This May, We Really Like Her! co-hosts Emily and Danita invite you to get an early start on Sad Girl Summer with a screening of Joyce Chopra’s chillingly familiar 1985 drama Smooth Talk. (1985).
Fifteen-year-old Connie (Laura Dern in her breakthrough role) is the very definition of Cyndi Lauper’s biggest hit: this girl just wants to have fun. While her parents (Mary Kay Place and Levon Helm) object to her going out cruising for boys every night, Connie carries on without a care in the world. That is, until she meets Arnold Friend (the late great Treat Williams), a handsome, yet menacing man who will do anything to get her to come for “a ride” in his convertible.
Based on a shocking short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, Smooth Talk is the kind of movie that will get under your skin and stay there for days after. Anchored by Dern’s fiery portrayal of a young woman in the throes of all-consuming sexual awakening, it is as heartfelt as it is harrowing — kind of like summer itself.
CONTENT WARNING: This film features extended scenes of sexual harassment, both verbal and physical. Please contact @wereallylikeher on Instagram, if you would like more specific details.