I was looking forward to seeing Lovelace since I heard about its announcement. The cast makes a case for seeing the film regardless of what the film is actually about. I think the story of Deepthroat as well as that of Traynor and Lovelace are both very intriguing. Despite having all of this going for it, I was let down. The pacing of the film is the biggest problem. The film leisurely introduces us to the cast and the relationship between Traynor and Lovelace, so leisurely in fact that I was wondering when the darker elements would be exposed. At only 92 minutes the film feels a lot longer. Anyone with any knowledge of the story at all will wonder how they're going to wrap it up as the film meanders only to make abrupt leaps in time.
It makes sense that the directors chose to end the film in 1980 as opposed to 1984, because any longer and the film would have felt interminable. This does hurt the film, though. The way the subsequent events of 1980 are handled is rushed to the point that it feels amateurish. I imagine the pieces that were cut could have been included had there been a tighter edit of the rest of the film as a whole. The way the narrative is handled is wise - cutting back to show different interpretations of the story - because so many have disputed Lovelace's claims.
All that being said,the film has its entertaining sequences - mostly thanks to the performances which are great. Also, the production design never feels hokey or inauthentic (which easily could have been the case). Another issue is that the brutality of what Lovelace claims to have endured is watered down here (for obvious reasons), but it always feels like they could have pushed it further. The scenes of abuse seem so choreographed (and rushed) that it is hard to feel the weight or emotional impact that is intended. All of the threat and malice is left up to Seyfried to make real, which she delivers on, but it shouldn't be entirely on her. Even Sarsgaard's cruel moments as Traynor don't match the sleazy charm he conveys at other points in the film. It's as if the filmmakers just expect the top notch set decoration and costumes to be enough to convince us of the terrible events just by bringing them up. At one point Linda cries to her mother (Sharon Stone) that her husband hits her; sure we see him toss her around but the domestic violence is mostly implied and it feels cowardly. That's the problem, in too many ways the film just stops at almost.
It makes sense that the directors chose to end the film in 1980 as opposed to 1984, because any longer and the film would have felt interminable. This does hurt the film, though. The way the subsequent events of 1980 are handled is rushed to the point that it feels amateurish. I imagine the pieces that were cut could have been included had there been a tighter edit of the rest of the film as a whole. The way the narrative is handled is wise - cutting back to show different interpretations of the story - because so many have disputed Lovelace's claims.
All that being said,the film has its entertaining sequences - mostly thanks to the performances which are great. Also, the production design never feels hokey or inauthentic (which easily could have been the case). Another issue is that the brutality of what Lovelace claims to have endured is watered down here (for obvious reasons), but it always feels like they could have pushed it further. The scenes of abuse seem so choreographed (and rushed) that it is hard to feel the weight or emotional impact that is intended. All of the threat and malice is left up to Seyfried to make real, which she delivers on, but it shouldn't be entirely on her. Even Sarsgaard's cruel moments as Traynor don't match the sleazy charm he conveys at other points in the film. It's as if the filmmakers just expect the top notch set decoration and costumes to be enough to convince us of the terrible events just by bringing them up. At one point Linda cries to her mother (Sharon Stone) that her husband hits her; sure we see him toss her around but the domestic violence is mostly implied and it feels cowardly. That's the problem, in too many ways the film just stops at almost.