Star 80 (1983)

Directed by

Bob Fosse

Genre

drama film, biographical film, flashback film

Country

United States

Runtime

1h 44m

Rated

R

Rating

6.5 of 10 from 140 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

The film follows the relationship between a young Canadian model and her controlling husband as she becomes a Playboy star. It traces their move to Los Angeles, her rising fame, and the unraveling of their marriage that ends in her murder.

tragicdisturbingintensegrimclaustrophobicemotionally rawunsettlingsomber

What happens

Star 80 is a 1983 American biographical crime drama film written and directed by Bob Fosse, and starring Mariel Hemingway, Eric Roberts, Cliff Robertson, Carroll Baker, Roger Rees, and David Clennon. It was adapted from the Pulitzer Prize-winning Village Voice article "Death of a Playmate" by Teresa Carpenter, about Canadian Playboy model Dorothy Stratten, who died in a murder–suicide committed by her husband, Paul Snider, in 1980. The film chronicles Stratten's relationship with Snider, their move to Los Angeles, her success as a Playboy model, the dissolution of their relationship, and her murder. Its title is taken from one of Snider's vanity license plates. Star 80 was filmed on location in Vancouver and Los Angeles; the death scene was filmed in the same house in which the real murder–suicide took place. Warner Bros. released Star 80 in the United States on November 10, 1983. It received mixed reviews from critics, with Roberts' and Hemingway's performances receiving some acclaim, though numerous critics found the film exploitative and criticized its graphic violence. The film marked Fosse's final directorial feature; he died in 1987. In the years since its original release, Star 80 has received a favorable critical reappraisal. American screenwriter Josh Olson cites it as "one of the most unpleasant films to ever come out of Hollywood." (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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