Entertainment

‘Starlet’ review

In this ethereal slice of life in the San Fernando Valley, a young and seemingly underemployed blonde named Jane (Dree Hemingway, daughter of Mariel) befriends a cantankerous elderly woman (Besedka Johnson) after purchasing a vase at her yard sale which turns out to contain a large amount of cash.

Rebuffed when she attempts to bring it back (“No refunds!”), Jane embarks on a mission to get close to the woman, Sadie, a widowed borderline hoarder — though it becomes clear that Jane’s life of shopping and smoking pot with her sleazy roommates (James Ransone, Stella Maeve) is just as lonely.

“Starlet’’ is the name of Jane’s Chihuahua, but Jane is indeed an actress of sorts. Writer-director Sean Baker, shooting in a hazy Southern California palette, frames her graphic workday as just another ho-hum entry on life’s daily checklist. Jane’s friendship with Sadie is the one thing that cuts through the numbness — though the film’s so low-key, even emotional revelations feel pretty muted.