Lovelace
Deep Throat? Deep disappointment? Or is Amanda in deep shit?…
Its 1972, America. And the hair is huge. (so is everything else..) We’re quickly introduced to a free-spirited young doll named Linda. Linda Lovelace. A name which will soon resonate throughout history.
Its pretty much straightforward – Linda and her friend Patsy go about enjoying life, until one night they’re at a roller-disco. If these two hadn’t offered to get up and be stage dancers for the DJ, Linda would never have met Chuck – the manipulative man who turned her entire life upside-down..
Linda is quickly swept off her feet by this new man in her life, and they seem content – until Chuck gets her to star in porn. From the first camera click, our naive girly is trapped – in both love and work. The poor thing had no idea what was about to ‘hit’ her.
Let me begin by thanking Amanda Seyfried for jumping out of her straight-haired, ‘sort of good girl’ image. Normally we see this actress head-to-toe in a long white gown whilst cheekily smiling and clutching her hands together – before getting married, or whispering from a balcony how much she adores her beau. Not THIS time. This time Amanda was raw. Naked.
The whole controversy of ‘Deep Throat’ and its effect it had on Linda Lovelace is fascinating – there was so much more to her life than people knew; I got the Marilyn Monroe feeling whilst watching this – OK, porn is very different, but its that whole thing of “putting on a face for the world, when inside she’s broken”.
‘Lovelace’ is a shocking portrayal of the before, during and after – and is as funny as it is sad. One scene had most of us audience laughing out loud; where during filming ‘Deep Throat’ Linda’s co-star peaks too soon out of excitement. She lifts her head and asks “did I do something wrong?”
Set-wise, its bloody amazing. The bright yellow & orange flowery wallpaper, the telephones & TV’s, even the vacuum cleaner – are all spot on. Added to the set is the faint 70’s-like glow of lighting, creating even more convincing surroundings. It actually gave the appearance of being filmed in the 70’s.
Cast-wise: Great. And rather different seeing Sharon Stone as a ragged old mother (I mean ragged too – her skin is practically falling off)
I knew nothing about this woman or her life before I watched ‘Lovelace’ – but now I just feel sorry for her. It showed that as well as being exploited, some of these women who enter the world of (what they think) is sex & fun, are actually treated like shit. (I wonder if the Gay porn industry is like that.. although saying that, you’d probably have both gays going at each other with their handbags, not just the one)
Very good blending toward the end of the movie, where Amanda plays out Linda’s TV talk show interview – I believe the clips of the audience and presenter were genuine footage, and if so they threaded it together well.
All in all, an emotional watch and if Linda Lovelace was anything like Amanda Seyfried portrayed, then she absolutely nailed it.
..and yes. I started crying.
Note for potential viewers: If you’re the type to get embarrassed or you’re concerned about the whole sex thing – DON’T. Yes there is sex and sexual references, but its not uncomfortable; on the contrary – us audience were all laughing in hilarity, not nervousness.
(the only reason I sometimes got nervous is when I suddenly realised I was stroking the bottle I took to the cinema – yes, I always stroke it, it wasn’t because of the movie)
8/10
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