Sophia Takal’s Always Shine opened at the Tribeca Film Festival earlier this year to rave reviews and commendations toward the emerging director and her starring actress Mackenzie Davis (TV’s Halt and Catch Fire).
Telling the story of two friends trying to reconnect during a weekend trip to Big Sur, the film dives head first into the intense feelings of jealousy, betrayal, and cracks long formed in the friendship. Both industry actresses, the women have tried to maintain a relationship over the years while competing for the same jobs, with one of them more successful than the other. Over the weekend, these tensions mount and lead to a fiery confrontation. Caitlin Fitzgerald (Adult Beginners) stars opposite Davis.
Indiewire called the film “a studied approach to genre filmmaking,” with Takal being compared to Brian De Palma by several critics. According to The Hollywood Reporter, “strong performances propel a movie that wears its influences (De Palma, Lynch) on its sleeve without feeling like a copycat.” With reviews like that, Takal is surely a filmmaker to watch out for in the future.
The film’s trailer is just as intense and stirring as we might hope, with Davis and Fitzgerald both lighting up the screen with their rampant paranoia and meta jabs at the industry. See the trailer below and check out the film during its limited release starting December 2.
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