Sharp Stick: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

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'''''Sharp Stick''''' is a 2022 American [[sex comedy]] film written, directed, and produced by [[Lena Dunham]]. It stars [[Kristine Froseth]], [[Jon Bernthal]], Luka Sabbat, [[Scott Speedman]], Dunham, [[Ebon Moss-Bachrach]], [[Taylour Paige]], and [[Jennifer Jason Leigh]]. The film premiered at the [[2022 Sundance Film Festival|Sundance Film Festival]] on January 22, 2022, and was released theatrically in the United States on July 29, 2022, by [[Utopia (distributor)|Utopia]]. It received mixed reviews from critics. It was released on [[Video on demand|video-on-demand]] platforms on August 16, 2022.

==Synopsis==

26-year-old Sarah Jo babysits for a family of two parents, Heather and Josh and their son, Zach, who has [[downDown syndrome]]. Sarah Jo lives with her single mother, Marilyn, and sister, Treina. Marilyn has had many husbands and one-night stands, and has a somewhat pessimistic view on love (and men in general). During a discussion about love and male attraction, Marilyn advises her daughters to ask a man she admires, "Do you find me beautiful?"

The next day, Sarah Jo and Josh are alone in the family’sfamily's laundry room when Sarah Jo asks Josh if he finds her beautiful. Josh becomes flustered, and Sarah Jo lifts up her dress to reveal a scar above her vagina. Sarah Jo informs Josh that she had an emergency [[radical hysterectomy]] at age 15 which caused her to go into [[menopause]] by age 17. Sarah Jo tells Josh that she is a virgin, and Josh responds by saying that she wouldn’twouldn't want to lose her virginity to him. After some awkward rambling from Sarah Jo, Josh approaches Sarah Jo and asks if he can kiss her. Josh and Sarah Jo kiss, and Josh asks if he can go down on Sarah Jo. Josh performs [[oral sex]] on Sarah Jo and takes her [[virginity]]. Josh [[ejaculates]] quickly and becomes embarrassed. Sarah Jo reassures Josh, and he fingers Sarah Jo.<ref name="THRFeature" />▼

Sarah Jo lives with her single mother, Marilyn, and sister, Treina. During a discussion about love and male attraction, Marilyn advises her daughters to ask a man she admires, “Do you find me beautiful?”

▲The next day, Sarah Jo and Josh are alone in the family’s laundry room when Sarah Jo asks Josh if he finds her beautiful. Josh becomes flustered, and Sarah Jo lifts up her dress to reveal a scar above her vagina. Sarah Jo informs Josh that she had an emergency [[radical hysterectomy]] at age 15 which caused her to go into menopause by age 17. Sarah Jo tells Josh that she is a virgin, and Josh responds by saying that she wouldn’t want to lose her virginity to him. After some awkward rambling from Sarah Jo, Josh approaches Sarah Jo and asks if he can kiss her. Josh and Sarah Jo kiss, and Josh asks if he can go down on Sarah Jo. Josh performs [[oral sex]] on Sarah Jo and takes her [[virginity]]. Josh [[ejaculates]] quickly and becomes embarrassed. Sarah Jo reassures Josh, and he fingers Sarah Jo.<ref name="THRFeature" />

The next day, Sarah Jo returns to work and sneaks up on Josh in the attic. Josh tells Sarah Jo that they cannot have sex again. Sarah Jo lifts up her dress to reveal her scar again. This turns Josh on, and the two have sex again.

Sarah Jo and Josh take a road trip to rural New York. The couple stays in a cabin while the two lie about their whereabouts; Josh claims to have a friend commitment, while Sarah Jo blames her absence on a family emergency. During the excursion, Sarah Jo and Josh consume [[Psilocybin mushroom|hallucinogenic mushrooms]] and smoke [[marijuana]]. The two have sex repeatedly and watch porn together. Josh gives Sarah Jo a necklace. Sarah Jo goes home and continues to watch porn. She becomes interested in a porn actor named Vance Leroy, who frequently compliments his sexual partners on camera and who Sarah Jo feels is a kindred, spiritual person like Sarah Jo and her family.

When Sarah Jo returns to work, Heather’sHeather's water breaks and she goes into labor. Sarah Jo calls Josh and leans down to comfort Heather, who notices Sarah Jo’sJo's necklace. When Josh arrives, Heather demands that she be taken to the hospital via ambulance. Josh, who has now realized that the affair has been revealed, screamsbreaks atdown and claims that Sarah Jo meant nothing to him. It is revealed that he has cheated many times, even once trying to flee the country with a fling. Josh screams at Sarah Jo, who leaves the house.

Distraught, Sarah Jo writes a letter to Vance Leroy about her sexual exploration, believing that her somewhat awkward, imperfect sex with Josh was the reason Josh betrayed her. She creates twoan alphabetical checklists of sex acts she wants to try and wants to avoid, including "[[anal sex|anal]]" (try), "[[oral sex|blowjob]]" (try), and "[[necrophilia]]" (avoid/not interested). Excited to complete her checklist, she engages in a short series of casual hookups. One fling, Arvin, works in porn and promises to deliver her letter to Vance Leroy. Meanwhile, without her job babysitting for Josh and Heather, Sarah Jo is depressed and anxious about not being able to sexually please her future partners; she believes her imperfect sex skills render her incapable of being loved. Later Vance responds to her letter with a video that Arvin brings to her, and his words reassure her. She takes a job looking after a girl who has [[cerebral palsy]], and invites Arvin back to hang out. They have sex as a montage of all of Sarah Jo's sexual encounters (ranging from awkward, to sweet, to fiery) plays.

==Cast==

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[[File:Lena Dunham 2012 Shankbone.JPG|thumb|upright|alt=Lena Dunham at the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival|''Sharp Stick'' is the second feature film to be directed by [[Lena Dunham]] ''(pictured)''.]]

In April 2020, [[Lena Dunham]] moved from London to [[Silver Lake, Los Angeles]], in the midst of the [[COVID-19 pandemic]]. She passed the time watching a number of films from the 1970s, including ''[[Belle de Jour (film)|Belle de Jour]]'', ''[[A Woman Under the Influence]]'', ''[[Remember My Name (film)|Remember My Name]]'', and ''[[An Unmarried Woman]]''. The films, as well as the impact of a [[hysterectomy]], motivated Dunham to write, direct, and star in ''Sharp Stick''. She described the film's impact on her by saying, "It was about processing my life. And then, obviously, it becomes about the characters — and not about you at all."<ref name="THRFeature" /> Dunham has also stated that she wanted to create a film that depicted a young woman's complicated sexual awakening without chastising or punishing her. In a director's statement to the ''[[The Washington Post|Washington Post]]'', she noted [[Doubledouble standard|double standards]]s in on-screen portrayals of men and women's coming-of-age: "Men get ''[[Alfie (1966 film)|Alfie]]'' — the freewheeling Brit with a [[Alfie (Burt Bacharach song)|theme song]] and a [[Alfie (2004 film)|remake]]. Women get ''[[Repulsion (film)|Repulsion]]''."<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last=Hornaday |first=Ann |date=2022-08-03 |title=Review {{!}} Lena Dunham’s ‘Sharp Stick’ has a point to make. But what is it? |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/movies/2022/08/03/sharp-stick-movie-review/ |access-date=2024-02-29 |work=Washington Post |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286}}</ref> Dunham has likened ''Sharp Stick'' to a "sexual [[fable]]",<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ward |first=Fiona |date=2022-07-25 |title=Lena Dunham's bold new film on female sexuality, Sharp Stick: here's everything you need to know |url=https://www.glamourmagazine.co.uk/article/sharp-stick-lena-dunham-plot-cast-trailer |access-date=2024-02-29 |website=[[Glamour (magazine)|Glamour]] |language=en-GB}}</ref> and many critics have made similar comparisons to fables or [[Fairyfairy tale|fairy tales]]s.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Herman |first=Alison |date=2022-10-11 |title=Lena Dunham Is Back in Her Comfort Zone As a Movie Director |url=https://www.theringer.com/tv/2022/10/11/23397725/lena-dunham-catherine-called-birdy-sharp-stick-director |access-date=2024-02-29 |website=[[The Ringer (website)|The Ringer]] |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite news |last=Brody |first=Richard |date=2022-08-03 |title=Lena Dunham’s “Sharp"Sharp Stick”Stick" Is a Hothouse of Delayed Sexual Awakening |url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-front-row/lena-dunhams-sharp-stick-is-a-hothouse-of-delayed-sexual-awakening |access-date=2024-02-29 |work=[[The New Yorker]] |language=en-US |issn=0028-792X}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Laffly |first=Tomris |date=July 29, 2022 |title=Sharp Stick movie review &amp; film summary (2022) {{!}} Roger Ebert |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/sharp-stick-movie-review-2022 |access-date=2024-02-29 |website=[[RogerEbert.com]] |language=en}}</ref>

After receiving the script, [[Jon Bernthal]] and [[Jennifer Jason Leigh]] were immediately on board to star. [[Taylour Paige]], however, was initially hesitant with joining the cast: "If I'm being honest. I was like, 'Don't you think this character was written as a white person?" Dunham convinced Paige to star by telling her that she had written the part with her in mind.<ref name="THRFeature">{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/lena-dunham-interview-sharp-stick-girls-reboot-1235076390/|title=Lena Dunham on Her First Film in a Decade, Youthful Blind Spots and Hope to Reboot ''Girls''|date=January 19, 2022|first=Seth|last=Abramovitch|website=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|access-date=January 20, 2022}}</ref>

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=== Amy Gravino controversy ===

Ahead of the film's premiere at Sundance, Amy Gravino, an [[Autism spectrum|autistic]] [[Self-advocacy|self-advocate]] and [[Sex education|sex educator]], posted a [[Twitter]] thread alleging that she was approached to be a consultant on ''Sharp Stick'', but was subsequently "[[Ghosting (behavior)|ghosted]]" by Lena Dunham and her team before she could meet with Dunham in person.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Wagmeister |first=Elizabeth |date=2022-01-28 |title=Producers of Lena Dunham’s ‘Sharp Stick’ Deny Lead Character Is Autistic After Criticism from Activist (EXCLUSIVE) |url=https://variety.com/2022/film/news/lena-dunham-sharp-stick-autism-consultant-controversy-1235163375/ |access-date=2024-02-29 |website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Bergeson |first=Samantha |date=2022-01-28 |title=Lena Dunham’s ‘Sharp Stick’ Criticized by Autism Activist Over Allegedly Neurodivergent Portrayal |url=https://www.indiewire.com/features/general/lena-dunham-sharp-stick-criticized-neurodivergent-autism-1234694864/ |access-date=2024-02-29 |website=[[IndieWire]] |language=en-US}}</ref> In a ''Variety'' article covering the situation, Gravino claimed that, during the film's development process, Kristine Froseth had blindly approached her business manager after coming across a [[TED (conference)|TED Talk]] Gravino gave in 2016. According to Gravino, Froseth had come to the conclusion that, though the script never directly indicated as such, Sarah Jo, her character in the film, showed several characteristics that suggested she was autistic. Gravino, who was grateful to accept a paying job as a consultant, reviewed the script and concurred with Froseth's analysis. Gravino also claimed in the ''Variety'' piece that Lena Dunham had done research on her work and was excited to meet with her. However, according to the film's producers, Dunham rejected Froseth's suggestion to hire Gravino as a consultant, and clarified to Froseth that she had never intended to depict Sarah Jo as autistic.<ref name=":0" />

In the same article, an unnamed spokesperson for the film responded to the claims with a formal statement, which read in part, "Sarah Jo was never written nor imagined as a [[Neurodiversity|neurodivergent]] woman. Nothing about Sarah Jo was [[Code (semiotics)|coded]] to suggest or convey neurodivergence." However, Gravino countered this response by stating, "You can’t just say the character isn’t going to be neurodiverse; the coding is still there and it comes across that way in the writing and acting choices, even though it’s not explicitly stated." She also criticized the "infantilization" of Sarah Jo in the film, though the film's producers claimed that her childlike characterization was developed to reflect the trauma she endured, rather than to indicate that she was autistic.<ref name=":0" />

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Adrian Horton of ''[[The Guardian]]'' gave the film two out of five stars, stating that the film's more "interesting, immersive material" becomes "torpedoed by Dunham’s decision, refracted by Froseth’s odd performance, to write Sarah Jo as more sexual alien than curious person".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Horton |first=Adrian |date=January 24, 2022 |title=Sharp Stick review – Lena Dunham’s comeback is a misjudged experiment {{!}} Sundance 2022 {{!}} The Guardian |url=https://amp.theguardian.com/film/2022/jan/24/sharp-stick-lena-dunham-girls-review |access-date=2024-02-29 |website=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref> In ''[[The New York Times]]'', Amy Nicholson described scenes involving Sarah Jo's sexual experimentation as "too humorless for satire and too artificial to support the film’s eventual, deluded attempt to shift into a somewhat sincere coming-of-age tale".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Nicholson |first=Amy |date=2022-07-28 |title=‘Sharp Stick’ Review: The Babysitter’s Schlubs |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/28/movies/sharp-stick-review.html |access-date=2024-02-29 |work=[[The New York Times]] |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> [[Dana Stevens (critic)|Dana Stevens]] of ''[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]'' referred to such scenes "disturbing", writing, "The wide-eyed enthusiasm with which Sarah Jo approaches this project is meant, I think, to be whimsically endearing; instead, I worried for her safety every time a stranger appeared at the door." Stevens also criticized the film's approach to contrasting Sarah Jo with her adopted sister, the "[[twerking]], boy-crazy" Treina, played by Taylour Paige, calling their dynamic "a pure story contrivance—and one that, given the fact Sarah Jo is white and Treina Black, carries with it racial implications that the script barrels obliviously past".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Stevens |first=Dana |date=2022-07-29 |title=Oh Dear, Lena Dunham’s New Movie Is Not Very Good |url=https://slate.com/culture/2022/07/sharp-stick-lena-dunham-review-jon-bernthal.html |access-date=2024-02-29 |work=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]] |language=en-US |issn=1091-2339}}</ref>

Additionally, for ''InsideHook'', Charles Bramesco scrutinized the "traditionalism" of Dunham's decision to write a sexually adventurous character who ultimately ends up "back into the arms of the one genuine date she actually made a connection with".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bramesco |first=Charles |date=August 1, 2022 |title=Lena Dunham's "Sharp Stick" Is Sneakily Traditionalist — Just Like the Rest of Her Work |url=https://www.insidehook.com/film/lena-dunham-sharp-stick-conservatism |access-date=2024-02-29 |website=InsideHook |language=en-US}}</ref>

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[[Category:2020s American films]]

[[Category:Good Thing Going films]]

[[Category:English-language independent films]]