''The Makings of You'', also known as ''Never My Love'', is a drama film directed by

Matt Amato Matt Amato is an American film writer and director. His major works include music videos for artists such as Barbra Streisand, Beach House, Bon Iver, Dido, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Soko, and Wild Nothing. He also co-founded the Los Ange ...

and starring

Sheryl Lee Sheryl Lynn Lee (born April 22, 1967) is a German-born American film, stage, and television actress. After studying acting in college, Lee relocated to Seattle, Washington to work in theater, where she was cast by David Lynch as Laura Palmer and ...

and

Jay R. Ferguson Jay R. Ferguson (born July 25, 1974) is an American actor, known as Taylor Newton in '' Evening Shade'' (1990–1994), Stan Rizzo in ''Mad Men'' (2010–2015), and Ben Olinsky in '' The Conners'' (2018–present). Biography In 1990 Ferguson pla ...

. The movie was shot in the director's hometown of

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

and is a "labor of love that includes some of the most beautiful images of his hometown ever captured on film." It is the reunion of ''

Twin Peaks ''Twin Peaks'' is an American Mystery fiction, mystery serial drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It premiered on American Broadcasting Company, ABC on April 8, 1990, and originally ran for two seasons until its cance ...

'' alum Sheryl Lee and

Grace Zabriskie Grace Zabriskie (' Caplinger; born May 17, 1941) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Sarah Palmer in ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991; 2017) and its film prequel '' Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'' (1992), Lois Henrickson in '' ...

as mother and daughter, who also produced the film, with production company

The Masses ''The Masses'' was a graphically innovative magazine of socialist politics published monthly in the United States from 1911 until 1917, when federal prosecutors brought charges against its editors for conspiring to obstruct conscription. It was s ...

. The director is releasing a reedited version of the film in 2021.

Plot

Single mother Judy (

) and consignment shop owner Wallis (

) fall in love when they meet in Wallis' shop. Judy's mother Margaret (

) and her sons Roy ( Grant Leuchter) and Eric ( Gene Lesher) don't accept the relationship. This is an "uncompromisingly visionary and unconventionally methodical film (think Antonioni, circa 1960), reminds viewers that even the most dismissed areas of an often dismissed city can evoke heretofore unseen sparks of vibrancy."

Cast

as Judy *

as Wallis *

as Margaret * Grant Leuchtner as Roy * Gene Lesher as Eric * Henry Goldkamp as Carl * Elizabeth Ann Townsend as Mrs. Bea * Craig Hawksley as Scotti

Previews

An early cut of the film was first screened at as a work in progress at

St. Louis International Film Festival The St. Louis International Film Festival (also known as SLIFF or Cinema St. Louis) is an annual film festival in St. Louis, Missouri, which has been running since 1992. The coordinating organization changed its name to "Cinema St. Louis" in 2003 ...

in November 2014. It was also previewed at

Sarasota Film Festival The Sarasota Film Festival is a film festival located in Sarasota, Florida and is held in April. Its mission is "to celebrate the art of filmmaking and the contribution of filmmakers by hosting an international film festival and developing year-lo ...

in April 2015,

Portland Film Festival Portland Film Festival is a non-profit organization which hosts events and programs in Portland, Oregon. It was founded in 2013 by Joshua Leake with the help of Jay Cornelius. Their main event called the Portland Film Festival is an annual indep ...

in September 2015, Carmel Film Festival in October 2015, Arthouse Film Festival in April 2016 and Harrisburg-Hershey Film Festival in September 2016. The director announced in 2019 that he is releasing a new version of the film in 2020.

Release

A version of the film was shown out of competition at festivals in 2015. Involvement with a fraudulent investor prohibited the movie from being released until the filmmakers were able to achieve legal resolution. In 2020, the director and editor were able to finish the movie as it was intended.

Reception

"Amato is a radical filmmaker, willing to make a movie that travels like a river, or unfolds like a piece of music or a real human life, something that seems alien after we’ve slumped in theater seats, overdazzling our retinas with exploding cars and exploding planets. He realizes the transformative power of seeing—and not seeing. Of showing the full spectrum of a full human life, with a slice hidden in shadow. That unsettled, mysterious place makes room for the watcher but throws down the challenge to do more than just watch. Is this is a particle, or a wave? it asks. Who are you? What's in your pockets? And what do you see?"

"This beautifully acted and photographed drama leaves a lasting impression. Amato, a veteran helmer of music videos, invests the proceedings with a subtle, dreamlike quality that gives the film an undeniable, but never stultifying, artsy feel. If you're not already in love when you see the film, you'll desperately want to be afterwards."

Soundtrack

The film was initially titled after the Curtis Mayfield song, ''

The Makings of You ''The Makings of You'', also known as ''Never My Love'', is a drama film directed by Matt Amato and starring Sheryl Lee and Jay R. Ferguson. The movie was shot in the director's hometown of St. Louis and is a "labor of love that includes some of ...

''. For the 2020 re-cut version, the film title changed to reflect another song title, Never My Love. The soundtrack supervisors are Carlos Niño an
Eothen Allapat
of

Now-Again Records Now-Again Records is a Los Angeles–based music imprint that specializes in reissues and compilations of funk, soul, and psychedelic rock from the 1960s to the 1980s. Founded in 2002 by Eothen "Egon" Alapatt as a subsidiary of Stones Throw Record ...

and features lush instrumentals with

Miguel Atwood-Ferguson Miguel Atwood-Ferguson is a Los Angeles-based multi-instrumentalist, session musician, arranger, composer, music director, producer, DJ, orchestral conductor and educator. He has contributed to over 500 recordings and scored for television and fi ...

, obscure

psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

and R&B music from bands lik
Ofege
and

Witch Witchcraft traditionally means the use of Magic (supernatural), magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In Middle Ages, medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually ...

. :It's been praised for its spectacular soundtrack, for its gritty, otherworldly atmosphere, and for its surprising love story—revolving around middle-aged blue-collar characters—that spirals out into something much larger.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Makings Of You 2014 films Films set in St. Louis American romantic drama films 2014 romantic drama films American independent films 2014 independent films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films