Bare — the understated beauty of simplicity and indie film-making.
(This post has also been uploaded to awkwardcanadian)
I’ve been needing a movie like this — one that manages to finally let Dianna Agron step out of her Glee-encased shell and show the world that she is talented, passionate, and as capable of anything as much as any other female lead. Hollywood is tough though, and this movie carries evidence of that struggle loud and clear.
This movie plays to its strengths as much as it can, which ends up creating a very surreal landscape for an array of already controversial topics. In watching this film, I felt refreshed by the end of it, as if I had been swimming through murky water, or having just woken up after a long nap. I love indie films. There’s a masterful art in creating an indie film that doesn’t simply drive an audience away with how raw and simple it is, effectively lacking the shine and glamour of Hollywood blockbusters.
Dianna Agron takes the lead in this film, alongside Paz de la Huerta, both of whom stunned and moved me with their performances. Prior to this film, I tried to familiarize myself a little bit with de la Huerta’s other acting works and I was already very familiar with Ms. Agron’s acting jobs (Glee, I am Number 4, The Family). I had some expectations — all of which ended up being surpassed anyway. I must emphasize that Dianna Agron’s performance was absolutely breathtaking. I hadn’t seen her acting at this caliber ever, which made for an even more beautiful and wholly satisfying viewing experience. In contrast, de la Huerta was disconcerting, moody, and mysterious in her role as Pepper, who brought discomfort and a stark, much-needed change to a mundane life. She was a woman who had seen too much, been too far and desperately needed some kind of anchor. Agron’s performance as the lead eclipses de la Huerta’s in terms of the level emotional vulnerability and her personal characterization.
The film is primarily about Sarah (Agron), who finds herself rather disenchanted with her quiet and disheartening life in a small town in the Nevada desert. The plot is linear and straightforward: Sarah is surrounded by dreary people and from the get-go and the viewer is meant to understand that she desperately needs a change of sorts from the way she gazes despondently at the old, young, and middle-aged people that surround her. The movie attempts to portray this fear of being stuck in a small town and the paradox of making no immediate action to fix it. Pepper (de la Huerta) is the catalyst that sends her spiraling out of her monotony and into a psychedelic, surreal world. In movies, there are very often moments that bring the user full circle through some kind of stark comparison or stark contrast — something that this movie does beautifully. With the imagery found only in a small town contrasted against bright lights, the movie touches upon strippers, addiction, and a lesbian relationship in a rather beautiful, artful, and female-friendly way. I must emphasize the ‘female-friendly’ part because I thought it was wonderfully done. I’m sure elements of the film will spark conversation and perhaps controversy — and I hope it does, because it would not have been effective and worthwhile otherwise.
Agron is convincing in her role of a lost, young adult who has little to no direction in life. She knows what she wants, but apparently has no way to get to it and almost on cue, mentions a previous failed attempt at escape from the dreary town.
“One thing that I’ve learned is true is that if you don’t make your own choices in life, the world will make them for you,” Pepper tells Sarah lazily amidst the precipice of a changing and growing relationship.
This paints the picture — albeit a limited one — of Sarah’s own life, as if it is an epiphany. Limited is something at which this film excels (take that as you will). It flows slowly through all her shortcomings and successes, where its pacing feels like dragging feet through warm sand — strangely comforting, but cannot be prolonged. There is something unsettling about the film itself, a problem which lies in the pacing of the narrative. It works in parts where it is dragged out, but often jumps from moment to moment in an erratic way. It has a lot of expectations for the viewer to create connections and assumptions for its plot and characters, which is both damaging and refreshing for a movie.
About the benefits of an indie film
Despite some shortcomings in the general pacing of the writing, I ended up thoroughly immersed in the world that Natalia Leite had created. Leite also has film credits as the director and one of the producers (other producers: Alexandra Leite, Chad Burris). Kudos to the Purple Milk team for a film born through perseverance and sheer passion. This world — this limited world — confined to the surroundings of a young lady who struggles to find some kind of stability in a town that gives her so little…I have not found many movies that offer the same kind of portraiture. It’s the kind that you can only find through a love for film-making and the love for a story that deserves to be told. Some parts are rather overwhelming to all the senses, with too much happening; at one point, the expected conflict and resulting denouement happen as suddenly as Pepper’s initial appearance at the beginning of the film. This turn of events marked yet another change to Sarah’s life, which does exactly what the viewer might expect.
The beauty of it all, though, was how much it stays true to its indie roots and doesn’t try to be anything it was not. It told a rather straightforward story, with all the clichés and stereotypes of “small-town girl desires more than what her town offers” but it offers enough surprises through its visual beauty to make up for that hang-up.
7/10, would watch again.
You can rent the movie on iTunes — currently only in the USA.
*This post has been edited as of November 13, 2015.
