Lovelace

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Jeffrey Friedman directs. Eric Alan Edwards behind the camera. Stephen Trask scores. Robert Dalva cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

• 1Earned back only 16% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
• 2Released 13 years ago.
• 3Directed by Jeffrey Friedman, shot by Eric Alan Edwards. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
• 4Original score by Stephen Trask. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
• 5Editor Robert Dalva shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
• 6Amanda Seyfried and Sharon Stone and Robert Patrick carry the top of the cast.
• 7Marketing tagline: "The truth goes deeper than you think.".
• 8IMDB entry: tt1426329 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography

Eric Alan Edwards

Original score

Stephen Trask

Editing

Robert Dalva

Production design

William Arnold

Costume design

Karyn Wagner

Makeup / hair

Colleen Callaghan

Sound

Eric Offin

Stunt coordinator

Jason Rodriguez

Runtime

92 min · 1h 32m

Aspect ratio (typical)

1.37:1 (Academy)

Status

Released

Budget

$10,000,000

Box office

$1,585,582

Return

16% of budget

Original language

EN

Certification (US)

R

IMDB

Lovelace (2013) ↗

Also by

Jeffrey Friedman

• 
  Underground Zero

  2002 · ★ 10.0
• 
  Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice

  2019 · ★ 7.6
• 
  The Celluloid Closet

  1996 · ★ 7.3
• 
  End Game

  2018 · ★ 7.2
• 
  Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt

  1989 · ★ 6.9
• 
  And the Oscar Goes To...

  2014 · ★ 6.8

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

• 

  ▶
  Official Trailer

  Trailer · Official

Community reviews

What people are saying

• Filipe Manuel Neto2024-01-15
  ★ 7/10

  A bold and beautifully executed film about one of the first porn superstars. Contrary to what many people think, pornography did not appear by magic in the 1970s. I am not an expert on the subject, but I know several images and engravings of pornographic content printed in the 19th century. However, until the middle of the 20th century, this material could only circulate secretly so as not to offend the reigning puritanism. What happened in the 70s was the liberation of this material, which began to be displayed openly and have the air of great artistic expression (often without merit). Linda Lovelace, probably the first porn superstar, is part of the birth of today's porn industry. The film, directed by Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman, is not afraid to address the toughest themes and show us the darker side of the life of the woman who starred in the famous “Deep Throat”, a film so extreme for It's time that it was censored in much of the world, made pornography a well-accepted fashion and consolidated pornography as a cinematographic genre and entertainment industry. Taking advantage of statements by Linda Lovelace herself, several years later, the film shows the abuse to which the actress was subjected in the production, so we should expect from the outset several sex and nudity scenes. I tend to be against the unreasonable insertion of these types of scenes, but in the context we have here they are needed and do not appear freely on the screen. Technically, what caught my attention the most was the careful recreation of the time and environments. Seeing the sets and costumes in this film automatically transports us to the 70s and the height of the Sexual Revolution, an era of questioning, breaking taboos, assuming freedoms and challenging the moral status quo. From the props to the hairstyles, to the cars used in some scenes, everything takes us back to the time and I didn't notice any errors or glaring problems that would ruin the effect. Also the soundtrack, which features some songs from the period by such notable voices as Gladys Knight or Soul Brother Six, is completely in keeping with the general atmosphere. Amanda Seyfried has managed her professional career wonderfully and the fact is that she has participated in increasingly significant films since “Mamma Mia”, with a likely financial impact in favor of the young actress. Her choice for this character is a little strange, considering that she doesn't even look like the real Lovelace, but the truth is that the characterization and makeup team worked miracles and Seyfried took advantage of yet another opportunity to show talent and determination. The production, moreover, is full of well-known names. Sharon Stone, who made the public furious almost thirty years ago with a simple crossing of her legs, seems to make a kind of personal catharsis of that famous moment in the role of Lovelace's conservative and puritan mother, and shares the stage with Robert Patrick, who He also did a very good job. I also liked the work of Peter Sarsgaard, who is truly worthy of our hatred. The film also features James Franco and Wes Bentley, among others.

  Read full review ↓
• Felicity2025-06-08
  ★ 8/10

  Wow. What a sad tale. If Linda's version is true, and we've seen many of these horrible true tales, I hope Charlie really did get that beat down because he deserved it. Her nickname was Holy Holy in school. Chuck seemed to have coerced her with abuse, drugs, and threats of abuse. She was lucky to get away from Chuck and not end up murdered like Dorothy Stratten.

  Read full review ↓

Production companies

Who made it

• HE

  Helios-Filmproduktion

  AT

• 

  Animus Films

  US

• 

  Millennium Media

  US

Key crew

• Assistant Production CoordinatorSally Potters
• CastingPaul Schnee
• Executive ProducerMark Gill
• Executive ProducerAmanda Seyfried
• Executive ProducerDanny Dimbort
• Art DirectionGary Myers
• Executive ProducerMerritt Johnson
• Executive ProducerPeter Sarsgaard
• ProducerHeidi Jo Markel
• Executive ProducerTrevor Short
• EditorRobert Dalva
• ProducerJim Young
• ProducerLaura Rister
• Production DesignWilliam Arnold
• CastingKerry Barden
• Executive ProducerAvi Lerner
• EditorMatthew Landon
• Executive ProducerBoaz Davidson
• Executive ProducerJohn Thompson
• Set DecorationDavid Smith
• First Assistant EditorDouglas Slocum
• Music SupervisorSelena Arizanovic
• Music EditorTom Kramer
• Art Department CoordinatorJennifer R. Blair

Themes & keywords

What it's about, really

• biography
• based on true story
• porn star
• porn actress

Release history · US

When it landed

• Theatrical2013-08-09R

Also known as

International titles

• 拉芙蕾丝CN
• LovelaceUS
• Linda Lovelace - PornostarDE
• Λίντα Λάβλεϊς: Το Βαθύ ΛαρύγγιGR
• 러브레이스KR
• ラヴレース：2013JP