Women in Trouble

Women in Trouble

I like small independent films that are out of the norm.  That doesn’t mean I give them a pass if I don’t enjoy it.  ‘Women in Trouble’ is a film by Sebastian Gutierrez that follows the lives of ten disparate women who somehow have lives that are all interconnected.  These women include a famous porn star, a psychiatrist, a masseuse, a flight attendant, two call girls, a bartender, and others.  The only thing they have in common is that they are all “Women in Trouble”

            I try to have an open accepting mind, but I must confess that I felt a little pushed out by this movie.  The movie is about women and starring almost exclusively women.  The few men in the movie seemed to be more props than anything else (with the exception of Josh Brolin).  I wanted to feel a part, but the movie made it difficult. This movie is a comedy/drama of errors affecting the lives of all these women.  The intersections are complex and you find yourself half the time trying to map out all the connections.

            The center piece of the movie is Elektra Lux played by Carla Gugino, who in my opinion, is one of the best unheard of actresses out there.  She is a thinking man’s sex symbol (the title previously held by Lena Olin).  She always portrays strong, attractive, and unconsciously seductive women in her films (The Watchmen, Sin City).  In this film she plays Elektra Lux, a famous porn star who has just discovered she is pregnant.  She spends most of the movie stuck in an elevator, but the intersection of the women she knows provides the drive of the movie.  There are so many sub stories that it would be difficult to go through them all here. 

            The stand-out performances that are worth mentioning: 

Sarah Clarke as Maxine, the psychiatrist who discovers her husband is having an affair with one of her patients.  Ms Clarke really is able to convey the pain and hurt of someone who doesn’t want her marriage to be over yet can’t let go of the betrayal.  A strong and nuanced performance.

Adrianne Palicki plays Holly Rocket, a not-so-bright lesbian porn star who has trouble performing with women.   It takes some skill to play someone who is not the sharpest tool in the shed, yet still pulls empathy from the audience through her portrayal.  Adrianne does this skillfully.  She is a dismissible character at the beginning of the film, but as her story progresses you begin to feel for Holly and the struggles her life have brought upon her.  She is a decent person without the wits to make it successfully in the world.

The one notable male performance in the film ,which unfortunately doesn’t last more than 10 minutes, is Josh Brolin as the drugged-out British Rocker; Nick Chapel.  Nick is on a flight to the States from England, unaware that he is the father of Elektra Lux’s baby.  His slovenly attempts to renew his membership in the Mile High club with a stewardess is hilarious and he captures the character perfectly.  I’m amazed at how Josh has over-shadowed his father James Brolin’s career as an actor.  He truly is a fine actor and I see him only getting bigger.  His 10 minutes goes by too quickly.

The last performance I will mention is by Emmanuelle Chriqui (from Entourage fame) who plays Bambi.  She is a call girl who doesn’t realize that her air headed best friend Holly Rocket is in love with her.  Why would she?  Holly can’t do a lesbian love scene on camera, so she naturally assumes she must be straight.  Despite her name, Bambi is a street smart call girl who feels great sympathy for the psychiatrist Maxine’s marriage problems.  She has every reason to be dismissive of the upper class WASPy psychiatrist who under any other circumstance would be looking down upon her.  The bond of women in pain seems to win out and Bambi takes her under her wing.

Again, there were many other stories, but I could go on forever. I admired the complexity of this movie and how every story was connected, but there were so many that no story was truly developed.  The dialogue was smart, but there was something innately unsatisfying about the film.  I just felt they were quick glimpses with no real resolutions.  Also, it is difficult for the male perspective to appreciate the nuances of female relationships.

I’m going to give it some rating stars as I admire the attempt, concept, and craftsmanship, but ultimately I can’t say I enjoyed it.

I rate this movie ** ½ stars