I knew Rosario Dawson was a talented actress. While I never paid close attention to her career, whenever she showed up in something I was watching she never failed to impress me. I don't want to say that her performance in Gimme Shelter was the best thing she's ever done and will ever do, but she is going to have a hard time topping what she did here. While there may have been a moment or two of overacting, Dawson nailed this character. When she was on screen it was impossible to take your eyes off her, she dominated the scene and overshadowed anyone else who was unfortunate to be sharing screen time with her. Starring alongside Rosario who plays June Bailey was the talented Vanessa Hudgens playing her daughter Agnes "Apple" Bailey, Brendan Fraser as Apple's father Tom Fitzpatrick, Stephanie Szostak as his wife Joanna Fitzpatrick, James Earl Jones as Frank McCarthy, and Ann Dowd as Kathy.
Apple wants out. She wants out of the foster care system and out of her drug addicted and violent mothers apartment. She's been in more foster homes and shelters than she can remember and she's had it. She believes the only way to get out is to get to her biological father who resides in a bucolic New Jersey suburb. Getting away from her mother however was step number one. Vanessa Hudgens has the kind of cherub face that makes you fear for it and want to protect it so the scenes where she's doing whatever she can to get away from her mother made my gut clench. Vanessa finds her dad and that situation predictably falls apart faster than a house of cards in high winds. It's not until she's virtually kidnapped off the streets by a would be pimp do things start turning around for her. She meets Father McCarthy and he gets her to a shelter for would be mothers where she is finally able to break free of her own mother and meet people she can finally put her trust in. It's hard to see the transformation but she emerges a better person, a whole person with friends and a family she can call her own.
Gimme Shelter is based on a true story and that makes this film more compelling in my opinion even if the script is flat. If this was a work of fiction it would be hard to be believed. The fact that someone lived through this brings to mind all those young ladies who lived and are currently living through the same kinds of hell, if not worse. The movie I'm certain took some creative license with the actual true story and that may have given this film that made for TV feel which in a way I guess couldn't be helped. There were times where Gimme Shelter had the look and feel of a full length feature film and then there were times when it felt like if I could, I would turn the channel. Shot by cinematographer Alain Marcoen the look was inconsistent and that was bothersome. I would have liked less hand held camera work and not so many closeups. The score by Olafur Arnalds was utterly forgettable which was surprising because he is a very talented composer. The lacking music though may have contributed again to that made for TV feel. Unless you know someone who has gone though this sort of journey or you yourself have, I would skip Gimme Shelter unless you're a Rosario Dawson fan. If not then wait for it to appear on cable because then the ending won't be so bad. I'll see you at the theater.
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