Smooth Talk (1985)
1h 31m | PG-13
Connie, the fifteen-year-old black sheep of her family, finds her summertime idyll of beach trips, mall hangouts, and innocent flirtations shattered by an encounter with a mysterious stranger.
Director: Joyce Chopra
Studio: Palmyra Films
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Video: 720p
Cast
Laura Dern
as Connie Wyatt
Treat Williams
as Arnold Friend
Mary Kay Place
as Katherine Wyatt
Levon Helm
as Harry Wyatt
Elizabeth Berridge
as June Wyatt
Margaret Welsh
as Laura Condon
Reviews
Based on a short story by Joyce Carol Oates called "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?", "Smooth Talk" stars Laura Dern as a bored and restless adolescent who thinks she's more in control of her sexual allure, and more capable of handling the attention she receives for it, than she is. In a deeply unsettling and slightly surreal scene, a hunky stranger (Treat Williams) comes calling for her, and she realizes that she's not as mature as she thinks. The film captures the same other-worldly quality of the short story (the scene with Treat Williams plays out almost like a feverish dream), while ably adapting it to the very different needs of a feature length film. Dern gives a wonderful performance, one of many given by this underrated actress.