SXSW 2014: ‘STARRY EYES’ Review

SXSW Review: “STARRY EYES”

Plenty of film will have you believe ambition is sexy. Desperation may reek, but the indefatigable drive forward and up is admirable. STARRY EYES, however ambiguously, seeks to challenge that as directors Kevin Kolsch and Dennis Widmyer cast long and dark shadows over a “nothing to something” Hollywood tale replete with defilement, rot, graphic murder and the occult. Want to achieve something great? Want to show them all? A sacrifice is required. It’s likely your humanity.

What’s surprising about STARRY EYES is the ultimate agency with which Sarah Walker (Alex Essoe) possesses in her grotesque journey. Having rejected the shuddery sexual advances of a producer that could make her dreams come true, she at least partially understands the ugliness seemingly necessary in getting where she needs to be. What takes her by violent, repulsive storm is the ugliness that arises within herself. Sarah’s body is revolting as she forsakes the DIY artistry of her circle of friends who all live in one apartment complex, and operate as a kind of commune. No, she’s striking out on her own, giving herself over to a Hollywood system portrayed quite literally as a cult and frighteningly transforming in the process.

STARRY EYES is already a nightmarish and nightmare logic-fueled portrait of actor life prior to Sarah’s full submission however. The aspiring actress is subject to leering from her boss at a sleazy fast food joint—one with odd correlation to Kenny Powers and Stevie’s sexy potato skins mall kiosk in the final season of EASTBOUND AND DOWN. A series of new auditions are aggressive and invasive, prodding more than cosmetic flaws and getting to the core of her ticks and anxieties, coaxing a screaming, hair-pulling fit from her. Another session, also presided over by a wonderfully strange Maria Olsen and Marc Senter, is a powerful bit of stroboscopic assault for Sarah and the audience alike. At home, she’s subject to pettiness and undercutting from fellow starlet Erin (Fabianne Therese), as they both command the attention of indie director Danny (Noah Segan).

Outside of human interaction, Sarah is surrounded by grey. Los Angeles is nothing of the sunny good time we expect, but more akin to that portrayed in MULHOLLAND DRIVE. Instead, it’s foreboding and imposing, but also seductive. That contrast is part of directing team Kolsch and Widmyer employing heavy, heavy style in STARRY EYES, visually incorporating Sarah’s stresses, hallucinations and surreal ordeal and backing it all with something of a sexy, electronic score.

An undeniably ambitious film, STARRY EYES isn’t always fluid in navigating the many elements of its Hollywood horror show. There’s quite a lot to take in, as the filmmakers are plainly attempting to pack the film with all the monstrousness they and their team have likely experienced in the trenches. The result is partly ironic, as the character suffering so much to be a star doesn’t feel as if she fully gets the spotlight, despite a gross, gripping journey and a superb turn from Essoe.

Not dissimilar from this year’s Sundance hit WHIPLASH, STARRY EYES refuses to look away from a character willing to go an immensely horrifying distance for her desires. Kolsch and Widmyer are clearly attuned to the pitch black nature that consumes Sarah but, like the alluring score, there’s something stirring in her eventual transformation of living through an actor’s worst cosmetic nightmare and still forcibly taking what she wants.

SXSW Review: Starry Eyes is a Great Look at the Transformative Side of Hollywood

Juggling both that aforementioned ambition and the film’s grotesque nature is Alexandra Essoe who turns in finely-tuned performance as the anxious and slightly unhinged Sarah. Like so many living in Los Angeles, Sarah is an aspiring actress seeking fame. She spends her days working at a restaurant (Pat Healy makes a fun appearance as the establishment’s manager) while waiting for the next audition to come along. She’s got a core group of friends, all representing various walks of Hollywood life – from her supportive roommate to the insecure friend also forging her way in the world of acting to the young director (Noah Segan) channeling his art through independent means. This canvas of characters stuck in career limbo is a pretty spot-on portrait of, as the film says, people who talk about doing something instead of actually doing it.

SXSW Movie Review: blind ambition leads to demonic possession in 'Starry Eyes'

With "Starry Eyes," the duo of Widmyer and Kölsch blend up traditional horror genre elements, including demonic possession and bodily transformation, with suspense thriller tropes, while mixing in some 1970s Grindhouse movie moments involving babes in bikinis at the pool and working at a Hooters-esque fast-food joint.
The filmmakers also pour on the requisite blood and gore to satisfy most horror fans while spinning their morality tale about blind ambition in Hollywood.
Suffice to say, the movie's enduring message can most eloquently be summed up in a scene during which Sarah bashes one of her actress friend's face in with a dumbell.

Review: Starry Eyes (2014)

Any struggling artist will immediately identify with Sarah’s plight. How far would you go in chasing your dream? One of the many things that makes Starry Eyes so special is that it doesn’t just make its protagonist relatable, but it doesn’t unfairly treat her for the sake of torture porn and needless violence. We understand the reasoning behind the decisions she makes and the consequences that follow. We don’t despise Sarah. In fact in many ways we feel sorry for her, but in so many other ways we can’t help but root for her. Credit should be given to Kevin Kolsh and Dennis Widmyer for writing such a great character, but Alex Essoe deserves triple the praise. The effectiveness of the movie rests entirely on her shoulders, and she effortlessly carries the movie and makes it soar. It’s one of the best lead lead performances to be found in a horror film in recent memory.

