74
Metascore
18 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 90The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeThe Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeA mismatched-friends drama whose overall sensitivity is belied by a couple of clumsily contrived plot points, Sean Baker's Starlet pairs story and setting perfectly.
- 83IndieWireEric KohnIndieWireEric KohnThe story retains an inscrutable tone that sometimes makes its emotional qualities feel remote, but it still delivers a powerful message about the challenge of self-diagnosis by rooting it in universal experience
- 80NPRScott TobiasNPRScott TobiasStarlet shows enough of her unbalanced, unsustainable situation to make sense of her connection to Sadie, however frail a ballast her new friend might be. Their need for each other is disarmingly sweet, but far from sticky.
- 80Los Angeles TimesRobert AbeleLos Angeles TimesRobert AbeleIt's a character study about faith in connectedness, with an unforced love for cross-generational companionship that's special indeed.
- 75The A.V. ClubNathan RabinThe A.V. ClubNathan RabinStarlet is an unusually subtle, quiet character study - especially given the potentially salacious subject matter - that builds to a quietly powerful climax.
- 75The PlaylistKatie WalshThe PlaylistKatie WalshStarlet is an interesting effort from indie filmmaker Sean Baker (this is his fourth feature), and signals the arrival of Dree Hemingway as one to watch.
- 70VarietyPeter DebrugeVarietyPeter DebrugeThough named after a party girl's pet Chihuahua, Starlet could just as easily describe the two exceptional first-timers making their debuts in this brittle, beautifully understated San Fernando Valley character study.
- 70Village VoiceMelissa AndersonVillage VoiceMelissa AndersonDirector Sean Baker, co-writing his fourth feature with Chris Bergoch, does some deft balancing of his own: His genuine admiration for these two women extends to their idiosyncrasies, yet they never become fools, whores, saints, or coots.
- 63Slant MagazineDiego SemereneSlant MagazineDiego SemereneThe film works as a charming aesthetic exercise with its jerky camera and inadvertent cuts, as a contemplation on intergenerational female bonding.
- 60Time OutJoshua RothkopfTime OutJoshua RothkopfDree Hemingway, daughter of Mariel, commits to some unnecessary nudity, but also impresses with her subtlety.