Shattered Innocence

I remember quite clearly the flurry of Los Angeles news reports regarding the self-inflicted death of adult film actress Shauna Grant whose real name was Colleen Applegate. Oh yes, they made a BIG deal about "the pornography business" and how "degrading it is" and how "this always happens" to "those kind of people" when Shauna was found with a self inflicted gunshot wound and later died.

This TV picture is based 'somewhat' on Shauna's life, but what makes this quickly made TV semi-bio pic a head above others is that it never holds the Adult/Porno Film industry totally responsible, instead it showed how a young woman was seduced into the glitz and glamor of being in entertainment.

The one line which is so important is when the character in this film, Pauleen Anderson, goes into a Los Angeles restaurant with a man who wants to be her "manager" which he tells her is much more than her "agent" and tells her, "It doesn't matter what kind of films you make as long as they are profitable." That's the seduction, much more than the adult films and the drugs.

Here's another young, naive woman with a seemingly All-American Mid-West perfect family, falling into "the trap". This movie made you think it could be Shauna Grant, who was on everyone's minds at the time, or as the years pass and they still show this film, could be any young woman. She overindulged, she had no real friends, she lied to herself, she had talent, she wanted to succeed on her own, she did degrade herself, she really wasn't mature enough to make good decisions for herself and when she thought she could hide under another ANOTHER self, she found out it was still her. The older man she thought she could be with, left her (albeit because of prison) like all the other men in her life. And to top it off, he ended up not "trusting" her -- like all the other men in her life. This all added up to a tragic ending of...a life.

For its time, its subject matter and companion piece to all of us who were wondering about Shauna Grant's situation/life, "Shattered Innocence" is a very good effort for the indulgent 80's if you remember or know what the origin of the film was for. As years go by, it will take on a different view for all who watch.

Since Shauna's tragedy...there are still more of the same in a line of young women to follow such as -- Gia, Savannah, etc., etc. different entertainment industry avenues but basically the same old story. And we'll be seeing more TV/Feature Film/Cable stories about these ladies as well.

I guess the point is to watch these films and make sure its not our daughters, or daughters of those we know, that may eventually end up in one.

this film was made in the late 80's and there was also a NY PBS documentary based on the same subject; her real name was Colleen, she was from the Midwest, she moved to L.A. to get her "big break". Of course, tens of thousands of others stream into the city weekly, so it is not a done deal.

She eventually became "Shauna Grant" porn star. The seamier sides of the business are probably not shown, but the drug issues, transient lifestyle and impossibility of finding a real acting job afterward are all touched on. Originally, Colleen was just a girl trying to make it, took a few wrong turns. The story ended tragically.

Melinda Dillon is very good as Colleen's mother, not knowing what to do, initially believing her daughter is doing okay. There is a decent cameo role by John Pleshette, an older man who attempted to rescue her, but he is carted off to prison, and she loses this meager support system. The alienation and emptiness of her life in Palm Springs, where she was eventually found dead, is palpable.

This is actually a good film for parents who still may not be aware of what can happen; the downward spiral of a girl who started with good intentions, ended up working in porn.The sad fact is that this still goes on today; anyone who has HBO will regularly have to turn off the show with "Family Business:Seymour Butts"--- a minor porn producer who has his own show.

For actresses who really think they want to get into that business are free to do so, but should realize they will not eventually be hooking up into a decent acting career; It is an age old ploy that was used. "Shattered Dreams" is a decent film with a message. 8/10

I agree with the comments above about this film. Despite the flat TV movie style presentaion, "Shattered Innocence" kept my attention until the tragic conclusion. What I liked about the movie's approach was that it did not condem the obvious culprit, the porn industry, for the downfall and demise of Pauleen Anderson. Pauleen chose to enter the adult film world and succumbed to cocaine addiction and ultimately faced the horrible consequences. TV movies have a lack of fluidity of camerawork and lack of showmanship as is the case with "Shattered Innocence". In the light of porn-glamourizing films such as "Boogie Nights", this tepidness accentuates the intent of "Shattered Innocence". In "Shattered Innocence" entry, escape from and re-entry into the porn business leads to tragic, lonely, and hurtful existence. I suspect the downfall of Pauleen Anderson is much closer to what happens to real-life porn actors than the glamourous lives of the characters in "Boogie Nights" (which by the way, ended with a bizzare, 'happy' conclusion for all).

Based loosely on the life story of porn superstar Shauna Grant/Colleen Applegate. For a made for TV movie, it wasn't bad. For those really interested in Shauna Grant's decline to eventual suicide this movie treats the matter very superficially. Although accurate in its simplicity, it tends to trivialize the adult business; a business which frankly needs no trivialization. Rumor had it that Shauna Grants family weren't too pleased about the movie.......despite the fact that they co-operated and were compensated by the production company. The movie portrayed them as real straightlaced simpletons, incapable or unwilling to deal with anything outside their "small town" existence. The plot continually amplified this and we were left to conclude that this lack of unconditional love and understanding was the main reason for Shauna's suicide. Jonna Lee, which was "very watchable" throughout, does a good job of portraying Grant. All in all, I would rate it a 3*** out of 5.

This 1988 made for t.v. movie was based on the life and ultimate suicide of Colleen Applegate, a young woman from Minnesota who went to Hollywood at the age of 18 with dreams of stardom, became a porn star under the name of "Shauna Grant" and then returned to her hometown two years later to be buried, a tragic suicide at the age of 20.

This movie is a fictionalized account of her life and death although apparently her parents did cooperate in the making of this film.

Jonna Lee portrays "Pauline Anderson", the fictionalized version of Colleen. She overacts at times, but otherwise does a competent job of portraying the innocence and then gradual freefall of a young girl who gets ensnared into the adult entertainment industry through cocaine and big money. Melinda Dillon portrays her mother, and does a good job of conveying her character's devastation and shame at her daughter's choice of career, and eventual destruction.

I think what gave this movie more poignancy to me was the fact that it was based on a true story, not just some hack writer's imagination working overtime. How many thousands of young girls go to Hollywood each year with the hopes of breaking into the movies, only to fall into porn, with devastating results? It's a chilling thought, and Colleen's suicide is a reminder of this.