Reminiscent of 1990s teen romantic comedies, Girltrash: All Night Long takes the audience through a rock-filled, love-spelled, adventure-packed, lesbian evening in Los Angeles, California. Capitalizing on stereotypes, it is a wittily composed storyline that is sure to keep one laughing until the end—think Empire Records meets The L Word in the style of a pop-punk musical.
It’s your typical young love story: nice girl meets crush, crush wants bad girl, and throughout the course of the movie, the nice girl attempts various tactics to gain the affection of her crush. But that’s not all. There are also parallel stories that are introduced independently and tied in seamlessly at the end. The heartbreaking ex, the menacing villain, and a cutthroat band slam all function as means to an end in this fun-filled musical comedy.
The film lacks a comprehensive portrayal of lesbian archetypes, including butch and trans, and the only “bad guy” is a person of color, so it definitely will strike a chord with more politically and culturally savvy viewers. It is a telling from a seemingly young, white, middle-class perspective. However, if one can get past the alarm of the musical, it conveys a carefree feel.
Girltrash could exist on its own, but it might be seen with more excitement after watching Robinson’s Showtime-sponsored web series that began in 2007. With the addition of a few new faces, the cast is relatively the same with such stars as Lisa Rieffel, Michelle Lombardo, Gabrielle Christian, Mandy Musgrave (South of Nowhere), Rose Rollins (The L Word), Malaya Rivera Drew, Kate French (The L Word), Megan Cavanagh (A League of Their Own), and the Dollyrots.
With executive production by POWER UP founder Stacy Codikow (D.E.B.S., Itty Bitty Titty Committee), Girltrash is produced by Lisa Thrasher and Angela Robinson (The L Word, True Blood, Hung) and is the directorial debut of Robinson’s wife, Alex Kondracke.
Behind the scenes there have been reports of a conflict between POWER UP and Robinson, who ultimately withdrew support of the movie. Codikow, however, has always taken a publicly positive stance and explains, “POWER UP is extremely proud of our contribution to the extremely successful career of Angela Robinson and this film is definitely one of her best works.”
For more details about the film or to get a copy of the DVD visit girltrashallnightlong.com.
