Safelight

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.

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.

Stumbled across this, as usual, looking for something different to watch. The fact that Juno Temple is in it made me want to give it a try, and as always she never fails to deliver the perfect performance.

This isn't a big Hollywood blockbuster. The storyline is sweet and touching and meanders gently along, giving you time to get to know the characters. All of which are cast perfectly, locations and cinematography are also spot on too.

So if you want something which isn't in your face, or high paced, and leaves you with a warm feeling in your belly, then I highly recommend spending a few hours enjoying it.

One of indie films about life. as confession. family, friendship, solitude, love and hate. from an indefine period, using a simple story and good actors, not giving too much explanations and proposing individual drama of two young people in atmosphere of desert. nothing new, off course. because, it is the sort of film who could be significant only if has the chance to connect with the memories, experences of the viewer. if not, it is just a dusty story, with metaphors, a poor girl and a poor boy and Christine Lahti doing a good job. but the film deserves attention. not for originality. but for the status of testimony about few basic traits of humankind. like each indie film.

A slice of life indie-drama about a teenage boy (Evan Peters) with a slightly dysfunctional leg, they call him cripple in the movie but I think that's borderline slur so yeah I'll just put it like that instead, seems to work fine otherwise just walks a bit crookedly.

Anyway he befriends a teenage girl who's a prostitute (Juno Temple) and yeah that's what the movie is about more or less.

The plot summary here on IMDb make it sound more like a road-trip movie than it actually is, I mean there is a roadtrip but it's not substantial to the story so if you're expecting a typical get up to crazy things in new towns type of road movies you might be a bit disappointed.

Writing could have been a little sharper but Temple and Peters are both as always good and make it worthwhile still.