Director: Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, Peter Sarsgaard, Hank Azaria, Juno Temple, Adam Brody, James Franco, Chris Noth, Bobby Cannavale, Wes Bentley, Robert Patrick, Eric Roberts, Chloe Sevigny, Sharon Stone
Certificate: 18
Running time: 89 minutes
Extras: Behind Lovelace
I have to admit that before watching LOVELACE I knew very little about the eponymous Miss Lovelace and her sensational adult film DEEP THROAT. However, not only is the film packed full of facts and details about her troublesome life, it will make you want to go forth and discover more. With a hint of melancholy from beginning to end, much to the surprise of some (including me) Linda’s foray into pornography only lasted for 17 days.
Linda Boreman (Seyfried), a shy, humble ‘good girl’, spent her days secretly smoking and hanging out with best friend Patsy (Temple). One evening the pair decide to volunteer as dancers at their local rollerskating rink, with Linda attracting the attention of mustachioed Chuck Traynor (Sarsgaard). As things start to get serious between the pair, Linda faces her future with now-husband Chuck when she bails him out of jail after he’s caught soliciting prostitution. With little money and fewer prospects of earning it, Chuck forces his young wife into selling herself, with him realizing the ‘potential’ Linda holds, arranging an audition with porn producers soon after. Possessing ‘talents’ that the directors couldn’t imagine, Linda was cast in DEEP THROAT, creating the stage name ‘Linda Lovelace’, something which would follow her until her death in 2002. As Traynor discovers the power he has over Linda, she starts to seek solace with her mother (Stone), only to be told that wives should ‘obey their husbands’.
One of the strongest components of LOVELACE is the high standard of acting seen throughout. Seyfried, singing starlet of musicals MAMMA MIA! and LES MISERABLES, stuns from beginning to end, switching from joyful laughter to savage screaming on cue. Linda’s story demands attention to detail and a sense of sympathy, particularly in terms of her relationship with Traynor, something which Seyfried and Sarsgaard create with minimal effort. Amanda’s huge doe eyes convey such emotion it’s hard to believe that someone managed to survive Chuck’s style of marriage. Accompanied by a stellar supporting cast, including James Franco as Playboy founder Hugh Hefner, LOVELACE definitely goes through the motions.
Harrowing from the start, Seyfried is the centre of attention for the full 89 minutes. An outstanding portrayal of one woman’s struggle for freedom, only to have it snatched away by the ‘sanctity’ of marriage and the poison of the porn industry.
LOVELACE is released on DVD and Blu-ray from 23rd December via Lionsgate
