It would be an understatement to say that Linda Boreman — aka groundbreaking adult-entertainment star turned anti-pornography campaigner Linda Lovelace — was full of contradictions. She collaborated with hardline feminists, then denounced them; denied she’d made two bestiality movies (till someone unearthed them); and, at the end of her life, was still showing up at pornography conventions. It’s a shame that the makers of this biopic ignore the mess.
They offer two versions of her story — the first fun, the second gruelling — but both fail to stretch talented lead actress Amanda Seyfried. Linda ping-pongs between two controlling figures: her gimlet-eyed mother (Sharon Stone, brilliant) and pimping, abusive husband Chuck Traynor (Peter Sarsgaard).
Domestic violence is a serious issue and the film’s approach undoubtedly creates some jolting moments. After shooting Deep Throat in 1972, Linda is on a high and, uncharacteristically, puts Chuck in his place with a caustic one-liner. Later, cast and crew listen to her and Chuck having noisy sex. In part two, we discover he was actually beating her up.
Boreman’s attempts to find her own voice — and a safe haven — are inherently moving. But Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman’s meticulously designed melodrama lacks any kind of vision. Lovelace had the potential to show how exploitation works. What it offers, instead, is a (lithe) little girl lost and a lone bad wolf. Easy laughs, easy tears.
One thing’s for sure: this exposé ain’t deep.
Watch the Lovelace trailer:
