The_Boxing_Cat I can't understand how this movie scored 7/10. It's just awful, just awful. Bad script Bad direction. Basically a bore fest. The acting sux - a second grader could have done better, the worst by far is Negri. Robert Vaughn as a stroke victim is the exception. How could you not like him!Z3

leenyc99-1 In Negri's quiet film debut, you feel as if you're entering her character's living room and watching the actions play out in a very intimate way, as if you're part of the family . Negri and Robert Vaughn give strong, understated performances that feel truthful and pull you in close. The film has so many beautiful and tender moments that feel very personal, even autobiographical. I think it's an amazing debut achievement with a distinct voice and I look forward to future titles by this director.

Theresa Basile It's not easy to make a compelling film about a character who's mired in inaction, but Gold Star achieves that with a thoughtful and moving portrayal of a woman moving adrift through her life until a family emergency forces her to uproot her current situation and make some immediate changes.There has been much conversation among feminist and artist circles about the importance of telling stories about complex women - women who are flawed and real and not necessarily "likable" in the traditional sense. Vicki is that kind of character we're looking for. She resents having to change her life to help take care of her father, even though her life was unfulfilling. She's brittle and caustic to people who don't deserve it. But she's also unhappy and lost, wanting answers without knowing the right questions to ask. As a director, Victoria Negri shows several scenes of Vicki lying in bed, aimlessly looking over her phone, juxtaposed with scenes of her running faster and faster - towards what? We don't know, and neither does Vicki. Her journey to self-fulfillment has no easy answers. Vicki is both helped and hindered by the people in her life - by her family members, friends, and love interests. The character relationships make up the strongest aspect of this moving film. The love between her parents, played wonderfully by Catherine Curtin and the late Robert Vaughn in his last screen role, has none of the showiness of on-screen dramatic romances, and all of the tenderness, compassion, and devotion of a real-life married couple. Vicki's relationship with her mother, relatively honest with open communication, contrasts with the more distant relationship with her father, which changes and progresses realistically as she grows into her caregiving role and they understand each other better - ironically, after he's lost the ability to speak. Not enough can be said about the talent of Robert Vaughn, communicating so effectively with a wordless performance. This thoughtful, moving story is a truly impressive debut from Victoria Negri, who has definitely become a filmmaker to watch.

Michael Goldburg Victoria Negri's "Gold Star" is a beautifully shot, well-acted, and moving debut feature inspired by events in her own life. A twenty-something music school dropout, Vicki (exceptionally played by Negri herself) is aimless in her life until her father (played by Robert Vaughan, incredible in his final screen role) suffers a stroke and she becomes one of his reluctant caregivers. Drawing closer to her father, her mother (brilliantly played by Catherine Curtin), and ultimately herself, Vicki finally confronts the crossroads in her life, with a little help from a budding relationship with Chris (Jacob Heimer), who's struggling with his own personal demons. Full of authentic details and performances, "Gold Star" also employs poetic, lyrical visuals to frame Vicki's isolation at her dead-end job as well as her running in front of an omnipresent island off the Connecticut coast where the film was shot. Negri has mentioned "Five Easy Pieces" as an influence, and the comparison is apt. Both films have protagonists struggling with personal, existential crises while trying to connect with fathers who have suffered strokes. Vicki is ultimately more successful than Jack Nicholson's character as evident in the transcendent final scene of the film where Vaughan and Negri share an intimate moment, staring out across the ocean together. You get a real sense of Vicki finally becoming her true self, ironically through a deeper connection with her father.