''Gimme Shelter'' is a 2013 American
independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
drama film
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...
written and directed by
Ronald Krauss and starring
Vanessa Hudgens
Vanessa Anne Hudgens (; born December 14, 1988) is an American actress and singer. After making her feature film debut in ''Thirteen'' (2003), Hudgens rose to fame portraying Gabriella Montez in the ''High School Musical'' film series (2006 ...
,
James Earl Jones
James Earl Jones (born January 17, 1931) is an American actor. He has been described as "one of America's most distinguished and versatile" actors for his performances in film, television, and theater, and "one of the greatest actors in America ...
,
Rosario Dawson
Rosario Isabel Dawson (born May 9, 1979) is an American actress. She made her feature-film debut in the 1995 independent drama ''Kids''. Her subsequent film roles include '' He Got Game'' (1998), ''Josie and the Pussycats'' (2001), ''Men in Bl ...
,
Stéphanie Szostak
Stéphanie Szostak (born August 5, 1975) is a French actress who started her career in the early 2000s. Szostak is best known for having appeared in the films '' The Devil Wears Prada'', ''Dinner for Schmucks'', ''Iron Man 3'', and ''R.I.P.D.'' Sz ...
,
Emily Meade
Emily Meade (born January 10, 1989) is an American film and television actress. She has appeared in films such as '' Twelve'' (2010), ''My Soul to Take'' (2010), ''Gimme Shelter'' (2013), ''That Awkward Moment'' (2014), ''Money Monster'' (2016), a ...
,
Ann Dowd
Ann Dowd (born January 30, 1956) is an American actress. She has played supporting roles in numerous films, including ''Green Card'' (1990), ''Lorenzo's Oil'' (1992), ''Philadelphia'' (1993), '' Garden State'' (2004), '' The Manchurian Candidate' ...
, and
Brendan Fraser
Brendan James Fraser ( ; born December 3, 1968) is an American-Canadian actor known for his leading roles in blockbusters, comedies, and dramatic films. Having graduated from the Cornish College of the Arts in 1990, he made his film debut in '' ...
. It is based on a true story about a runaway teenage girl who becomes pregnant and is placed in a home for pregnant girls.
Plot
Agnes "Apple" Bailey (
Vanessa Hudgens
Vanessa Anne Hudgens (; born December 14, 1988) is an American actress and singer. After making her feature film debut in ''Thirteen'' (2003), Hudgens rose to fame portraying Gabriella Montez in the ''High School Musical'' film series (2006 ...
) has never had an easy life. She has been in and out of
foster care
Foster care is a system in which a minor has been placed into a ward, group home (residential child care community, treatment center, etc.), or private home of a state-certified caregiver, referred to as a "foster parent" or with a family mem ...
for years, and her mother, June, is an abusive drug addict who only wants her for the welfare money she provides. She decides to run away and go in search of her absent father Tom Fitzpatrick (
Brendan Fraser
Brendan James Fraser ( ; born December 3, 1968) is an American-Canadian actor known for his leading roles in blockbusters, comedies, and dramatic films. Having graduated from the Cornish College of the Arts in 1990, he made his film debut in '' ...
) who she discovers is now a wealthy
Wall Street
Wall Street is an eight-block-long street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs between Broadway in the west to South Street and the East River in the east. The term "Wall Street" has become a metonym for t ...
broker with a family. Tom agrees to take her in, but she is quickly forced out again when he and his wife learn she is pregnant, and do not agree with her decision to keep the baby.
When a pimp forces her into his vehicle to discuss "business", thinking that she is someone else, Apple jumps into the driver's seat, speeds away and crashes the car. Apple awakes in a hospital where a priest, Father Frank McCarthy, is waiting to speak with her. After gaining her trust, Father McCarthy arranges for her to stay in a home for pregnant teenage girls. The shelter is run by a formerly homeless woman, Kathy. June is informed that Apple will be staying there, and she goes to the shelter in an attempt to take her to her home, but is forced to leave after she gets violent.
