To the Stars (2019) User Reviews (27)

Unexpected Coming-of-Age Story

[Holli_Would · 6/10 · 27 April 2020]

I didn't know what to expect from this film, because I'd never heard of it and randomly picked it out for a Sunday evening flick.

The story is about an outcast, bullied high school girl in Small Town, USA (Oklahoma) who is so unhappy with her circumstances that she wishes she would disappear. Enter the pretty, cool girl from a bigger town who moves to the neighborhood and, from the start, sets out to help and liberate the bullied girl and help her find her way in life.

I won't give much away, but I wasn't expecting the turn the story took about 3/4 of the way in. I felt that although the "event" that occurred was hinted at, it all seemed to occur too late into the story. From this event forward, everything followed a predictable dive towards the ending like the movie couldn't get to the ending fast enough, so much so that several major story lines were left dangling on the prairie wind.

The acting is not bad at all, and the stifling atmosphere of small towns/small minds is well captured. But as much as the story was going somewhere most of the film, before taking a sudden turn and race, I wish it had either stuck to one main plot point or at least given the last 3rd of the film much more depth.

Overall, I'd give the film 6.5/10 stars and would recommend it being watched at least once.

Moving historical character study

[patsteves · 7/10 · 7 April 2021]

To say too much about this movie would reveal some late story twists/reveals, but it really does a great job of capturing a time period and pulling you into the friendship between to seemingly opposite teenage girls (one confident and one shy/awkward). Not always an easy story to watch, as it shows the dark underbelly of a time period that we love to look at with such nostalgia and romanticism.

I was left wanting more...

[privategalender · 6/10 · 26 July 2020]

.... maybe that was the point? I wasn't sure how to rate this because I thought maybe that was point; to leave me thinking, wondering? If so, then maybe it deserves a 7 or 8, but it just felt/feels "wrong."

I feel like the writer messed up, because I wasn't thinking and wondering so much about the character's lives (although I did want a better look into those characters & their lives) as wondering why I was left feeling like I was given a synopsis, or outline of a story, rather than actually hearing and seeing a whole story.

Indeed, now, having said that, I think maybe a 5 would be a more appropriate rating, because I just hit the nail on the head--this film was like being given an outline to what could have been a great story. Funny, having written this I now understand why I was left wanting more, and I do not believe that was the writer's point. But I'll let my original rating stand because I don't usually write reviews and maybe that means something too.... or not.

Touching and sad

[Gordon-11 · 3 May 2020]

The story is engaging because the central plot is slowly unfolded. There are clues along the way, but when it finally comes it really touches you. I feel sad for the women in the spotlight, as their hopes and dreams are quashed because they are not mainstream.

a bit overstuffed

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 14 July 2023]

Iris Deerborne (Kara Hayward) is a mousy ostracized teenager in 60's rural Oklahoma. She has a troubled relationship with her mother (Jordana Spiro) and a crush on similarly ostracized boy Jeff Owings (Lucas Jade Zumann). She is harassed by the boys when new arrival Maggie Richmond (Liana Liberato) comes to her rescue.

There is a bit too much here. There are too many characters and each one has their own issue. I had assumed that this was based on a book since filmmakers often try to stuff everything from the book into the movie. This is not based on a book. The writer should simply streamline this world. Not everything has to be there. When Maggie does the big reveal, the whole movie threatens to tip over like a game of Jenga. When there is too much going on, a character like Hazel Atkins doesn't have enough time and space to set up properly. Initially, I was concerned about Tony Hale. It seems like a desperate move to go against type or maybe Tony is trying to expand his range. Either way, he doesn't easily fit the role. He does redeem his worth by the end with a more complicated character portrayal. More than anything, this is elevated by the younger cast especially the two female leads. Both are worthy to do bigger things in the future.

A collection of great ingredients does not a finished dish make!

[adamchurvis · 2/10 · 28 April 2020]

I must agree wholeheartedly with the two reviews "The Unclear and Bad Written Ending Destroyed It!" and "Unexpected Coming-of-Age Story," as it has the worst ending since the 2001 film "Rat Race."

