Review of Always Shine (2016) by Dirigiblepulp — 01 Dec 2017

Two women who are aspiring actresses and lifelong friends decide to take a retreat to a beautiful house overlooking the woods and the ocean in Northern California to reconnect after time has started to move them in different directions. One is becoming more famous everyday and is close to her big break, while the other is stuck in neutral. That the woman who is close to making it is also a passive woman, with little of interest to add to any conversation and little in the way of personality, who is prone to saying yes to any man asking her any thing (whether to take her clothes off or to go to dinner with a man her friend clearly likes even though she has a boyfriend she likes) and the other is stubborn, outspoken and "feminist" with a strong personality, is the real crux of the film though. This is a movie about what it takes to make it in Hollywood, but also just as a woman in any walk of life. The prevalent constant sexism under the hood of everyday expectations of being female.

There's a naturalness to both performances that works well, and the tension mounts from meaningful dialogue exchanges and the actor's faces. Then the twist happens and while it's interesting in theory, it also sort of halts the movie's progress and momentum. Outside of the clearly labeled theme there isn't enough exploration or insight.