Apple bonds with the other girls at the shelter, beginning to open up and trust them. She gives birth to a baby girl and names her Hope. Tom comes to visit and the two reconcile. He offers to let Apple and Hope come live with him, but as they are leaving, Apple realizes she has already made a home for herself at the shelter and decides to stay.
Cast
*
Vanessa Hudgens
Vanessa Anne Hudgens (; born December 14, 1988) is an American actress and singer. After making her feature film debut in ''Thirteen'' (2003), Hudgens rose to fame portraying Gabriella Montez in the ''High School Musical'' film series (2006 ...
as Agnes "Apple" Bailey
*
James Earl Jones
James Earl Jones (born January 17, 1931) is an American actor. He has been described as "one of America's most distinguished and versatile" actors for his performances in film, television, and theater, and "one of the greatest actors in America ...
as Father McCarthy
*
Rosario Dawson
Rosario Isabel Dawson (born May 9, 1979) is an American actress. She made her feature-film debut in the 1995 independent drama ''Kids''. Her subsequent film roles include '' He Got Game'' (1998), ''Josie and the Pussycats'' (2001), ''Men in Bl ...
as June Bailey
*
Stéphanie Szostak
Stéphanie Szostak (born August 5, 1975) is a French actress who started her career in the early 2000s. Szostak is best known for having appeared in the films '' The Devil Wears Prada'', ''Dinner for Schmucks'', ''Iron Man 3'', and ''R.I.P.D.'' Sz ...
as Joanna Fitzpatrick
*
Emily Meade
Emily Meade (born January 10, 1989) is an American film and television actress. She has appeared in films such as '' Twelve'' (2010), ''My Soul to Take'' (2010), ''Gimme Shelter'' (2013), ''That Awkward Moment'' (2014), ''Money Monster'' (2016), a ...
as Cassandra
*
Ann Dowd
Ann Dowd (born January 30, 1956) is an American actress. She has played supporting roles in numerous films, including ''Green Card'' (1990), ''Lorenzo's Oil'' (1992), ''Philadelphia'' (1993), '' Garden State'' (2004), '' The Manchurian Candidate' ...
as Kathy
*
Brendan Fraser
Brendan James Fraser ( ; born December 3, 1968) is an American-Canadian actor known for his leading roles in blockbusters, comedies, and dramatic films. Having graduated from the Cornish College of the Arts in 1990, he made his film debut in '' ...
as Tom Fitzpatrick
*
Dascha Polanco
Dascha Yolaine Polanco (born December 3, 1982) is a Dominican-American actress. She is known for portraying the role of Dayanara "Daya" Diaz on the Netflix series ''Orange Is the New Black'', and for the role of Cuca in the 2021 movie ''In the He ...
as Carmel
*
Candace Smith
Candace Elizabeth Smith (born February 1, 1977) is an American lawyer, actress, television personality, life coach, and author from Dayton, Ohio.
Early life and education
Smith was born in Dayton, Ohio and is a graduate of Chaminade Julienne Hig ...
as Marie Abeanni
* Tashiana R. Washington as Destiny / Princess
* Rachel Mattila as Nicky Lotito
* Natalie Guerrero as Tina
* Laneya Wiles as Jasmine
* Kemani Holmes as Hope
* Jade Jackson as Tawana
* Gena Bardwell as Afra
Production
The film was filmed in New York, and New Jersey. Filming started June 9, 2011.
Before the film, director
Ronald Krauss had spent a year documenting the stories of girls who were coming in the Several Sources Shelter founded by Kathy DiFlore, and grew to know DiFiore, the shelter, and the two girls Apple Bailey is based on. The film was shot in the home of Kathy DiFiore and the original Several Sources Shelter.
