Looking Through Lillian

The hardest part about watching an Independent Film, for me, is that they usually try too hard to be a big budget Hollywood picture. So hard that they blow their opportunity to do what most big budget films don't --- which is to tell a real story. A story with emotion, with heart and with real human decisions we all have to make. "Looking Through Lillian" is NOT one of those films who tries to hard. It's a wonderful look inside a troubled girl, who's life situation may not be typical, but her struggles within herself and to find herself are exactly what we all go through. All the key elements which make a truly great film are in "Looking": Story, Acting, Directing and Photography. The film knows what it is and isn't afraid to be just that.

I read some of the other comments on this page and they vary, like all opinions do. But there is one comment on this page that seems to be coming from somewhere else. The commenter trashes the film so much that it's obvious they are either a disgruntled Production Assistant or maybe the bizarre sexual perversions in the film hit a bit too close to home. Either way, anyone that would trash an independent film this much has no idea what kind of effort, dedication and shear heart and soul it takes to pull it off. Comments like these go way beyond honest critiquing and venture into the kind of stuff that should be reserved for a licensed therapist.

Kevin Thomas of the LA Times reviewed this film as "An Elegant and Sophisticated portrayal of a Young Mistress Awakening." I recently came across this film on netflix and when i got around to seeing it, I found that Thomas couldn't have said it better. The film is awfully mature for a young group of filmmakers and the very best thing about it is that it's so unique. The storytellers have created a 2very different world one that I would imagine many people will have a tough time understanding. The themes however are right there for you to see - dysfunction, addiction, secrets, real intimacy, trust, loneliness,and best of all the quest for psychological freedom and self respect. I can't really think of another film quite like it. It's extremely rich and it never turns out the way you'd expect it too. I noticed that the film was only released on the big screen in LA, I'd be curious to see it play before a NY audience. This is a film that I would suspect will influence many films as cinema edges away from mainstream sex toward deviant sexual behavior. Very wise, perhaps too wise for a first film. Don't expect to be aroused by steamy sex scenes, this one get's into the mindset of a broken flower and how she blooms again, just when you least expect her too. Bravo Lillian!

Why... that's my only question, why this horrible soundtrack of a garage band with no talent , this cast ( i'm sure in some scenes reading off cards ).... why all the clichees ever seen are all in this flick ALL of them, can you one second fall for any of these caracters or actually believe in this cheezy romance. Plain horrible .. stay very very far from this movie please I beg you. There's so much excellent indie film out there. why

Forget about the fairy tales, this is the way it really is. Pretty girls who get the prince find themselves trapped in twisted castles. Lillian is a kept woman and has it all - stunning looks, great body, expensive clothes, she even drives a Porsche. But wait til you find out what she has to do to keep it! Jade Henham could have just stood there and let the camera photograph her, but no. Henham can actually act. She gives us another side of Lillian - the scared, vulnerable little girl who's falling apart at the seams. Sam Bottoms is worthwhile in a skirt. His full frontal nudity scene is worth my $9. The movie is slow in spots and the rest of the cast is weak, though Luke is not bad on the eyes. But the end is worth the wait. Who is this Jake Torem and what else has he done? Man does this guy have the guts to give it to you raw!

I was fascinated with this film. And I was glad to see Essence Atkins in a drama and a feature no less. Although she seemed a little uncomfortable in the genre, I believe it's a good beginning. I was even more pleased with discovering something new, the actress that plays Lillian played by Jade Henham. There was such a naturalness to her being and performance that she completely ensconced me from beginning to end. I also enjoyed the relationship between Andrea (Atkins) and Lilly (Henham) - their portrayal of best friends that share everything was so authentic and not "Hollywoodish" at all.

The most fascinating part of the whole film though is the relationship between Gene (Sam Bottoms) and Lilly. If for nothing else, the film is worth just that in itself. The dynamics of the relationship and the psychological 'scoreboard' between the two was totally encompassing. If I have any gripe with the movie, it's that I would have liked to have seen more of what went on in that bedroom and just more of Gene and Lilly, period. Their bond, or whatever it is, is just so complicated and unorthodox that I wanted to wash the boyfriend out of the film so that I could concentrate on picking apart and studying the two of them. My only thought is that the mind is always better when left to the imagination and perhaps that what's the filmmaker was thinking by limiting how much he allowed us to see. Perhaps I wouldn't have been as intrigued if I'd seen "everything." But any way you look at it, I still came home wanting more of Gene and Lilly. Then again, if you come home wanting more of something then you obviously just saw something that was pretty damn good. And I'd have to say that "Looking Through Lillian" was that - pretty damn good. It is a bunch of unknowns and first time out of the gate talent, so after seeing what they accomplished on the first try, I will be keenly watching to see where they all go when they've blossomed and become seasoned.