MrGKB
...which is to say, a better script. "Safelight" is by no means a terrible film, but despite honest efforts from a talented ensemble headed up by Evan "American Horror Story" Peters and Juno "Killer Joe" Temple, the story fails to truly engage. The characters are a little too stock, their situations a little too bland and cliché to be memorable. Sadly, we've pretty much seen this all before. Impaired youth befriends broken flower, who inspires his special talent while inspiring herself to break her own bondage. The end. Ms. Temple makes the best of her mistaken choice of scripts, and it's always fun to see solid actors like Jason "Monkey Shines" Beghe and Christine "Ladies and Gentlemen, the Fabulous Stains" Lahti get work on the big screen, but it's just not enough. I suppose "Safelight" is a reasonably competent calling card for auteur Tony Aloupis, but he still needs to step up his game. I followed this one up with another under-the-radar indie of a very similar nature, "Spring," which I would have to rate as at least marginally better than this one; neither one is essential viewing by any means, but if you can catch them for free, you'll do okay.
katieandersonsmith
Some movies are so bad, I feel embarrassed even watching them alone. Safelight is one of those movies.Most of the acting was horrible, (although the two leads were usually adequate) the cookie-cutter characters were shallow and unlikely and the script was absolutely AWUL. The story was boring; It was hard to care what happened or who it happened to. The scenes of family members fighting were cringingly melodramatic. The scene with the mom cackling with her girlfriends at the bar made me want to stick my face under a lawnmower. What gang of idiots WROTE this?! I have never posted a review before but I feel a personal responsibility to warn you of this train wreck. Unless you have a morbid appreciation for terrible movies, AVOID. This movie is unbelievably, painfully, dangerously, SO embarrassingly bad.
Larry Silverstein
This indie drama won't appeal to everyone, but I found it to be a decent watch, buoyed by quite the believable acting. Evan Peters is excellent in his portrayal of Charles, a shy 17-year-old aspiring photographer, who's had a physical disability since birth and thus walks with a decided limp. The underrated and talented actress Juno Temple co-stars as Vicki, a sexy 18-year-old hooker, operating out of a truck stop and motel, adjacent to the convenience store where Charles works.They have both had most difficult upbringings, and although seemingly far-fetched, a friendship and even a possible relationship develops between the two teens. Their bonding is heightened when Vicki helps Charles take photos of lighthouses along the California coastline for a school project, and I thought the chemistry between the two worked well.As mentioned, the supporting cast here is quite solid, with Christine Lahti playing Peg, a tough-talking and vibrant woman, who manages the store where Charles works and is a constant source of encouragement to him. Additionally, Kevin Alejandro is certainly believable as Vicki's "psycho" pimp Skid, and Kevin Beghe adds well to the mix as Eric, Charles' supportive but ailing father.All in all, this movie, written and directed by Tony Aloupis, can seem incredulous at times, but, as mentioned, buoyed by solid acting, kept my interest and I felt it was a decent watch. I must add that I wasn't thrilled with the ending here, as it seemed abrupt and, I thought, left some key plot elements unexplained.
zif ofoz
And no light! Nowhere in the movie do you see a lighthouse at night with it's light on. The lighthouse light is a warning, a guide, for the seafarer to keep the ship safe. So what's with the name? The movie should have been titled "Lighthouse" because that's where Charles & Viki felt safe during the day. At night it was back to being the solo truck stop hooker for her and store stock boy for him and dealing with the local thugs and her crazy pimp.Why did Juno Temple do this part? Why did she appear in this flick? She is Juno Temple and this role is beneath her talents and she looked like she knew it. Her role is lifeless as Viki, Evan Peters is lifeless as Charles, and Skid (the pimp character) is more a demon possessed clown, than a mean tough guy.And to top it off, suddenly the story ends. I didn't get it.
AD