What is it with writers these days? It's like they have a GREAT basis for a story, and then get writer's block right at the point when the Third Act is supposed to really have the audience on the edges of their seats, waiting for the Big Reveal. Sadly, there are no meaningful reveals, and lots of threads are left hanging and unanswered. And the final transformation of the girl in question seems rushed, unrealistic by any measure, and meaningless.

Who do I sue to get back the two hours of my life I wasted on this film? Sure, the first 75% was great, but the ending utterly ruined it. It's like getting some serious attention from a genuinely interesting woman for an hour and twenty-five minutes, and then she steps behind you, picks up a Louisville Slugger, and beats your brains out with it. Kinda ruins the whole experience, you feel me?

I think I will buy the DVD of this movie, if for no other reason than to watch the Bonus Content, which has Malin Akerman self-flagellating while screaming "I SHOULD HAVE NEVER LEFT BILLIONS...! I SHOULD HAVE NEVER LEFT BILLIONS...!" over and over again until she passes out.

Hate and Love

[Tron79 · 8/10 · 4 October 2020]

I recently watched Moonrise Kingdom which starred Kara Hayward. Since I liked the movie, I searched for other films with the same actors. I found "To The Stars" starring Kara Hayward. She was about 7 years older than her role in Moonrise Kingdom. Most of this film focuses on Kara's character, Iris. A "cool" city girl Maggie befriends outcast Iris, and their close friendship develops. Later on, the story shifts focus to Maggie. Her father moved the family to the small town, because as he saw it, Maggie disgraced them somehow in the big city.

I enjoyed watching Iris' transformation into a self assured young adult with Maggie's help. I felt extremely saddened once I realized that the point of the movie was to show how the small town people had extremely small minds. They couldn't handle anyone who was gay in their town. They immediately went to run poor Hazel out of town. The interesting thing is that Maggie didn't have a gay relationship with Iris. You would have thought from the build up that might happen. Iris totally understood her friend. Maggie had an attraction to the hair stylist "Hazel" who was also gay. Hazel was living a lie in the town pretending that her husband died in the war, when it was actually her brother who died. In the year 2020, it seems totally outrageous to me that someone could think that their child is damaged for being gay. It was tragic to see a father beat his beautiful daughter because she's "being bad" just by being herself. This was painful to watch, but it's part of our history. Unfortunately there are probably still plenty of people in 2020 who have similar feelings.

I suppose the teens at the high school treated Iris in an awful way because they didn't understand her either. There were a bunch of self centered ignorant people in that town! I am sure the film was also saying that religious teachings were cruel. I am a religious person, and I will say from experience that not all religions or churches are the same. For me, people who love each other are not the problem. We have so much hate and violence in the world, I don't think it makes any sense at all to add even more hate. People who love are not the problem.

EDITS AFTER READING OTHER REVIEWS: There were a number of other user reviews who thought Iris had a gay relationship with Maggie. I think they must have been watching a different movie than me!! Maggie in one emotional moment kissed Iris, but Iris didn't return the kiss, and Maggie became embarrassed for acting on her impulse. Iris tried to tell her she wasn't mad at her, but Maggie took off. Even though they swam nude in the pond, neither one seemed interested in a sexual relationship. They were friends. When Iris decided to swim nude, it was more of an act of freedom or rebellion. Iris was attracted to boys from the beginning of the film. I never felt anything sexual between the two friends Maggie and Iris. I just felt close friendship and trust.

Boring narrative.

[sagetwo · 3/10 · 27 April 2020]

Bullied girl meets the new girl, and become fast friends. Later, the audience finds out that the new girl is gay. That is about it. It feels like a 19 year old creative writing student wrote it. There are other better movies about friendship, acceptance, confidence, open-mindness, bullying, abuse and lgbt+. This movie is certainly not worth your time.

STILL IMPRESSED

[cristinavz · 10/10 · 14 May 2020]

Watched To The Stars a couple of weeks ago, when it first premiered on Prime, and was blown away. The details, the accuracy of the setting, the cast and their performances are very captivating. It takes me to the time when this all took place.

Please do yourself a favor and stop reading these reviews and WATCH IT. Don't spoil yourself a great experience. You're welcome!

