Rated R So it was kind of a mixed thing. Swim: Baptism, cleansing, new life, new beginnings, rebirth. Filmmaker Andrea Arnold On 'American Honey' And Preserving Send us a tip using our anonymous form. (1:48) Star spots Jake on the road. This vibrant road-trip movie follows a directionless teen named Star (played by luminous first-timer Sasha Lane) who gets involved with a crew of fellow lost souls selling magazines door-to-door. [60][61][62] Variety placed Sasha Lane's performance in the film at number 3 on their list of the 9 breakout performances of the 2016 Toronto Film Festival. The closing credits, after the lead actor names, consist of a list of names, alphabetized by first name, with no indication of whether they are crew or cast -- no job titles or character names. ", "Los Cabos Awards: 'American Honey,' 'Tamara & The Ladybug' Win Big at Mexican Fest", "Women Film Critics Circle Nominations: "Hidden Figures," "13th," & More", Black Reel Award for Outstanding Independent Film, British Independent Film Award for Best British Film, Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Ensemble Acting, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=American_Honey_(film)&oldid=1152150709, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Album articles lacking alt text for covers, Official website different in Wikidata and Wikipedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 28 April 2023, at 14:39. And I think wow that's - I wish I was like that. What American Honey Says About the Kids: No, Theyre Even when they stop at a motel to break, they use I'm sorry. You were a dancer - right? American Honey is a movie that takes the temperature of youth culture in a way that no movie has in years. WebJake gives her the turtle as a gift representing freedom. After Jake steals the white Cadillac and hits the road, the right side mirror housing is blue. years. After the guy drops her off, she hears him being attacked. And when I'm writing them - I mean, when I was writing that scene, I didn't kind of expect that to happen. often shoot their teenagers from below, casting them larger than life against It's her first time doing this, and he's telling her to ignore the sheet of sales tips she was told to memorize and take his advice instead. Yet you also cant help but notice that this dance explosion in the chain store has a frayed recklessness about it. So she knocks on Krystal's motel room door, and Krystal starts, like, telling her what to do. (2:01) Krystal plays this song as the girls exit the car and start dancing along to the song. Their mothers have alcohol or drug problems. Soon afterward shes picked up by three middle-aged Texas cowboys who agree to buy a large amount of her magazines if shes willing to swallow a worm from the bottom of a glass of Mezcal (a strong Mexican alcoholic beverage). ARNOLD: Yeah. So to try and sit here and explain it, for me, would sort of unravel some of the mystery of it. In a parking lot, Star catches the eye of Jake (Shia LaBeouf), a bearded glamour-puss whos like a cocky, rat-tailed James Dean, and moments later, when she follows him into a Wal-Mart, and Jake and the other kids break into dance moves near the checkout counter to the synth-throb of Rihanna and Calvin Harris We Found Love (its blaring over the stores speaker system), and Jake jumps up on the counter, which is enough to get a cashier to call security, the scene looks like a pop-renegade epiphany to place alongside every moviefrom Jailhouse Rock to 8 Mile.. Im not trying to do a whole thing about America that is everybodys idea about America, she admits. Web"American Honey" explores themes of youth, freedom, and the search for identity, and is a visually stunning and emotionally charged film. Jake is suddenly back on the team and gives Star a turtle, which she releases into a lake, immersing herself in the water, during the groups celebratory bonfire. LABEOUF: (As Jake) And that's a power agent. And I feel like we overexplain everything in life, and I am desperate to leave a mystery in what I do. [27] In early June, Arielle Holmes was reported to have joined the cast. GROSS: Now, I read that you hosted a couple of teen shows in England. Once you get this one step down, you're the chief of the tribe. Currently you are able to watch "American Honey" streaming on fuboTV, Showtime Apple TV Channel, Showtime Amazon Channel, Showtime Roku Premium Channel, Showtime, DIRECTV, Paramount+ Showtime. I've always found ways to dance, however, you know, wherever life has taken me. American honey ending? : r/flicks - Reddit This is how I do things I'm always casting a mixture of actors and non-actors. Any sad spiel, and they'll just say it over and over and over again 'til it's meaningless. And John Powers will review the new HBO series "Westworld" which premieres Sunday. Nathan plays this song as he dances with Star. So her new identity found at the end is only temporary. You've got to read them. 