Caviar, Caviar Films, Cold Iron Pictures,
Bel Powley, Alexander Skarsgård, Christopher Meloni, Kristen Wiig
Minnie (Bel Powley) is a teenage girl living with single mom Charlotte (Kristen Wiig) in San Francisco in 1974. It was a time of rampant drugs and free love, and Minnie is full of curiosity. She is estranged from her father, and Mom is dating he latest boyfriend, Monroe (Alexander Skarsgard) when she notices he is paying attention to her. Ever the tease, Minnie flirts with him until they are in the midst of a full blown affair, but unable to control herself, once the devil is unleashed, Minnie branches out to anyone who will pay her any attention. Things blow up nicely when Mom figures it all out, and Minnie is out on her own trying to work it all out in this harsh and uncomfortable coming of age story in a strange period of our history.
This film is very uncomfortable. It does not pull punches, and it hits us in the gut from start to finish. Never flinching, it is very difficult to watch this, as we certainly feel like we are intruding. It was a difficult time to be a child in San Francisco during these years, and it was even harder to figure out how to manage to grow up unscathed in this unsettling time. This is a painful story to watch, and you really feel like you’re eavesdropping on something that should not be seen. It’s very bleak and direct to the point. My heart went out to Minnie as she felt ugly and unappreciated, and longing so fast to grow up and become like her Mother which was a very low goal to reach for. The film feels confined and small as it’s shot with very limited locations and settings and is based on the dialog and the events of the story, not beautiful photography and scenery. It almost feels like it is in black and white as it is very stark. Well put together, but it’s not going to suit everyone due to the harsh nature of the story, and it’s very realistic. Be warned that this film does everything in its power to pull the R rating that it well deserved. Critics are harsh, but I understand where they’re coming from, but at the same time I understand that this is based on life in the 70’s in the hippie community, and being a school age person in that time period must have been very disconcerting, especially without a father figure and with friends egging her along. Yes, it’s not the kind of experience I lived through in that period in a small community where drugs were not present, and behavior like this was still rare, and a major scandal, but it’s interesting seeing how a female handles being pushed into this crazy world without any real guidance or assistance. Actually the performances were really good, but it is still an uncomfortable story to tell or to watch. Buyer beware!
EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog
