Star Episode 1 ReviewPosted by Dominga Martin
December 16, 2016
Lee Daniels Flips the Script in New Music Drama
Poor. White. Trashy. A few words to describe one of the main characters in director Lee Daniels’ new FOX drama. The show follows an ambitious singer who’s name is synonymous with the show: STAR, portrayed by Jude Demorest, is a young woman in foster care, on the verge of 18 with the blonde ambition to be well…a star. Her first mission is to find her younger sister SIMONE (Brittany O’Grady) who is also in foster care. The two have been separated by the system for 5 years. Somehow, the troubled Star convinces her case worker to turn over confidential files with her sister’s address, and off she goes, to Pittsburg to find her sister. On the road, Star discovers a handful of letters from a woman named CARLOTTA BROWN (Queen Latifah) who has been searching for the two sisters since their mother MARY died.
Upon arriving at the home where her sister resides, Star walks into an apartment with an eerie silence, heads to a room upstairs, where she discovers her younger sister Simone is being sexually assaulted by her foster dad. Now, this is where Lee Daniels does what he does best——over the top drama. The scene takes a turn for the worst, the foster dad is stabbed in the back and the girls escape to New York City, where they arrive in New York City’s Central Park West to find: ALEXANDRA (Ryan Destiny), the rock star’s daughter who was captured by Star on Instagram. She has been trying to convince her father (Lenny Kravitz) who’s well, playing himself…to a certain extent, because well, he’s got the swag, charm and sex appeal of the real Lenny Kravitz, and Lenny is all we see—Alexandra tries to convince him to give her access to her trust fund so that she can invest in this rising star. Dad says no…so the girls run off to Atlanta.
All of a sudden it feels like we’re in the Wiz headed for the yellow brick road. The Atlanta skyline is in view and, we begin to hear the thump of tracks that hit your chest as the pilot plays on. Catchy beats get your head bopping and you wonder where Lee is getting his music from, and what’s next. The song “Break Your Chest” is fitting. Catchy lyrics like:
Who Shot Ya
Who knocked Ya
Who said that?
What hood rat?
Takes us into the mode of a super group in the making, a cross hybrid of TLC and Destiny’s Child, if Destiny’s Child was gully—and even though it’s present time, the era feels like Sparkle. The girls need a lot of work, they have potential, but right now…they’re tacky because they’re supposed to be. Rough around the edges. Stars in their eyes. Fame on the horizon and a lot of drama along the way.
Without giving too much away, here’s what we find out:
Star is on a mission to make it. She’s got a lot of attitude, she is poor, white and if she were black, well, she’d be “cookie” from Empire at the age of 18. If this were the prelude to Empire, this would be the group that started the label. They’re a money maker, super group in the making.
Simone, is a weed head. She’s got the bigger star power. However, she’s troubled and she needs a mother figure. She also is a drinker…not champagne, Scotch and walks the horrifying line of being too young to get twisted.
Alexandra is an atheist. She has everything and nothing at all. She wants to make something of herself outside of her daddy’s name, so she joins the group with hopes of this being her big ticket to make her own dreams a reality. She also writes the lyrics to the songs.
Alexandra butts heads with Carlotta, who the young ladies finally catch up to once they arrive in ATL. Carlotta owns a hair salon—and this is where Miss Lawrence, makes an on-screen debut.
Carlotta’s son is a transvestite who leads Star to a strip club to be discovered, after the girls get nowhere in a talent show, hosted in a dive across town.
Carlotta is a born again Christian who has been down this road before, with Simone and Star’s mother, who was a drug addict. However, prior to the addition she had a phenomenal voice which her daughters inherited.
Carlotta becomes the obstacle between the manager JAHIL RIVERA (Benjamin Bratt) who Star meets in the champagne room at the strip club. He’s a mystery man who appears to have done Carlotta dirty…considering Carlotta pulls a gun out on him to warn him about working with her girls. I will go out on a limb and say that—that moment was a little over the top too…especially when Carlotta sprays herself with perfume on each wrist, sniffs, pauses and says:
“My daddy said there are three things you need in life: Your bible, your word and your gun.”
“My Daddy Said Shoot!”
Sorry, I had to divert and throw Beyonce’s lyrics to “Daddy Lessons” (Lemonade) in there, because this is what Lee Daniels does to the viewer…he takes you to flip side of the script and into another place. Before you know it, you’re covering your face, astounded, because you just can’t believe the things that are being said on TV.
And oh yeah, there’s the “goat hair” reference which made “Cookie” (EMPIRE) famous. Lee must hate cheap weave…”Bible Thumping Whores” is another term that had me like WHOA! And the likes of more skanky lyrics that speak to your inner #ghetchet (ghetto + ratchet) self. I expect nothing more than real trashy TV, that you get to escape into for an hour. I am intrigued to see where this show goes and if it has staying power.
By the end of the pilot, the young ladies perform at an exclusive party for an NFL star, and well…they “did their thing.” They still have lots more work to do…and oh yeah, the guy who got stabbed in the back, is alive.
If Lee Daniels flipped a coin and Empire were on one side, Star would be on the other.
