Jaded

source: Jaded

Trailer—Jaded

Jaded

The casting by Lina Todd and Yolanda Geralds and costumes by Laura Jean Shannon are pretty fantastic. As the directorial debut of Caryn Krooth, it lacks the punch one might hope for, but it has its strengths. The now-popular Carla Gugino was a bit plump at the time, but still shows some sass. Chris McDonald steals the show - two straw hats up - way up!

You must admire this film for attempting to tell a rather disturbing story about a rather isolated situation. However, with the exception of Carla Gugino, the acting was boring, quite possibly because the screenplay was also boring, the direction went downhill after the shock of the opening sequence, and the score was simply one tune played over and over again in the most inappropriate moments. Furthermore - what was the point of this film? It seems to change focus every twenty minutes. And after all these points have been raised, we simply 'skip' what seems to be the most important part of the film - the court case - and are given a somewhat confusing voice-over narration and some text that has no relevance to the bulk of the film. One would think that a minority film such as this would at least have a purpose - otherwise, what is the purpose?

I had this movie given to me, and have to admit, I am glad that I did not pay money for it. The back of the box makes it seem like some kind of sex triangle, with 2 women trying to seduce her. But the reality in this movie is far from that. In reality, the main subject is the victim of a vicious and sadistic rape by the two other characters. There was absolutely nothing in this that I found interesting at all. Even movies like Silence Of The Lambs and Wild Things (which the box tries to compare this movie to) were riveting, because of the unexpected turns and suspense. But Jaded has none of this. It concentrates on the rapeists and the sick relationship with the boyfriend of one of them. And the persuit of a videotape that may prove the victims story is true. While it does show that same sex rape is possible, it is not a movie worth watching. If at all possible, pass this movie up at all costs.

"Jaded" offers a premise with potential as it looks at the rape of a woman by two other women and ask the question "when is rape not rape?". Unfortunately the flick seems to suffer from bad direction as it slogs through legal minutia while trying to weave some kind of story with a handful of foul mouthed and poorly portrayed characters only to end abruptly. "Jaded" is lame stuff only for the bleary-eyed couch potato in the mood for some dark drama.

Caryn Krooth is an interesting director. But I think she was confused whether to make a sleazy lesbian thriller or a film that about the limitations of rape laws or a police procedural. Carla Gugino is great eye candy. So are the other females including the rather corpulent investigator (Aida Turturro) who always wears low cut dresses. The threesome lesbian skinny dipping that leads to rape is very well shot. Rya Kihlstedtthere is excellent as the vicious lesbian. She really pulled off the role well with the great introduction scene at the bar. Catherine Dent was pretty and I could sense a hint of sexual tension between her and Turturro. But the sexual tension was not well developed. There are certain arty farty student aspects to the film. But overall, i liked it. It does not really work as a mystery/police procedural. But it is a nice little unique film with a great Carla Gugino, set in a sleepy beach town. (7.5/10)

A young and naive lady (Carla Gugino) gets brutally beaten and raped by two crazed women (Rya Kihlstedt and Anna Levine) during a late, drunken night on the beach. Naturally Gugino is distraught beyond comprehension, while the two others (Kihlstedt in particular) vehemently question Gugino's memory and her motives. "Jaded" is a really ugly movie that I had lots of trouble sitting through. The mature themes are one thing, but the lack of credible performers and a really crazed and demented story turn the picture into a terrible exploitation flick that has no value at all. The trio of female leads prove that they cannot handle the material and end up appearing more like spoiled adolescents than complex adult figures. Turkey (0 stars out of 5).

From the comments below, this movie apparently was not well-liked. With the subject matter being unusual, and some might say salacious, I get that many people may figure it as exploitative. I did not really see it that way. The film was clearly low-budget, and that did hurt it somewhat. I thought that a lot of the actors did fine jobs, if not Oscar-worthy. Rya Kihlstedt did well with a challenging role, and I liked Anna Levine and Aida Turturro as the detective. And Carla Gugino was very good, playing her damaged character with intensity. Someone below commented that she was "plump at the time". I don't know what she looks like now, but I thought she was gorgeous. A real woman's body looks far better than the currently popular Angelina-Jolie-type anorexic look which is NOT attractive. Although flawed, the movie held my interest throughout.