British Actress Blog

Loved Up (1995)

Score: 5/10

Director: Peter Cattaneo

Stars: Lena Headey, Ian Hart, Linda Bassett.

Synopsis: The story of a young British woman who’s life goes into a deep decent as she becomes a drug dealer in the slums of England.

Review: Sarah ( Lena Headey ) is a young British woman living in the run down area of England. She is introduced to a drug called ecstasy and leaves her dysfunctional home to sell drugs with her new drug dealer boy friend. Sarah is surprised by the lifestyle of a typical drug dealer. Learning how dangerous it is, she is then told by her little sister that her alcoholic mother’s mental condition is deteriorating.

Lena Headey does well in this film but you can tell she was a novice actor with potential. This movie does not show the character motivation for her actions, instead her charatcer seems to be just reacting to the world around her. Unfortunately her character is written very robotic and somewhat unrealistic. We don’t know if she was selling drugs to make money for a better life or if she was just trying distance herself away from her family. The character’s actions are so self destructive that she is constantly making her life worse. Lena Headey’s acting has gotten better with time. Her role of Queen Cersei from Game of Thrones is a high point for sure in the case of Lena Headey’s acting ability.

The film focuses on the seductive yet destructive life style of drugs. The movie shows how drugs only candy coats the world around you as your world falls apart. Much like the Jared Leto film Requiem for a Dream (2000) you get nowhere in life taking that poison. For the character Sarah, focusing on her real job, gaining education, and new job skills would have definitely done better for her than choosing the extremely dangerous life of a drug dealer. She was almost sexually assaulted multiple times in this film. The movie shows you a very real side of that illegal life style.

The cinematography is average for the time of 1994-1995. The film look very dated. The color and lighting are most definitely washed out. The wardrobe is that awful 90s “big” clothing. This film reminds me of the Jennifer Lawrence The Poker House (2008). These films take realism and put it right into your face. Most people would not enjoy a film like this. The movie is really not that interesting and depressing. This movie gets an average score.

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More Helena Bonham Carter Films.

Cinderella (2015)

The King’s Speech (2010)

Suffragette (2015)

The Young and Prodigious T.S. Spivet (2013)

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (2010)

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)

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