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Lovelace Review

What’s it about? Lovelace (18) has been the film on everyone’s lips since production on the biopic was first announced. Everyone’s heard about porn star Linda Lovelace and her infamous “talent”, but what do we really know about her story?

If you’ve never watched Deep Throat, read Linda’s tell-all book and or watched any documentaries about the film, you might walk into the cinema expecting a comical Boogie Nights-style film about a pretty girl who made a funny porn film back in the 70s. And at the start you’re led believe the film is exactly that…

When we meet young and naive Linda Boreman (Amanda Seyfried), she’s a typical young woman who lives in a strict religious household with a domineering mother (Sharon Stone) and a retired cop father. It’s the early 70s and there’s a sexual revolution going on that Linda’s parents would never let her join.

But then she meets the charming Chuck Traynor (Peter Sarsgaard), who sweeps her off her feet and frees her from her parents. Marriage follows and Linda finally becomes sexually awakened, surprising her new husband with her talents.

Linda learns she’s married a man in a lot of debt, and soon enough he gets in contact with a group of porn makers who are blown away by Linda’s skill. And so Deep Throat is created. Linda becomes a star and mingles with other famous types, including James Franco as a creepy, aggressive Hugh Hefner.

Verdict: The first stage of the film raises a lot of laughs due to reactions to Linda’s skill, the 70s throwback and the pure absurdity of the original film.

But the change in tone is where the film really makes its mark. Six years later, Linda gives a revealing re-telling of the Deep Throat years, which reveal a mix of domestic abuse, female exploitation and the dark side of porn.

The entire cast does an amazing job in this film. Sharon Stone and Sarsgaard, in particular, dominate every scene they’re in, stealing the limelight from Seyfried.

Seyfried does her best to portray Linda as the innocent victim of bad decisions, but sometimes it feels like she relies on her big doe eyes a bit too often.

Final Words: Lovelace doesn’t tell the whole story nor does it really attempt to preach about the rights and wrongs of the porn industry, but it will start a dialogue again about abuse (both in the home and in the workplace), which is what Linda would have wanted.

Rating: 4 / 5      

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Igk99QISY5E

Lovelace is in UK cinemas on 23 August

Nola Ojomu

Showbiz journalist with an addiction to film and TV. Love everything from action and comedy to romance but I especially love a film that can make me weep like baby. Will continue to campaign until Leonardo DiCaprio FINALLY gets an Oscar. Follow me on Twitter @NolaMarianna if you enjoy random musings.

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