

Cast & Crew

Laura Dern
Connie
Treat Williams
Arnold Friend
Mary Kay Place
Katherine
Margaret Welsh
Laura
Sara Inglis
Jill
Levon Helm
Harry
Elizabeth Berridge
June
Geoff Hoyle
Ellie
Joyce Chopra
Director
Tom Cole
Screenwriter
Lindsay Law
Executive Producer
Martin Rosen
Producer
Russ Kunkel
Original Music
George Massenburg
Original Music
Bill Payne
Original Music
James Glennon
Cinematographer
Patrick Dodd
Film Editor
Mary Colquhoun
Casting
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Critic Reviews for Smooth Talk

All Critics (18) | Top Critics (4) | Fresh (16) | Rotten (2)

  • Throughout, Joyce Chopra patiently and shrewdly observes the contradictions of human behavior that Laura Dern brilliantly conveys.

    November 1, 2020 | Rating: 3.5/4 | Full Review…

    Jake Cole

    Slant Magazine

  • The film's power is enormous throughout; spare means (long-held closeups, a four-minute take of sisterly confessions) evoke a drama that seems to have been filmed holding its breath.

    September 18, 2020 | Full Review…

    Richard Brody

    New Yorker

  • The movie is almost uncanny in its self-assurance, in the way it knows that the first hour, where 'nothing' happens, is necessary if the payoff is to be tragic, instead of merely sensational.

    January 1, 2000 | Rating: 3.5/4 | Full Review…

    Roger Ebert

    Chicago Sun-Times

  • Plays uncomfortably like two movies jammed into one.

    January 1, 2000 | Full Review…

    Dave Kehr

    Chicago Reader

  • Intimate, incisive and very specific American drama...

    February 27, 2021 | Full Review…

    Norman Wilner

    NOW Toronto

  • Chopra has a precise eye for the vagaries of young adulthood, an Dern perfectly embodies the push-pull between Connie's curiosity and desire and the often-intimidating reality of adulthood.

    November 17, 2020 | Full Review…

    Dan Schindel

    Hyperallergic
View All Critic Reviews (18)

Audience Reviews for Smooth Talk

  • Jun 01, 2009
    The main thing that even made this movie watchable is that Laura Dern was sexy.
    Chosen 7 Super Reviewer
  • Mar 11, 2009
    I was expecting this to be a fun 80's teen movie, so I got a bit of a shock by the turn it actually took. One of the most chilling and believable films I have seen about being a teenager. The silly girls in this really rang true to some of the girls I grew up with in the 80's and I was really impressed with Laura Dern. I wonder why it wasn't more well known, I had actually never heard of this until recently, and I love 80's films, particularly the teen variety. I don't remember anything about this from when I was growing up. Perhaps it was more popular over in the US. Well worth a look for anyone who likes this genre, who, like me, may have missed out on it first time around.
    Nicki M Super Reviewer
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