Lovelace - C

Rated R, 92 minutes

Intriguing but unsatisfying "Lovelace" lacks passion, energy

Amanda Seyfried as Linda Lovelace

"Lovelace," the new drama about one of the world's first porn stars, Linda Lovelace, is an interesting look at the alluring star and while it has an all-star cast and captures the look of the early 1970s, it lacks a magic that will captivate audiences as much as the real Lovelace did. 
Escaping a strict religious family, Linda Boreman (Amanda Seyfried) discovered freedom and the highlife when she fell for and married charismatic hustler Chuck Traynor (Peter Sarsgaard), who turned her into porn star Linda Lovelace following her big break in "Deep Throat." "Lovelace" is a mediocre, somewhat low-key and depressing look at the star that's in need of a better script and direction. The script and tone are uneven as it frequently shifts time periods, before, during and after "Deep Throat." Directed by Oscar-winning documentary filmmakers Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman ("Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt"), they're seemingly the wrong choice for something like this, and much like other true-life stories, some key details of Lovelace's real story is glossed over; for example they make it seem that "Deep Throat" was Lovelace's introduction to the porn industry though in fact she and Traynor had some experience with that prior to "Deep Throat." The cast performs well, though a better actress than Seyfried would've made "Lovelace" much more beguiling; Seyfried, a lovely actress who needs careful direction, doesn't quite carry off the role, but there are many A-list character actors who are more memorable, including Sarsgaard, Bobby Cannavale, Hank Azaria and even Sharon Stone, in a small, unrecognizable role as Lovelace's strict mother. As for the sex scenes, they're carefully handled and very tame considering this is a film about the porn industry (all you get here is a few topless shots but that's it), though "Lovelace" does capture the vintage, washed-out 1970s look with the bushy hair and flowing, colorful clothes. Outside of that, the vapid "Lovelace" is an unsatisfying, bland look at someone who helped usher in the porn age.

Wes's Grade: C