Pretty Bad Actress (2012)

An actress with anger issues has to save not only her fledgling career, but her own life, when she gets abducted after an audition.

Director:

Nick Scown

Writer:

Nick Scown

Stars:

Heather McComb, Danny Woodburn, Stephanie Hodes

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Heather McComb	...	Gloria
Danny Woodburn	...	Al
Stephanie Hodes	...	Dawnee
Jillian Bell	...	Cheryl
John Hensley	...	Freddy
Chris Owen	...	Officer Young
Kevin M. Brennan	...	Officer Christiansen
John Short	...	Mr. Maddox
Garrett Clayton	...	Tad
Annet Mahendru	...	Katie
Blayne Weaver	...	Director
Arielle Brachfeld	...	Director's Assistant
Amy Buchwald	...	Passerby Mom
Arshad Aslam	...	Son Passerby
William Stanford Davis	...	Kenny

Storyline

Washed up child star Gloria Green thinks her life can't any worse when she finds herself kidnapped by a deranged stalker and held captive with her biggest fan, Dawnee, who seems intent on making Gloria relive the past she's tried to forget. As the two hostages butt heads, Gloria's hapless assistant, Cheryl, tries to track down her missing boss, enlisting the help of the incompetent and dismissive police force. When Cheryl discovers that Gloria has been kidnapped, she alerts Gloria's manager, Al, who rather than save Gloria decides to sensationalize the event in order to reignite Gloria's acting career. As Al and the studios work on a deal, Cheryl tries to save Gloria, and the police... milk the limelight of the press. Gloria and Dawnee have started to bond in the confines of the basement, all that stands in the way of their budding friendship and Gloria's comeback is the deranged stalker who has a plan of his own...

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Plot Keywords:

reference to malcolm x | reference to martin luther king jr. | reference to the black panthers | reference to the holocaust | presentation | 

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Taglines:

All the Makings of a Killer Comeback

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 June 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

Pretty Bad Actress

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$300,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

RMS Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

85 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Connections

References In the Heat of the Night (1967)

User Reviews

Odd little indie is an unexpected treat.

I can understand why this was an apparent direct-to-video movie. It portrays Hollywood as the cesspool it is, but in an oddly affectionate way. It proudly wears its political incorrectness on its sleeve and some of the more sophomoric humor doesn't work, but the result is strangely big-hearted. A washed-up TV actress who is more trouble than she's worth is kidnapped and her handlers see this as a way to get her name back in the spotlight. It showcases fine performances from the two leads, Heather McComb and Stephanie Hodes. (For some reason IMDB lists a couple of the bit players and hardly any of the number of well-known actors in the cast.) McComb really anchors the film and Hodes is a delight. Jillian Bell was more restrained than I've ever seen her (especially in a comedy) and just when I wondered where Nip/Tuck's John Hensley had gone, here he is. As I watched, I was thinking the plot was predictable, but it had a few surprises in store for me. All in all, a good diversion on a rainy afternoon.