A studious student finds adventure when he follows a mysterious woman to New York.A studious student finds adventure when he follows a mysterious woman to New York.A studious student finds adventure when he follows a mysterious woman to New York.
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Yet the gamble, for the most part, does not pay off. Monet Mazur gives only a capable performance as the "Whirlygirl," when she needs to give us an extraordinary one that matches up to her character's legendary reputation as a mysterious, intriguing and enchanting beauty. For a film that relies so much on character for its appeal, Monet Mazur's "Whirlygirl" is surprisingly lacking in the kind of character that can leave us with a lasting impression. This failure can be attributed partly to Monet Mazur's only capable acting (when she really needed to be extraordinary) and also to the fact that the script does not give her much to do.
Perhaps if another actress was given the part of the "Whirlygirl" and if the screenplay writers gave more thought to further developing the "Whirlygirl" character, then this film would actually be good. Instead, "Whirlygirl" has the potential of a great film, but falls short of realizing it.
This film is based on a true story. Well the scriptwriter should have embellished it since true stories do not make compelling films. The lead actor Julian Morris does a decent job with the material but the rest of the cast performances are flat. In fact one of the students, who was acting like he was just waking up had a believability level of zero. Speaking of Morris, I had just watched him in Cry Wolf where he also plays a prep school student and his character seems to have walked out of that slasher movie into this one. Slasher movies can get by without any character development but a film like Whirlygirl requires it.
Hats off to DP Christo Bakalov for delivering some great images to such a hollow story.
If I were 14 I might have thought Whirlygirl was pretty swell. At its core the film is essentially the standard fantasy storyline of a plain boy's life being transformed by an encounter with the exotic.
In Whirlygirl the exotic is the "whirlygirl" herself, an exotic dancer (she doesn't exactly strip) whose erotic dancing skills are legendary. (That seems a ridiculous plot device, even more so considering the film is set in contemporary times.) Boy goes after girl and adventures of one typical type and another ensue.
The adventures in Whirlygirl never really feel all that exciting. The various self discoveries don't feel revealing. The scenes of abandoning yourself to the moment feel like imitations of better films.
Whirlygirly doesn't feel like a story from someone's life, it feels like a film. Setup, plot device, plot device, plot device, cliché supposedly dramatic conclusion. The End.
Despite dipping its toes into drama Whirlygirl is really just a feel good film that's not sickeningly sweet. As such it's a fine film to watch while sick on the couch or stuck in a hotel room that has free HBO.
Did you know
- Quotes
Mr. McTavish: James, I'm sure in your eyes, there are good reasons why you're risking your future for this person, but you have to understand... if she was worth the trouble, she would have the character or the insight to know the position that she's putting you in. But she's not doing that, is she?
James: She's had a hard time.
Mr. McTavish: You've had a hard time too. But you fought through it. That's the point here. There are people in this world who, for whatever reasons, have so little inside themselves that all they can do to feel alive is... suck the life out... of the people who have greatness inside. You have that... Listen to me, I've seen this before... Don't blow it all on someone who wouldn't stand up for you if your life depended on it.
- ConnectionsReferences Taxi! (1931)
- SoundtracksBlue Diamonds
Written by Liz Berlin (as Elizabeth Berlin), John Buynak, Jim Donovan (as James Donovan),
Michael Glabicki, Patrick Norman, and Jenn Wertz (as Jennifer Wertz)
Performed by Rusted Root
Courtesy of The Island Def Jam Music Group
Under license from Universal Music Enterprises
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