Fred Durst | Scott's Film Reviews-1,504 Reviews posted!!! RECENTLY LAUNCHED-MY TOP 250 FAVORITE FILMS AND TOP 40 HORROR FILMS!!!

I Saw the TV Glow-2024

Director Jane Schoenbrun

Starring Justice Smith, Jack Haven

Scott’s Review #1,467

Reviewed February 17, 2025

Grade: A-

I Saw the TV Glow (2024) is a bizarre independent psychological drama/horror film co-produced by Emma Stone and her husband.

It was produced by their Fruit Tree production company and distributed by A24, a brilliant independent film distributor, immediately giving the film credibility and a broad audience.

Writer/director Jane Schoenbrun perfectly depicts teenage angst via a visually cerebral and creative avenue. They sprinkle pink lettering and a colorful, moody aesthetic that is impressive.

The film is more than mysterious; it is hypnotic, with a dark mood evoking the dark underbelly of life in the suburbs.

Delving deeper after my initial viewing, I realized the film is an allegory for being transgender, which I did not know. Having that knowledge makes perfect sense because the characters feel trapped in their skin and fear being buried alive.

Transgender people often feel like the “egg crack,” a term for the moment in a trans person’s life when they realize their identity does not correspond to their assigned gender.

The film depicts bleak life in the suburbs and transitions between 1996 and 2026 when the main character is a teenager and finally a middle-aged man.

Owen (Justice Smith) is trying to make it through life in the suburbs when his older classmate, Maddy (Jack Haven), introduces him to a mysterious late-night TV show, a vision of a supernatural world beneath their own.

Both are loners and immediately bond over the young adult television show The Pink Opaque, which follows teenagers Isabel and Tara as they use their psychic connection to fight supervillain Mr. Melancholy, who has the power to warp time and reality.

Enthralled, Owen’s view of reality begins to crack.

I Saw the TV Glow is an unusual experience, especially during the 2006 chapter when Maddy returns to town after years away. When she explains that she paid a man to bury her alive, mirroring the finale of The Pink Opaque, the sequence is frightening, macabre, and hard to follow.

I wondered if she was speaking literally or figuratively.

But Maddy is trapped inside her own body, in her case, the wrong gender, and yearns to break out of her coffin. She encourages Owen to do the same, though it’s not clear if he identifies as female, is gay, or is just trapped in suburbia in a dead-end job.

In 2026, we realize that Owen has remained in the small town, mainly at the same job cleaning a movie theater, with his mother and stepfather long dead.

Sadly, he is still trapped inside his own body, aching to come to the surface. He screams out that he is dying and needs help, but nobody ever seems to notice.

He mentions a family, but they are never seen. Are they imagined? Is he living the life of a gay man or a straight man? Owen is mixed race, so what other issues does he face?

I wanted more concrete answers.

Even though the story is focused on a transgender lifestyle, Schoenbrun is never blatant about it.

Growing up in the lonely suburbs, I can relate to the feeling of suffocation at being unable to get out. Many are trapped for decades with the sameness day after day. Young people face this dilemma constantly, so I Saw the TV GLow is an essential film for most.

Debatable is whether I Saw the TV Glow was not overtly marketed as a trans film or even an LGBTQ+ film purposely. At a time in United States history when the trans community is under attack, they need all the support they can get.

The myriad of awards notice and star power (Emma Stone) supporting this film is reaffirming and another reason I love A24 so much.

But I Saw the TV Glow (2024) is a film with many interpretations and meanings.

Independent Spirit Award Nominations: Best Feature, Best Director, Jane Schoenbrun, Best Screenplay, Best Lead Performance-Justice Smith, Best Supporting Performance-Jack Haven

Sorry, Haters-2005

Director Jeff Stanzler

Starring Robin Wright

Scott’s Review #787

Reviewed July 12, 2018

Grade: A

Sorry, Haters (2005) is a small, indie film that was not well received by audiences or necessarily by many film critics, but that I am a champion of.

The film is a little-known gem and a showcase piece for star Robin Wright, who has become quite the indie queen over the years. Thankfully, the film did receive some recognition via two independent film nominations, which is how I heard of it.

Regardless, Wright gives a fantastic performance as a troubled television executive who becomes involved with a Muslim taxi driver in New York City, panic-stricken post 9/11.

Ashade (Abdel Kechiche), struggles with driving a cab and the myriad of family issues he faces, including legal troubles. When an upscale, white woman, Phoebe (Wright) enters his cab one night, she insists on forging a friendship, but what is her motivation?

She immediately seems slightly unbalanced and tense.

Reluctant, but needing her help, Ashade’s life becomes entangled with hers as Phoebe offers Ashade assistance. But when her true motivations are revealed, the audience will never see the terrific and terrifying conclusion coming.

The film is very dark in tone and hardly a feel-good film. The best facet of Sorry, Haters is the complicated relationship between Phoebe and Ashade and how this plays out within the story.

More accurate is the complex dynamic of Phoebe herself as her motivations are slowly revealed.

As great as Kechiche is, the standout is Wright, but both play well opposite each other. Her role is more developed and the centerpiece as the audience slowly becomes aware of her dark secrets and disturbing behaviors.

Phoebe immediately claims to be going through a divorce and hires Ashade to drive her to nearby New Jersey to observe her ex-husband. She talks his ear off, recounting how she has lost her family. This scene becomes the first clue that Phoebe may be unbalanced.

As the film progresses, this becomes more obvious. As Phoebe dines with colleagues, she engages in reluctant conversation as she violently cuts her leg with a fork underneath the table for some relief.

Wright can do no wrong as an actress appearing in numerous films over the years. She is not a “box office” type of actress and this is to her credit. She chooses independent films that allow her to sink her teeth into good, meaty, complex, female roles.

The role of Phoebe is of that ilk. The character is unstable and borders on madness and has rage bubbling under the surface. Wright portrays these emotions successfully.

Let’s not forget the other leading actor- Kechiche is purely dynamic in the male leading role. The audience will undoubtedly sympathize right away with this man and the character.

Since the period is so close to the events of 9/11, and the character is Muslim (some big clues to the climactic conclusion here), the man is a prime target for discrimination.

Since his brother is imprisoned and needs a legal team, Ashade is quite vulnerable and ultimately at Phoebe’s mercy.

The interesting dynamic between Phoebe and Ashade is that they do not share a romantic relationship at all. Developing a friendship based on need, there is something not right with the situation, and director Jeff Stanzler provides the appropriate mood with many scenes occurring either at night or in the confines of Ashade’s taxi.

Dialogue frequently seems awkward between the two.

Despite not being an easy film to watch, Sorry, Haters (2005) is a film with a powerful message and great scenery of one of the most vibrant cities in the world.

The film is dark, even dour, but above all contains a powerful message with a timely subject matter. Rich in character development between the leads and the maniacal motivations of some.

I found the film to be topical, riveting, and disturbing.

Independent Spirit Award Nominations: Best Female Lead-Robin Wright Penn, Best Screenplay