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Arnolds new film, American Honey, captures those conflicting emotions both the pain of living hand-to-mouth and the unexpected joy of finding ones tribe with vivid detail. [29][30][31] In late May 2015, production was reported in Mission Hills, Kansas and areas of Kansas City, Missouri,[32][33] as well as Missouri Valley, Iowa. an inevitable bit of a love story between Star and Jake, although its not a This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Krystal calls Star to her room and informs her she has let Jake go, that she paid him money for each girl he recruited, and that he slept with all of them. I dont have a television and I dont read the papers. Were any of them people who had been in a mag crew, selling magazines door to door? (0:58) The crew leave the motel to make a sell at another neighborhood. We all remember those years when we couldnt sit stillwhen ARNOLD: You know (laughter), and - which is where we did most of our auditioning. I've always kind of taken risks, I guess, with these things. it. Since Star is new, she is paired with Jake, the veteran of the group. The 100 Greatest TV Shows of All Time, She also observed that the crews had a way to blow off steam. That - I felt when all of the people I talked to, that was pretty - I'm actually really happy you picked up on that little moment because that was really important to me, the no one's going to miss you thing. American Honey: The Most Beautifully Anarchicand An additional accomplice might be the films director, in that it appears her fascination with such disreputable characters as Star and Jake borders on outright sympathy and misguided approbation. But I had chatted a lot to people who had done it before, so I heard a lot of things. It shines in citrus-influenced cocktails or sipped as a digestif, but bourbon fans may find it too sweet and lacking complexity. GROSS: So what stories did you hear from the one person who you cast who had actually done this sort of work? The crew ends up living temporarily in a rundown house, and Jake and Star renew their relationship. We get some of those deckchairs and sit outside Wal-Mart. This is a not a film tied to plot. of those teenage years thats hard to capture on filma sense of constant [42], According to music critic Robert Christgau, the film's soundtrack album went "unheralded" but "makes a single living thing of Rae Sremmurd and the Raveonettes, E-40 and Steve Earle as the must-see Andrea Arnold flick it's attached to follows a troupe of young magazine-subscription hustlers across flyover country more humane than its taste in presidents might lead cineastes to believe." It's about a group of teenagers who are abandoned, are homeless and have become something of a family traveling together by van from town to town, state to state selling magazine subscriptions door to door, making up different explanations depending on who opens the door. GROSS: Me? She's trying things on. The music serves as an essential component of the film and adds to its impact, helping to bring its themes to life. ARNOLD: Some people get a magazine, some people don't. And he kind of plays the potential boyfriend to her and kind of seduces her to come along. Theyre pretty damn nice. Usually, theyre at a party, they put some music on, but theyre all dancing to something else, so the rhythms a bit off. Dancing around the fire, Star is pulled aside by Jake, who privately hands her a turtle. Tucker Carlson Bashes Fox Nation in Leaked Video, Whats so powerful about American Honey is how it encompasses both that excitement of youth and the anxious, on-the-margins world of its characters both of which Arnold was keen on coexisting in the movie. The soundtrack of "American Honey" is an eclectic mix of popular songs, indie rock, and hip-hop, reflecting the eclectic tastes of the film's young characters. He offers her a job if she comes with him and his group to Kansas. The question tends to make the person posingit sound like a crank. All rights reserved. tomorrow. And I'm going around with my paws out, trying to be a cat. It's actually far more complicated and hard work and actually the people who do it are amazing. The stars of the film include Riley Keough, who plays the magazine crew's hardened boss, and Shia LaBeouf, who's her enforcer and most smooth-talking salesmen. LaBeoufs all-in performance as the scroungy, fast-talking Jake has deservedly received plenty of attention since the movie premiered at Cannes, where it won the Jury Prize. They - they're both broke. [1] The film had its world premiere at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival on 15 May 2016, where it was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or. And I think the mystery in films is really important. We want to hear it. The film was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival where it won the Jury Prize. The spirit channeled by American Honey isnt limited to no-future runaways. common song. is confident but also needs the reassurance of people like Krystal and I don't know how the hell you do that. And we do something called - we call it street casting, where we just go out. Carnage, iLoveMakonnen, D. Blackmon & M. Sheran. American Honey movie review & film summary (2016) "[66] David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter called the film "A road movie without a map that nonetheless arrives at a worthwhile destination," and wrote, "The film works best as a poignant character study, observing Star as she settles into her independence and figures out who she wants to be, framed by a vast physical landscape that stretches socioeconomically from privileged wealth to squalid poverty. We show the casting call. After dumping off the kids back with their trailer trash mom, Star returns to where the groups van is parked and falls asleep until Jake finds her there in the morning, delighted that she has agreed to travel to Kansas and become part of the team selling magazine subscriptions. "American Honey" explores themes of youth, freedom, and the search for identity, and is a visually stunning and emotionally charged film. Instead, thanks to its commitment to- and obvious love for the subject, and its sometimes comedic, sometimes very raw and sensitive little beats, it was a thoroughly enjoyable experience. The film stars Sasha Lane, Shia LaBeouf and Riley Keough. In late 2013, Arnold was the