Starry Eyes is a movie that recalls the likes of Polanski, Aronofsky, Lynch and other landmark directors. Multiple times during the film I was reminded of Ti West’s House of the Devil. However, the movie completely belongs to Kolsch and Widmyer. While they might have the assured steadiness of Polanski or the lurking creepiness of Lynch (the movie is heavily influenced by Mulholland Drive), there is no mistaking that this is an original work that is in no way ripping off or copying previous directors’ work. This is an exciting and brilliant work of originality, a possession movie that examines our society’s obsession with fame. Kolsch and Widmyer have crafted something special. Fans of violent and cerebral horror films owe it to themselves to see this film.

[BD Review] 'Starry Eyes' Is Ambitious, Violent and Thoughtful

While you could probably correctly guess the basic trajectory of the film from here on out, Widmyer and Kolsch do an admirable job of keeping the audience on their toes by constantly shifting the tone of the film depending on which part of Sarah’s life they’re depicting. Her struggles as a waiter at a potato joint with Hooters aspirations alternate between stark and comedic (aided in no small measure by Pat Healy’s turn as a sympathetic manager – an archetype I was pleased to see subverted). The casting sessions and subsequent interactions with Astraeus are, as hinted before, marked by a cold absurdist streak right out of Mulholland Drive. The moments we get with her alone are painful, sweet and quiet while her circle of friends sort of melds the intimacy of mumblecore with the makeshift community of “Melrose Place.”

FEARNET Movie Review: 'Starry Eyes' [SXSW 2014]

But if Starry Eyes is simply an old story about morality and immortality that's being re-told with a new perspective, and it is, then kudos to the filmmakers for re-telling the story with some innovation. Whether or not you can predict where Sarah's unpleasant journey is headed, leading lady Alex Essoe is an absolute revelation. The newcomer has to run through a dozen different extremes in this movie -- from adorable to haunted to horrific to horrified -- and she never slows down or misses a note. That Starry Eyes offers uniformly strong work from its supporting cast (particularly Noah Segan as a wannabe producer who actually has a decent side, and Amanda Fuller, as a roommate who is clearly conflicted about Sarah's disturbing behavior) is crucial to the film's success, but it's Ms. Essoe who deserves most of the spotlight in this ensemble.

Starry Eyes is elevated immeasurably by its leading lady, but the darkly insightful screenplay also "nails" the Hollywood aspirant archetype perfectly, the flick never stays in one place for too long, and it closes with a third act that works as psychological horror, Grand Guignol, and a nightmarish tragedy all at the same time. This might not be the first time you've heard the "deal with the devil" set-up, but hey; Starry Eyes deftly illustrates the ways in which Hollywood can turn a sweet, fractured girl into a egomaniacal monster. Actors often talk about putting their soul on the screen, and here's a harsh horror movie that shows what that might look like.

STARRY EYES – SXSW 2014 Movie Review

I think for me the film really began to fall during the 2nd act.  I enjoyed the audition scenes (except for the use of strobe lights, it came off as lazy) particularly the performance of Marc Senter (Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever) as one of the casting agents.  The tension between Sarah and the casting agents was great.  It was the bright spot of the film .   Once the producer was introduced (Louis Dezseran) the film began to loose sight of itself and became more of a project to fit in differing horror genre facets than a solid, singular story.  Dezseran’s character came off as a caricature.  His performance had the feel of a cartoon villain.  His introduction into the film ushered in the occult spin in the movie that was never explained, depicted well or given any relevant screen time.  It was just thrown in.  The 3rd act tossed out all traction built from the previous acts and became a B movie horror story consisting of predictable horror movie scenes and silly, over-the-top violence.  An example of said scene is during Sarah’s body transformation.  To depict her body’s painful breakdown the film shows her removing a single fingernail from her hand, an over-used tactic in horror movies.

For a movie with an original story and strong beginning it quickly became forgettable.  I question the filmmaker’s decision to not utilize Pat Healy.  His screen presence is unquestionable and he is a proven talent.  I would like to have seen him in a larger role.  Not all was bad with this film.  Alex Essoe’s performance was strong.  She carried the film with her physical acting and minimal dialog.  She engaged the audience with the ever thrashing of her body and metamorphosis from beauty to beast.  There is a depth to her that needs to be displayed in more films.

I hate to beat down on a film knowing the amount of work and sacrifices made to complete the project.  Unfortunately Starry Eyes never lives up to the hype surrounding the film and delivers a flat performance, like a monotone actress at an audition for Glee.  

SXSW 2014 Review: Starry Eyes

I’m extremely impressed with Starry Eyes, from Jonathan Snipes‘ entrancing score to the exquisite cinematography by Adam Bricker, but it’s Essoe’s transformative, otherworldly performance that elevates Widmyer and Kolsch’s film to must-see material. Essoe is able to show Sarah at her weakest and most vulnerable before effortlessly shifting into something indestructible – fueled by an ambition and confidence that is unquestioned. Essoe is brilliant in this film – so much so that you may question if she did, in fact, sell her soul to Satan [no judgement].

Starry Eyes is a fantastic horror film that depicts Hollywood as a frightening landscape of failed hopes, crushed dreams, and corrupted morality – so basically, what Hollywood is really like. Starry Eyes is the best horror film of 2014 thus far – a movie so fresh and inspired that it makes me believe there’s still some life (or death) left in this genre after all.