Sob A Luz das Estrelas

To say too much about this movie would reveal some late story twists/reveals, but it really does a great job of capturing a time period and pulling you into the friendship between to seemingly opposite teenage girls (one confident and one shy/awkward). Not always an easy story to watch, as it shows the dark underbelly of a time period that we love to look at with such nostalgia and romanticism.

Iris Deerborne (Kara Hayward) is a mousy ostracized teenager in 60's rural Oklahoma. She has a troubled relationship with her mother (Jordana Spiro) and a crush on similarly ostracized boy Jeff Owings (Lucas Jade Zumann). She is harassed by the boys when new arrival Maggie Richmond (Liana Liberato) comes to her rescue.

There is a bit too much here. There are too many characters and each one has their own issue. I had assumed that this was based on a book since filmmakers often try to stuff everything from the book into the movie. This is not based on a book. The writer should simply streamline this world. Not everything has to be there. When Maggie does the big reveal, the whole movie threatens to tip over like a game of Jenga. When there is too much going on, a character like Hazel Atkins doesn't have enough time and space to set up properly. Initially, I was concerned about Tony Hale. It seems like a desperate move to go against type or maybe Tony is trying to expand his range. Either way, he doesn't easily fit the role. He does redeem his worth by the end with a more complicated character portrayal. More than anything, this is elevated by the younger cast especially the two female leads. Both are worthy to do bigger things in the future.

Maybe one reason this movie resonates well with me is I was a teenager in the 1960s. My brother-in-law served in Korea. In the 1960s it was common in smaller communities for a beautician to have her shop in the living room or dining room, as my own aunt did. School dances in the gym were supervised by faculty walking around, making sure students didn't make out too aggressively.

This one is set and filmed in small-town Oklahoma. There is a quiet, smart girl that gets bullied a lot, along comes a cosmopolitan girl who knows how to handle herself, and the spoiled brat boys. Against the odds the two girls form a fast friendship.

Good movie, treats a number of subjects with sensitivity. The acting across the board is excellent. I found it on Amazon streaming movies.

Watched To The Stars a couple of weeks ago, when it first premiered on Prime, and was blown away. The details, the accuracy of the setting, the cast and their performances are very captivating. It takes me to the time when this all took place.

Please do yourself a favor and stop reading these reviews and WATCH IT. Don't spoil yourself a great experience. You're welcome!

The acting was extremely well done, the plot - while not necessarily action driven - is done very well and the character development is fantastic.