The Unclear and Bad Written Ending Destroyed It !

[ProducersGuide · 2/10 · 25 April 2020]

Sadly, it was not a good end for the good movie, the reason I gave 2 instead of one is that it was good and all the main staff did a good job in producing it. But, the story itself ended in a very disappointing way! even if it was based on a true story, it shouldn't end this way.

If you don't like the kind of movies that doesn't meet your expectations and leave you wondering at the very last minute .. how come this is the end?! Then, better don't watch ... because the relationship between the two main characters is gonna end with one of them admitting killing herself without them sleeping a single night together. Adding to that, she sleeps with another woman that doesn't have anything to do with the story before her suicide . So AGAIN, even if it was a true story, it shouldn't end this way.

OH PLEASE! NOW HOW CAN I NOT FORGET THE MOVIE AND FORGET THE END THAT RUINED IT? FOR GOD SAKE PRODUCERS! THE END SHOULD'VE BEEN TOLD BETTER THAN THAT!

Every review misses the point!

[LittlePenguin2 · 1/10 · 31 August 2021]

To the Stars at first appears like a heartwarming film about two girls who discover their true selves. A symbol of hope for LGBTQ+ youth - the kind of film viewers turn to not only for entertainment, but to feel understood.

Its stereotypical portrayal of lesbian characters creates a backwards message that does not belong in 2021. Rather than inspiring its target audience, To the Stars' mishandled LGBTQ+ representation raises the question of how period cinema can instill hope in audiences today.

The two misfits find refuge in each other and gradually, Maggie helps Iris blossom into an independent, confident young woman. However, Maggie fails to achieve the same success. Behind her lies is the truth: that her father hits her, that she likes girls. Although she appears "normal," she feels far from it.

This ending portrays the two LGBTQ+ characters as stereotypes, not people. Members of the LGBTQ+ community have been stereotypically labeled as pedophiles; the liaison between the thirty-year-old woman and teenage girl is downright pedophilic, which only underscores that assumption.

Maggie's suicide at the end rehashes exclusionary narratives of the past. The ending of To the Stars echoes the tragic story arc prevalent in lesbian pulp fiction, a genre that gained traction in the 1950s. Although these novels overtly depicted relationships between women, publishers required them to end with characters "cutting their wrists, drowning themselves in a swimming pool, or... switching to heterosexuality,".

Like in the pulp fiction novels, Maggie's suicide implies that she has gone "to the stars" - that it's best ending for a lesbian girl.

To the Stars attempts to embrace acceptance, but its 20th-century mindset contradicts its flimsy 21st-century claim. The last shot depicts Iris and her new boyfriend kissing in the lake where Maggie drowned, a happily-ever-after ending for the straight girl but a morbid fate for the lesbian one.

In these films, the characters are able to rise above the limitations of their times, or at least stay true to their identities despite struggle. Faced with even greater societal barriers than those that exist today, they still overcome their obstacles. This kind of historical drama gives us hope. To the Stars does not.

First Reaction

[aadelman-05792 · 8/10 · 28 January 2019]

You really don't need to know much more about this film aside from the brief blurb currently posted. A detailed synopsis will actually diminish the experience in my opinion. The film is a black and white production set in 1960s Oklahoma. The story is centrally about an unlikely relationship between two young women. That's as much as you need to know.

From a technical perspective, the depth of field was above average even for a studio production. As an independent film, the photography earns extra points. The production was shot on location so we can't talk about set design. However, the costumes and staging were pretty spectacular too.

I was a little disappointed to learn the film was dual-chromatic. Meaning the producers and director essentially shot both in color and non-color before deciding which cut to release. The film wasn't exclusively crafted as a black and white film. On the upside though, the director obviously took care enough to ensure everything contrasted well in black and white from the beginning. The contrast is very well done and obviously extensively planned.

The best part of the film is probably the performances though. Kara Hayward steals the show in my opinion. However, there is such a long list of supporting roles it's hard to say which one is best. Liana Liberato deserves a mention as an essential co-star but the list really doesn't end there. If I had to level any criticism, I'd say the male performances didn't really keep up.

