Starry Eyes (2014)

A hopeful young starlet uncovers the ominous origins of the Hollywood elite and enters into a deadly agreement in exchange for fame and fortune.

Directors:

Kevin Kolsch, Dennis Widmyer

Writers:

Kevin Kolsch (as Kevin Kölsch), Dennis Widmyer

Stars:

Alex Essoe, Amanda Fuller, Noah Segan

6 wins & 15 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Alex Essoe	...	Sarah (as Alexandra Essoe)
Amanda Fuller	...	Tracy
Noah Segan	...	Danny
Fabianne Therese	...	Erin
Shane Coffey	...	Poe
Natalie Castillo	...	Ashley
Pat Healy	...	Carl
Nick Simmons	...	Ginko
Maria Olsen	...	The Casting Director
Marc Senter	...	The Assistant
Louis Dezseran	...	The Producer
Danny Minnick	...	Reggie
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Spencer Baik	...	Hipster
Denis Bolotski	...	Heinrich
Marcus Bradford	...	Party Goer

Storyline

In Hollywood, the Big Taters'waitress Sarah Walker is an ambitious aspiring actress that suffers from hair pulling disorder. Sarah does not respect her boss Carl or her job since she believes she will be a great actress and this job is temporary only to pay her bills. She shares an apartment with her roommate Tracy that frequently discloses her secrets to their selfish friends Erin that likes to humiliate Sarah and steal her roles; Danny, who is an aspiring director that likes Sarah; Poe and Ashley that are indifferent to her. When Sarah is invited to an audition of the film The Silver Screen from the company Astraeus Pictures, their auditioners do not show any reaction to her performance. When Sarah leaves the audition, she goes to the toilet room and has an attack, pulling her hair and crying. Immediately after, the casting director invites her to return to the room and repeat what she did in the bathroom for her assistant and she. Sarah is invited again to an audition with the ...

---

Plot Keywords:

actress | casting | ambition | aspiring actress | evil | 

---

Taglines:

Dreams require sacrifice ... and so do they

---

Genres:

Drama | Fantasy | Horror

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA Belgium

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 November 2014 (USA)

Also Known As:

Gwiazdy w oczach

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Snowfort Pictures, Parallactic Pictures, Dark Sky Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Alex Essoe's father was present on the set on the day her hair pulling at the audition scene was shot.

---

Quotes

Sarah: I will do whatever it takes for this role.

---

Connections

Features Evils of the Night (1985)

---

Soundtracks

Bitch Pop
Written by Ned Shatzer
Performed by Lyndon Walker

User Reviews

Requiem for a star

Starry Eyes is not for the faint of heart. I've seen many horror movies and this is definitely on the more extreme side so if you have a weak stomach then this isn't for you. However, it's brutally real in telling its story about a girl who wants to be a star and is willing to do whatever it takes to reach that goal. It's darkly comedic at times and horrifically gruesome at others. I cringed and winced plenty of times during this movie. And it's not even solely because of the graphic imagery, which is horrifying enough (but thankfully never crosses into torture porn). It's also because Starry Eyes sheds a dark light on Hollywood and on human nature itself by exploring the most vile, revolting aspects of both.

The movie is heavily reliant on atmosphere, and it definitely gives off a David Lynch and Requiem for a Dream vibe throughout. It's watching someone go through a downward spiral, from quitting their job, to abandoning everything and everyone, and the filmmakers don't sugarcoat a thing. It gets genuinely disturbing and hard to watch at times, but what draws you into it in the first place and what really makes you *believe* is the performances. Alex Essoe is absolutely terrifying as Sarah. The supporting cast is surprisingly great too, and it's amazing how quickly we sympathize with Sarah and how we gradually end up sympathizing more for her friends later on. After a while it's like you're not even watching actors - the story comes to life on screen. This is a testament to everything working in harmony: the filmmakers' vision, the actors' devotion to the roles, the eerie retro electronic score, the bleak cinematography. It all comes together to create a powerful, haunting piece of art.

This movie had potential to be truly groundbreaking. As I said it's brilliantly written, acted, and directed. What threw me a bit was the ending. I won't spoil anything but they take an odd turn in the final act and you'll know it when you see it. It's not even that it's bad - the movie still left me in utter shock. I just know it could've been much more effective had they gone the deeper psychological route, which is teased at for the first three quarters of the film. Regardless, the journey itself is disturbing enough that by the time the ending comes you're already speechless and exhausted from the experience. It's just that little step that could've made it a psychological masterpiece as opposed to a highly effective insight into the darkness of human ambition.

Starry Eyes disturbed me. It really did. If you like Lynch-esque movies that make you think but also make you feel unnerved then you'll definitely get some chills and thrills from Starry Eyes. These filmmakers have proved enough to cement themselves on any horror fan's radar; even if you aren't into the extreme side of the genre you can appreciate what the filmmakers set out to achieve here. This is a movie that sticks with you after the credits roll. It is a wild ride for its brief runtime and certainly worth a watch for any fan of dark psychological horror.