JT LeRoy

Dern brings a hungry, manic energy to Albert... while Stewart's performance is typically interiorised and exacting

THE OBSERVER

Archive - Festival 35
Director: Justin Kelly
Canada, USA, United Kingdom 2018
108 minutes
English
Subtitles in Hebrew

Laura Albert writes tough, insightful fiction under a pseudonym, JT LeRoy. Her JT is not just a pen name but a whole persona, a teenage boy from West Virginia living a dangerous life as a truck stop sex worker. Readers love it. The media loves it. And they eagerly demand JT in person until Laura's sister-in-law Savannah dons a wig and sunglasses, adjust her voice, and become the teenage boy author.

The captivating true story, based on Savannah Knoop’s memoir, enjoys two very fine central performances by Kristen Stewart and Laura Dern.

Filmography: Welcome the Stranger (2018), Am Michael (2015).

Director Justin Kelly
Production Patrick Walmsley, Julie Yorn, Thor Bradwell, Gary Pearl, Cassian Elwes, Giri Tharan, Mark Amin, Dave Hansen
Script Justin Kelly, Savannah Knoop
Cinematography Bobby Bukowski
Editing Aaron I. Butler
Music Tim Kvasnosky
Festivals Toronto
Actors Kristen Stewart, Laura Dern, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Courtney Love, Jim Sturgess, Diane Kruger
Source United King Films, Ramat Hasharon