The difference probably relates more to writing than how the actors were portrayed but the difference is noticeable. All the male characters, with maybe one exception, are decidedly two dimensional. The female characters, whether by acting or writing, display a lot more depth and interest for the viewer. The distinction was obviously intentional. However, there is a problem.

Without giving anything away, the sheer volume of depth almost overwhelms the film at some points. I feel as though there were too many interesting plot lines to explore. The film might have accomplished more with less. Instead, I encountered some odd cropped scenes where you're left wondering where some of the ideas came or went.

Not exactly continuity glitches. More like questions left hanging. I won't tell you the details. Suffices to say though, the climax of the film ends up feeling a bit rushed and most of the sub-plots leave the film feeling inconclusive. One loose end was certainly intentional. However, I'm talking about the film as a whole.

Go watch and enjoy. The film is a lot more successful than not. If you have the time, you should ask yourself where the title came from. That's one of those explained loose ends.

Why did you focus on the wrong character?

[PaxtonMalloy · 5/10 · 30 May 2020]

This movie makes some very odd choices but by far the oddest choice is the choice of the lead character and actress. It is baffling that Liana Liberato's character isn't the focal point of the movie. It is the far more interesting character with the far more interesting story and played by the far better actress.

I don't wanna be mean to Kara Hayward but she is just miscast. The way she plays her role feels so unreal. Slouching your shoulders, lowering your head and looking shy is not enough tell us your pain and fear. Doing the old cliche of just wearing thick dark glasses won't help either. Her character is flat anyway and we mostly get her misery by watching good actors interact with her like her mother played by Jordana Spiro who is exceptionally good as well as Shea Whigham even though his part is tiny and Adelaide Clemens who is also great doing so much with so little.

Long story short this movie could have been absolutely great with a focus on the right character. The first half is hard to watch and when it finally get's to Liberato's side of the story everything clicks until near the end when we get stuck with Hayward again. Missed opportunity.

Nice Character Driven Coming of Age Tale

[catecheng · 8/10 · 11 May 2020]

The acting was extremely well done, the plot - while not necessarily action driven - is done very well and the character development is fantastic.

Ruined by the "Message"

[LukeCustomer2 · 4/10 · 21 February 2023]

This could have been a kind story of a girl with more confidence helping out another girl. Instead it was shoe horned into the "message" that ruined it for me.

The movie starts with Iris who is bullied by her school mates and has a problem with "accidents" during the day. Making it so she has to bring a change of clothing with her. Her mom is not supportive - and sort of evil. And just about everyone feels bad for her. Until, the new girl comes to town. The new girl, Maggie, defends Iris from the start and helps her come out of her shell and get control of her problems.

It was at this point I was grateful that they had not made Maggie interested in Iris - in that way. As I initially saw that happening. Maggie helps Iris get together with a boy she had a crush on and it all seems very on the up and up.

Until that is... the story makes Maggie out to suddenly be a lesbian who can't control her urges and goes after an adult. Yes an adult. In the 1950s? Right. They do age Maggie up to about 17, Then for good measure one of the teenagers finds out by literally going to someone's home and snooping. Outlandish. Things don't go well from there but it didn't add too much to the story other than giving more force to Iris's determination to stop letting others bring her down... which is laudable.

Unique 'coming of age' in the 1960s, teenage girls.

[TxMike · 23 August 2022]

Maybe one reason this movie resonates well with me is I was a teenager in the 1960s. My brother-in-law served in Korea. In the 1960s it was common in smaller communities for a beautician to have her shop in the living room or dining room, as my own aunt did. School dances in the gym were supervised by faculty walking around, making sure students didn't make out too aggressively.

This one is set and filmed in small-town Oklahoma. There is a quiet, smart girl that gets bullied a lot, along comes a cosmopolitan girl who knows how to handle herself, and the spoiled brat boys. Against the odds the two girls form a fast friendship.

Good movie, treats a number of subjects with sensitivity. The acting across the board is excellent. I found it on Amazon streaming movies.

Boring

[ingamazonaite · 1/10 · 22 April 2021]

Boring movie about nothing.

