Always Shine

When I started watching this film, I'll admit, I expected the Hollywood over-sexualized b-movie about girls in underwear and steamy showers... It was, as they say, "a breath of fresh air" to be able to watch a female-led film without having to cringe and sigh at over-sexualized interactions, and pointless nudity. This is a film with a focus on it's story! I'll be damned! Then, I turned to the internet to find out what the ending was supposed to mean (and you might too), and as it turns out, my (as mentioned) relief WAS the point- in a sense. I have watched a questionable amount of films in my lifetime (more so than my peers), however, I don't consider myself to be a film enthusiast. I do feel this film might need to be watched at least a couple times before you're able to make sense of some scenes, and thus believe this film will be more appreciated by film enthusiasts, but nonetheless would recommend watching. The themes of the film are refreshing, and I feel lucky to have lived in a time when a filmmaker could tell a story for what it is, and without the distractions (glamour, nudity, gore) needed to keep an audience's attention.

A Proud Indie Production that wears its Independence like so many Accessories on a Woman's Dresser. Every Shot and Line of Dialog Smacks of Profundity and is as Obvious as it is Agenda Driven. Unshackled Minority Baggage left over from Less Enlightened Times Resides and Clings to the Film and is a Brightly Lit Magnifying Mirror that Reflects its Frustrated Female Angst and is Relentless in the Narrative Drive to the Point of We Get the Point...Moving On...Please. The Movie Arrives at a Conclusion that Many will Find Familiar in the Schizo Sub Genre of the Psychological Thriller with Directors like Hitchcock, DePalma, Lynch and Others Peppering Their Filmography with the Likes of this one. It's too Heavy Handed and Obvious from the First Act that these Two Characters, formerly Best Friends are Going to Split at some Point because the Tension is Telling Us that. One Stares, Glares, and is Confrontational and the other Shrinks with Self-Deprecation Routinely. It's an Acting Showcase for Makenzie Davis and Caitlin Fitzgerald and both are Up to the Task and are Compelling. The Writer (Lawrence Michael Divine) and the Director (Sophia Takal) are Gaming a Well Worn System of Cinematic Clichés and Camera, Editing, Film Flourishes that are Signature Stylistic Touchstones from the Toolbox of other Filmmakers. Influence is a Kind Description of what Goes On here. It's a Good Try from just Getting Started Film Artists but while Their Creativity is Not in Doubt, Their Ability to Punctuate the Picture with a Period or an Exclamation Point leaves the Audience with a Frustrating Question Mark that makes for an Unsatisfying Conclusion for all the Hard Work.

It's a pretty good film, Caitlin FitzGerald and Mackenzie Davis did an excellent job and hold interest for most of the film. The whole thing is ruined by a poor ending which appears to be a patch to the whole film that doesn't belong there. It could have been much better. Still enjoyable to watch.

This movie was going along great until the last little bit. The end leaves you with a few questions. No one wants to constantly walk in the shadow of someone else. I would've had rated this higher if the ending had been more than what it was. Wasn't bad just didn't end right.

The two leads give fine performances in this hopeless mess of a movie.

This is an extremely simplistic version of Ingmar Bergman's "Persona". Actresses, identity questions and melting-downs, envy, craziness, but oh! so much less interesting and fun! There is an element of suspence from the start and the two protagonists are good. Good rythm, the photography is not bad. But it still falls short in every department. Overall not a loss of time, but you could as well invest it better for sure.

Two actresses take a break from L.A. and travel to a house in the country, the isolation brings to the surface dark emotions such as jealousy and distrust. Before long, events start to deteriorate badly. This psychological thriller is one of those which plays around with the concept of the unreliable narrator. At times, we are unsure of what is real and what is not. The introductions to both characters taps into this right away where we have a close-up shot of the actress head on, the first woman is auditioning for a part in front of a group of men, while the second woman is engaging in a heated exchange with a man who is trying to rip her off. This latter sequence tricks you into thinking it too could be an actress reading for a role and the reveal shocks us when we discover it is actually real. The idea of these scenes I guess is to show that women exist essentially in a man's world and have to put up with things men generally do not. So, one of the themes of the film is the pressures society puts on women. In this scenario, these tensions result in two friends going to war with each other. We slowly see little niggles gather momentum and insecurities create space that is filled by negative emotions. Both women are actresses, with one being more successful than the other; I guess you could say the less successful one is the better actress but has been less willing to pander to the will of male producers. Professional jealousies intertwine with all other tensions leading to a dark place. Acting by both leads, Mackenzie Davis and Caitlin Fitzgerald, is very good, especially Davis whose character ultimately runs the gauntlet of emotional states including assertive, insecure, meek and aggressive. The final act compounds this where there is a fusing of identities and events develop a more dream-like ambiance. It's, overall, a pretty compelling concoction of ideas which I found very involving. You have interesting characters with differing motivations and huge amounts going on under the surface. This results in a narrative which from an early point suggests cracks in the surface and hints at sinister events. As a viewer, you are actively encouraged to piece things together without being spoon-fed the answers. It's, on the whole, a very satisfying combination of a lot of disparate ideas that's comes together to create something really interesting.

Our two characters, Anna and Beth, are both actresses. Bashful Beth is a rising success, while bold Anna's career is struggling to take off. The two decide to take a weekend away to rekindle a neglected friendship. However the trip seems burden by an overbearing sense of tension, that slowly builds between the two over their stay, leading to an unexpected yet unavoidable confrontation. The film is intriguing enough to hold interest until the end, mainly because of the two main characters and the actresses portraying them. The film is at it's best when centered on the two and their interactions. When the plot takes over with it's evasiveness and phantasmagoria, it seems to use the excuse of self awareness as an answer to your questions. An interesting watch nonetheless with a commentary that touches on sexism and type casting.

Dumb movie. Don't even bother. Not a bore fest the third time around for me, but hated it so much I don't even care what happened at the end. What a complete trash waste of my life. Don't see this filth 2 stars

The main thing which struck me about the movie is the brilliant acting by the 2 girls. Its a very good movie about how dynamics of friendship change in face of competition and jealousy. It also makes one think about what makes people likable. This is such a fragile subject and deals with core of human emotions and dynamics of relationship. The movie was quite engaging even though it is simply about 2 characters on vacation. The viewer is attracted to learn more and more about them which makes it good watch. The girls come out as really charming and I was stunned by the acting skills. Its really awesome to watch them play out those emotions.