Star Maps (1997)

Carlos wants to be an actor. But his father, Pepe, wants him to work in the family business, that is, male prostitution. Carlos decides that he will be one of his father's boys until he can... See full summary »

Director:

Miguel Arteta

Writers:

Miguel Arteta (screenplay), Miguel Arteta (story),

Stars:

Douglas Spain, Efrain Figueroa, Kandeyce Jorden

1 win & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Douglas Spain	...	Carlos Amado
Efrain Figueroa	...	Pepe Amato
Kandeyce Jorden	...	Jennifer
Martha Velez	...	Teresa Amato
Lysa Flores	...	Maria Amato
Annette Murphy	...	Letti, Pepe's Girlfriend
Robin Thomas	...	Martin
Vincent Chandler	...	Juancito Amato
Al Vicente	...	Fred Marin
Herbert Siguenza	...	Cantinflas' Ghost
Jeffrey Sanna	...	Frank Rivers (as Jeff Sanna)
Jeff Michalski	...	Bartender
Zak Penn	...	Carmel County Writer
Alejandro Parra	...	Star Map Boy
Caesar Garcia	...	Star Map Boy

Storyline

Carlos wants to be an actor. But his father, Pepe, wants him to work in the family business, that is, male prostitution. Carlos decides that he will be one of his father's boys until he can get his foot in the door in Hollywood. Finally one of his clients, a rich soap star, offers him a bit part in her show. Pepe tell Carlos that she is just using him and demands that he not see the women any longer. Carlos defies his father and when his big day comes he is finds out the harsh realities of life are even harsher than he imagined.

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Plot Keywords:

male prostitution | hollywood | actor | prostitution | nudity | 

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Taglines:

In Hollywood every dream has a price.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong sexuality and language, and for violence

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

23 July 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

Calçada da Fama

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$87,028 (USA) (25 July 1997)

Gross:

$592,573 (USA) (5 September 1997)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Flan de Coco Films, King Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Carlos Amado: Princess, the great difference between people in this world is not the difference between the rich and the poor, or the good and the evil. The biggest of all differences in this world is between those that had or have pleasure in love and those that haven't or hadn't any pleasure in love. I don't mean just ordinary love or the kind you can buy. I mean great love.

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Connections

References Sweet Bird of Youth (1962)

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Soundtracks

¨Dios¨
Written by ¨Christian Basso¨and ¨Diego Frenkel¨
Performed by ¨La Portuaria¨
Courtesy of EMI Argentina

User Reviews

Too much like a made-for TV movie

This movie wants to be great. It's got a really fresh, original script. Sometimes the directing is just as fresh and original. But every time you think it's going to immerse you, it turns into a TV movie. The "look" of the movie often (but not always) screams TV and not film. The acting is usually "art house" good. But

then some scene is so poorly acted you have to wonder why the director didn't make another take. The pacing is rushed and then not. It's like two different directors worked on two films from the same script and some inexperienced

editor had to make it into one movie.

The sex scenes are quite hot, but then the pacing is clipped. It plays like a very late-night TV movie where they want to include sex, but they don't want it to be quite soft-porn, so they pan or edit it more tightly.

The movie is worth seeing, if nothing else for the great original story and

"moments" where it achieves filmness. In between you just have to sit through some scenes and wonder if the director or the art director went on break and the rest of the crew started shooting without them.

The music is often excellent, but also inconsistently tossed in without creating any overall synthesis or mood. Sometimes music can bring together a disjointed film. Here it's another missed opportunity.

Annette Murphy is a stand-out as "a whore and your father's girlfriend." Douglas Spain is so beautiful in this that he smolders -- completely convincing as a

young prostitute. Lysa Flores (who was also the musical director) is one of the actors that makes the movie not suck -- terrific! Kandeyce Jorden is distractingly beautiful as a Cindy Crawford look-alike. Unfortunately she's miscast. Her

monotone voice, while alluring, doesn't fit the style of the film. It comes off as bored or disinterested, which doesn't match her character's motivation. Her sex scenes are very nice, however. Kandeyce Jorden has since been writing and

directing short films. You can see Undone and Layover on the web at iFilm.com and Skyy.com.

Director/writer Miguel Arteta has directed and written "The Good Girl" since this. You can see some similarity in style and in flaws. I think Mr. Arteta needs to work with a mentor to achieve his potential. It's obviously there, it's just unrealized.

This is a sexy and interesting film. It's well worth seeing, even for the flaws.