Turned of after 2,/3 ,of movie and I don't have intentions to look more.

Beautiful

[DVK1234 · 9/10 · 1 January 2021]

I didn't know what to expect from this movie that I randomly chose on Amazon. Beautiful story about Iris, a small town girl stifled and controlled by her unhappy, unfulfilled mom, and by the petty and narrow minded townsfolk. Then a newcomer, Maggie, arrives, turning Iris' world into something completely unexpected, and welcomed.

Loved the film, the setting, the costumes, the acting. So many great actors in this film. I recommend it.

Flat storyline

[ks-60500 · 3/10 · 19 May 2020]

It's extremely boring and No progress in the story. Just need take couple of coffee to make You stay awake when watching.

Nothing wrong with this film!

[curiousviolet · 8/10 · 3 June 2020]

This is a wonderful period drama, set in the mid-fifties in a small town in Oklahoma. While on the surface it seems to be a typical rehash of young gay girl trying to find self esteem amidst intolerance and shame, it's just as much a reminder of the experience too many of us have had, that childhood friend we had once that we were so, so close to, that formed a question mark in our memory the rest of our lives. The ending is fine, and most of the reviews on this site seem to be by people whose ability to pay attention to the details is limited. For another film which explores this see "Porcupine Lake" (2017). You don't need to be gay to relate to either one.

Well acted, captivating & marvellous work of art. Glad I didn't read reviews & just watched it.

[aarinnkumarmishra · 9/10 · 12 July 2020]

I'm glad I didn't read reviews and just watched the movie. The movie at its core spoke to me about women empowerment. Sometimes, some people feel downtrodden and caught up in a web of lies created out of the fakeness of society. We subconsciously believe more in the wrong outlook of others towards us instead of standing for the ourself (as depicted by character of Iris). It was amazing how Iris breaks free out of false beliefs that used to bind her & becomes so strong. Loved watching this movie. Absolutely loved all the actors. Especially the two who played Iris & Maggie. It's a beautiful movie.

I love it

[fb-02342 · 10/10 · 24 October 2020]

It's best movie ever i watch it in my life i wish there be part 2 of that amazing movie

A female version of The Last Picture Show?

[aj1111 · 8/10 · 4 April 2022]

I watched this movie primarily because of past performances by the leads Kara Hayward in Moonrise Kingdom and Liane Liberto in several films. I was immediately struck by the way it seemed to cover much of the same terrain as Peter Bogdovich's The Last Picture Show, but with the focus on girls. The same sense of the emptiness of small town life, the desperation felt by some residents both old and young, intolerance and ignorance by the locals of what and who they don't understand. I wouldn't claim its the equal of The Last Picture Show, one of the greatest of American movies, but it's interesting to see a different take on the same milieu and themes .Not a perfect film but one which makes crystal clear why so many people leave rural America, never to return.

Well written

[malibu-13560 · 10/10 · 3 September 2020]

It was a great screenplay. Not sure about ending. It didn't say or give indication what had happened to Maggie. I was also wondering if anyone knew what was the kind of car Maggie was driving?

For me the first five were a bit grating...

[juanmuscle · 10/10 · 3 September 2022]

Because its always difficult to jump into a moving automobile without coming out with a few scrapes and bruises and bumps, but boy was I wrong, completely wrong! (By this I mean going into the life of characters and sort of interrupting the natural flow of the organic thing they have going! But once a few of those bruises healed up a bit I was able to groove with the thing and I saw were I would of made giant mistakes that perhaps would of rushed something here whose natural organic process deserves well THIS WRITERS TOUCH! This was a a masterpiece I need to say! I take back everything I thought in those first five and now that I look back I might of changed maybe a few lines with those Cowfrs but that's it! The rest pretty much dead on and on a scale that I could of never touched! This person has some nice reach and above all and beyond, has a very delicate touch that intuits her characters trajectories in a way that gives supreme shape and form to the writing while creating a raging storm beneath the rippling tumultuous undercurrent that effectively burst forth in gushing universal themes that pluck at the heartstrings! Thank-you very much for this , I would love to see more from this writer way more! Great job!