Girlfriend (2010 film)
Encyclopedia
Girlfriend is a 2010 American drama film written and directed by Justin Lerner and starring Evan Sneider, Jackson Rathbone
, Shannon Woodward and Amanda Plummer.
Candy, now a barely-employed single mom, is facing financial debt, possible eviction, and the inability to rid herself of Russ, her abusive and volatile ex-boyfriend. In no position to turn down Evan’s offers of financial support, Candy hesitantly accepts his gifts, which causes the pair to enter a complicated emotional entanglement.
When Russ catches on to Candy and Evan’s relationship, all three of them become intertwined in a complex triangle of secrets, jealousy and revenge. Despite his many hardships and the seeming impossibility of Candy being able to return his love, Evan struggles to remain a resilient, pure embodiment of human compassion.
. The New York Post
gave the film two stars out of a possible four, stating that credit was due to "filmmaker Justin Lerner with getting an affecting per formance out of Evan Sneider, a longtime friend with Down syndrome
but no prior acting experience, in the emotionally manipulative and problematic melodrama Girlfriend." The New York Times
gave a mixed review saying that some events in the film were "melodramatic" and, "while not necessarily predictable" were not a "very surprising chain of events".
Jackson Rathbone
Monroe Jackson Rathbone, V , better known as Jackson Rathbone, is an American actor and musician. He is perhaps best known for his role as Jasper Hale in The Twilight Saga and for playing Sokka in The Last Airbender....
, Shannon Woodward and Amanda Plummer.
Plot
Evan is a young man with Down Syndrome who lives with his mother in a poor, working-class town hit hard by the recent economic recession. When he unexpectedly comes into a large amount of money, Evan uses it to romantically pursue Candy, a girl from town whom he has loved since high school.Candy, now a barely-employed single mom, is facing financial debt, possible eviction, and the inability to rid herself of Russ, her abusive and volatile ex-boyfriend. In no position to turn down Evan’s offers of financial support, Candy hesitantly accepts his gifts, which causes the pair to enter a complicated emotional entanglement.
When Russ catches on to Candy and Evan’s relationship, all three of them become intertwined in a complex triangle of secrets, jealousy and revenge. Despite his many hardships and the seeming impossibility of Candy being able to return his love, Evan struggles to remain a resilient, pure embodiment of human compassion.
Cast
- Evan Sneider as Evan
- Shannon Woodward as Candy
- Amanda Plummer as Celeste
- Jackson RathboneJackson RathboneMonroe Jackson Rathbone, V , better known as Jackson Rathbone, is an American actor and musician. He is perhaps best known for his role as Jasper Hale in The Twilight Saga and for playing Sokka in The Last Airbender....
as Russ - Jerad AndersonJerad AndersonJerad Anderson is an American born actor.He is part of the band 100 monkeys with fellow bandmates Jackson Rathbone, Benjamin Graupner, Benjamin Johnson, and M. Lawrence Abrams....
as Kenny - Harrison Lees as Harrison
- Joseph Turnbull as Willie Jones
Critical reception
The film has received mixed reviews and holds a score of 42 out of 100 on MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
. The New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
gave the film two stars out of a possible four, stating that credit was due to "filmmaker Justin Lerner with getting an affecting per formance out of Evan Sneider, a longtime friend with Down syndrome
Down syndrome
Down syndrome, or Down's syndrome, trisomy 21, is a chromosomal condition caused by the presence of all or part of an extra 21st chromosome. It is named after John Langdon Down, the British physician who described the syndrome in 1866. The condition was clinically described earlier in the 19th...
but no prior acting experience, in the emotionally manipulative and problematic melodrama Girlfriend." The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
gave a mixed review saying that some events in the film were "melodramatic" and, "while not necessarily predictable" were not a "very surprising chain of events".