REVIEW: BEAUTY

BEAUTY - Confused. This is what happens when style trumps story in a screenplay. No Spoilers.

There isn't much to say because there wasn't much story on the screen. Usually, silence can be so full and speak volumes. In this case, it didn't say enough. 

- The cinematography was beautiful.
- Many of the directing and editing choices felt forced. Many times, the choices lacked meaning and introduced confusion, making it hard to follow Beauty's emotional throughline.
- The hair, costumes and sets were awesome. But it doesn't take much for me to fall in love with an 80s or 90s period piece. #Nostalgia.
- I found myself enjoying the music references more than the film. I was upset when the Clark Sister's video feed cut to more of Beauty staring into space.

I wanted to like it. I wanted to find deep meaning in it. Though the actors gave everything they've got, other than tracking the theme of a lesbian couple being forced to live in the dark (though they went everywhere together and did everything together and everybody knew) due to religion and celebrity image, I couldn't connect with any of the characters.

Check the next slide for how the general public felt about the film. Ouch.

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AUTHOR

Shannan E. Johnson is a former creative executive at The Syfy Channel turned CEO + Head Consultant of The Professional Pen, a script consultancy that develops screenwriters from idea to pitch to become more confident storytellers ready for a professional screenwriting career, and consults with scripted development teams at entertainment companies to streamline their notes process to get to pre-production more efficiently.