Vanessa Hudgens, in explaining why the story of Apple appealed to her, said, "... it’s very relevant to what’s going on around us and I think that it’s easy to block it out because it’s uncomfortable. It’s something that we don’t want to discuss, but the fact is it’s happening all around us. Young people are becoming homeless and don’t have anywhere to go. Young mothers who have no support and no love and no place to call their own… just so much. I mean, abuse and homelessness, it’s all happening around us way more than we are allowing ourselves to see."
Discussing why her role as Apple's drug-addicted mother June had special meaning for her, Rosario Dawson said, "My mom had me when she was 17. I grew up in a squat in the Lower East Side, and the dropout rate and
teen pregnancy
Teenage pregnancy, also known as adolescent pregnancy, is pregnancy in a female adolescent or young adult under the age of 20. This includes those who are Legal adult, legally considered adults in their country. The WHO defines adolescence as the ...
rate in my hood was very high. Luckily, my mom had some support and was a good role model. She told me I could be anything I wanted to be. But not everybody gets a happy ending. Some people make some bad choices, and they never, ever recover from them.”
Brendan Fraser and James Earl Jones donated their salaries to the real-life shelters (Several Sources Shelters) portrayed in the film.
Reception
''Gimme Shelter'' received generally unfavorable reviews from film critics. It holds a approval rating on review aggregator website
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, based on reviews, with an average rating of . The website's critical consensus reads, "In spite of its obvious good intentions — and the compelling true story that inspired it — the heavy-handed Gimme Shelter can't overcome its cliche-riddled script." The aggregator
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
gave the film a weighted average score of 37/100 based on 29 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".
On
RogerEbert.com, critic Sheila O'Malley rated the film 2-1/2 stars out of 4, saying the "scenes between Dawson and Hudgens vibrate with pain and ugliness. The script is often obvious, with all feelings laid out too cleanly, but both actresses still manage to create a jagged relationship based on their characters' codependence and shared traumas. One of the film's strengths is its portrayal of the 'system' and what it does to abused children, and the layers of bureaucracy that make it hard to bring about meaningful change in people's lives." Michael O'Sullivan of ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'' praised Hudgens for showing "great conviction" in her role's physical transformation to capture the "character's vulnerability" and Dowd for giving an "unvarnished performance" as Kathy DiFiore, but felt that Krauss' scripting "attempts at wringing drama out of real life are more strenuous than is strictly necessary", concluding that: "It's not the only time "Gimme Shelter" doesn't trust the power of its own story — and the truth of its acting — to deliver the point." Betsy Sharkey of the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' criticized Krauss for writing a predictable plot with "hackneyed moments" and "many missed opportunities to bring some real meaning" to the movie, but gave praise to Hudgens for making a "surprisingly affecting turn" in her role, saying, "
ere are moments of vulnerability and indecision in her performance that begin to illuminate the serious issues facing kids in such straits. Those moments are fleeting. What sticks in the sense that the actress is on her way to making a mark." ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
''s
Peter Travers
Peter Joseph Travers (born ) is an American film critic, journalist, and television presenter. He reviews films for ABC News and previously served as a movie critic for ''People'' and ''Rolling Stone''. Travers also hosts the film interview prog ...
commended Hudgens' performance for being "a decent try at authenticity", but criticized Krauss for crafting the film around her by using cornball clichés with "a broad Hollywood brush", concluding that "''Gimme Shelter'' appears hijacked by the Christian right. Propaganda is a bitch to act. And this misguided movie leaves Hudgens buried in it."
[ ]
References
External links
*
*
*
* {{Metacritic film, title=Gimmie Shelter
Gimme Shelter soundtrackSeveral Sources Shelters website
2013 films
2013 directorial debut films
2013 drama films
2013 independent films
2010s American films
2010s coming-of-age drama films
2010s English-language films
American coming-of-age drama films
American independent films
American pregnancy films
Coming-of-age films based on actual events
Drama films based on actual events
Films about domestic violence
Films scored by Ólafur Arnalds
Films shot in Connecticut
Films shot in New Jersey
Films shot in Newark, New Jersey
Films shot in New York (state)
Roadside Attractions films
Teenage pregnancy in film