Peter Sarsgaard and Amanda Seyfriend in ‘Lovelace’ (Courtesy of Radius-TWC)
Much as a movie about Deep Throat practically offers up the pun, it’s possible that Lovelace wasn’t meant to go as “deep” as it could have, though many critics have treated it otherwise.
Starring Amanda Seyfried as Linda Boreman, Lovelace explores two sides of history: how a reticent girl became the darling of America’s burgeoning porn industry in the early 70s, and, behind that facade, how her abusive husband Chuck Traynor (Peter Sarsgaard) made her a captive of the sexual liberation movement.
As can be expected for a made-for-TV biopic, the film cherrypicks its historical details and leaves the real Linda Boreman crucially underdeveloped, but that might be besides the point. This might be less about getting the facts straight than it is about moving the viewer, and the emotional truth of certain scenes rings loud and clear with a nuanced and affecting delivery by Seyfried.
Amanda Seyfried and James Franco in ‘Lovelace’ (Courtesy of Radius-TWC)
Of course, there’s a bigger elephant in the room in the form of the larger social construct on trial in this film. A couple of adult stars have spoken out against the misleading portrayal of an industry rife with abuses wont to be created by a movie like Lovelace (see Aurora Snow’s review in The Daily Beast and Conner Habib’s op-ed in Slate). To be sure, this is a movie about a woman who later went on to be a prominent anti-porn activist and feminist. But there’s little in the film that explicitly suggests that her story reflects the widespread experience of porn stars everywhere, especially as the industry stands today. Perversely enough, it’s the sleazy producers who wind up saving Linda from Chuck (or so the movie version of events goes).
Courtesy of Radius-TWC
At once captivating and predictable, Lovelace pulls all the usual triggers with its E! True Hollywood Story plot structure and its cursory denouement to a happy ending. There’s nothing quite as corny as having the main character’s aging parents tearfully come to terms with her struggles as they watch her discuss her life on a talk show. Then again, we certainly get a feel for what the real Linda Boreman experienced at various crucial points in her life, even if we don’t get the complete story. On a scale of one to “drink a large chai and then remain rooted to your seat for the duration of the film,” Lovelace is a “better doubled over in pain than having to run out on any of its riveting moments.”
Courtesy of Radius-TWC
Who should watch this film: Proponents of Boogie Nights, gender studies devotees, aspiring go go dancers, etc.
Who shouldn’t watch this film: Whoever said “we saw your boobs” or “well, what did you do to piss him off?”
Review by Steph Koyfman. Follow her on Twitter @stephkoyfman
