Sophie Tucker is very good. While she comes across as a rebel she's actually very nice. Or seems to be. Given the reality of her situation, which she never explains until the end, giving people different stories, Josie is an amazing actress. I didn't find her all that pretty but she's always wearing short shorts or a swimsuit and trying to be flirty, though she's very subtle. She is quite intelligent and I see a career in her future, if she can just get past all her obstacles and get an education. Well, at least that's what I would have said. I can't say why but Tucker gives very different performances in her final scenes from what we have seen so far.
I didn't recognize Dylan McDermott, and that's a good thing. At one point I realized he looked familiar. I'm not a fan, but that's not important. He was either Eric McCormack or Dylan McDermott or just looked like one of them. The fact I didn't know shows how good an actor he is. He never really gets angry, and while he's not very social, Hank is a gentleman and he will open up to those he feels comfortable with. It just takes a while.
Kurt Fuller is familiar for some reason. He's kind of a jerk and occasionally suggests he's one of these Trump supporters who wants to keep America great, but he's not overdone.
Robin Bartlett is really likable when you think she's just being friendly, with kind of an Edie McClurg personality and a "Fargo" accent, but she also shows a nosy side. She comes across really differently when she is genuinely concerned and not just meddling.
There is a variety of music. Amazingly, Josie likes country music, meaning the real stuff. Knowing what I know about her now, maybe not. But Hank likes it and while nothing is familiar, the country music here is a hundred times better than what is played on the typical FM "country" station in 2021. The young people like heavy metal. With the closing credits there are two songs. One is loud alternative rock with a talented female lead but not metal. The other ... I don't know what to say about it. It sounds like blues rock that was meant to be played at 33 but was played at 16 instead through a speaker designed by aliens. It's absolutely terrible and I was grateful I record everything so I could fast-forward.
It goes without saying this isn't family friendly. As is usually the case, I saw a version where all the bad language was taken out, and it appeared there was a lot of it. A little girl sees something she's not supposed to see, but we don't actually see it. We just know what is going to happen and wonder why a little girl would be there. And then there is a dramatic plot twist that includes something so violent it was blurred on my TV screen.
Other than the ending, this seems like a formula movie, but one that would seem better than average because of the lead actors. Some people say they saw the ending coming. I'm not good at that, and that helps me enjoy movies like this more. I certainly didn't want it to end like that, but ... Wow, the final final scene was amazing.
Don't expect too much and you won't be disappointed.