Filmmaker-in-Residence at the New York Film Festival. Jake offers Star a job before his crew picks him up at the parking lot. [41], Other songs featured in the film but not included in the soundtrack are:[45], In January 2016, A24 acquired distribution rights to the film. Review: 'American Honey The films allure is that its not just a story, its an immersion,a verit rhapsody about the live pulse of kids in the age of corporate nihilism. The new movie "American Honey," which won the Jury Prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival, was written and directed by my guest Andrea Arnold. Star also distracts Jake by flirting with and eventually kissing him. American Honey is undeniably gorgeous. It's drenched in color; it drips with it like, yes, honey. In the center of it all is Sasha Lane as Star, just as bright (if not brighter), and impossible not to watch. December 8, 2017 | Rating: 9/10 | Full Review "American Honey" is a coming-of-age drama film directed by Andrea Arnold and written by Arnold, from a story by photographer and writer Larry Clark. The film stars newcomer Sasha Lane as Star, a young woman who joins a traveling magazine sales crew, and follows her journey as she navigates the challenges of life on the road. GROSS: So the the two films of yours that I've seen "Fish Tank" and your new film "American Honey" are about teenagers with a focus on teenage girls who have little or no affection from their mothers. And when I wrote that, I thought this is kind of strange. WebAmerican Honey streaming: where to watch online? But I just went for it. So I went to that audition, and I thought I'm just going to go around the stage like a cat. So most of my kind of dancing, in those early days, was kind of things where you didn't have to have any kind of ballet training. Why is this movie in 1.37:1 (4:3)? Star climbs in the back of their truck and tries to sell to them, but one of the oil workers tells her he'll pay her five hundred dollars to go on a date with him. And that's how we actually found Sasha. "American Honey" is a coming-of-age drama film directed by Andrea Arnold and written by Arnold, from a story by photographer and writer Larry Clark. happy, they danceArnolds film is filled with pop songs, many of which are Variety and the Flying V logos are trademarks of Variety Media, LLC. WebThat's the genius and pain of American Honey: the depiction of a world that seems unlimited but which offers no sense at all of how to take advantage of that Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow up to Be Cowboys. People ask me that all the time, like - I always think every time I work on a project I've kind of got to work something out for myself. And I ended up doing it for quite a few years. In the car on the way to Kansas, Star meets the other members of the crew. And they said, do you want to come with us? Theyre living day to daypartying, drinking, and singing their way across SHIA LABEOUF: (As Jake) You read the handbook last night? American Honey (2016) - IMDb Star asks him what his dreams are, and he shows her his private stash of cash and items he's stolen from the houses he visits, which he intends to use to buy a home. ending You've got to be able to scan them to figure them out, figure out what kind of person that person wants in their life. So tell us a little bit about what your home was like. speeding down the freeway. Each song is carefully chosen and perfectly integrated into the film, and the soundtrack as a whole provides a fitting accompaniment to the film's story. I'm Terry Gross. Yet when you see American Honey, you may feel that teenage rebellion, for the first time, has gone about as far as it can go that its reached a point where its consuming itself. For me, the space and the, you know - if people go see "Fish Tank," I would love them to not know - I wouldn't want to explain to them what I kind of intended or what I felt were the intentions of each of those characters. I put all the stuff in my films, so that I don't, you know - I can't talk about those things. (0:28) The crew arrive at Kansas City. And it was a huge, huge experience for me at that time, and opened up my eyes to so many things. (Hustling, it turns out, really is harder than making an honest living.) It tells a good story, about a girl named Star (Sasha Lane), 18 years old, with Rasta Barbie braids and a skeptical smirk, who joins a wolfpack of kids in their late teens and early twenties who live on the road, traveling from one cookie-cutter motel to the next, making money by hustling magazine subscriptions door-to-door. It is also possible to buy "American Honey" on Apple TV, Amazon Video, Google Play Honey. Theres a bit of a villain in Riley Keoughs Krystal, the head of the It was always much, much briefer kind of interactions with people. So, yeah, I can't talk about that. I told her, I dont do well with a camera in my face. ARNOLD: Oh, that's so personal (laughter). ARNOLD: I still can't twerk I've been trying. I got - actually got a place but I needed to get a grant in order to go there because it was away from home. filmboards.com - My two theories about the ending And she was always, you know, practicing her moves and everything. I don't feel that safe when I'm making scenes thinking, oh, maybe it's going to work, maybe it's not, you know. GROSS: Who need a way out of the situation that they're in. You know, she went because she had nothing to lose. ', Arnolds own preparations inspired her to take road trips across the United States, finding any excuse she could. And then as Krystal's kind of ordering - you know, like, telling Star what she has to do, she basically tells Jake that she wants him to do her legs.