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Smooth Talk
July 18, 2022 @ 7:00 PM
Part of our July Clinton St. Resistance Series with proceeds benefiting Sisters of the Road
Suspended between carefree youth and the harsh realities of the adult world, a teenage girl experiences an unsettling awakening in this haunting vision of innocence lost.
Based on Joyce Carol Oates’ celebrated short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” and produced for PBS’ American Playhouse, the narrative debut from director Joyce Chopra features a revelatory breakout performance from Laura Dern as Connie, the fifteen-year-old black sheep of her family whose summertime idyll of beach trips, mall hangouts, and innocent flirtations is shattered by an encounter with a mysterious stranger (a memorably menacing Treat Williams).
Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, Smooth Talk captures the thrill and terror of adolescent sexual exploration as it transforms the ingredients of a standard coming of age portrait into something altogether more troubling and profound.
- Director: Joyce Chopra
- Country: USA
- Year: 1985
- Runtime: 91 minutes
The film’s power is enormous throughout; spare means (long-held closeups, a four-minute take of sisterly confessions) evoke a drama that seems to have been filmed holding its breath.
Richard Brody, New Yorker
The movie is almost uncanny in its self-assurance, in the way it knows that the first hour, where ‘nothing’ happens, is necessary if the payoff is to be tragic, instead of merely sensational.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Throughout, Joyce Chopra patiently and shrewdly observes the contradictions of human behavior that Laura Dern brilliantly conveys.
Jake Cole, Slant Magazine
A gorgeous, thrilling portrayal of careless childhood dissolving in the summer sun, Smooth Talk is a landmark coming-of-age film and signals the arrival of one of cinema’s favorite stars.
Lee Jutton, Film Inquiry
