Now more than ever the work and wisdom of Andy Warhol has a resonance that stands strong. As Warhol spat out the pop culture of America and held a mirror up to the disposable nature of its society, so today has become even quicker at using and then losing anything. When you consider Warhol's ruminations of everyone having their 15 minutes of fame and the current demand for reality TV, then its hard to argue that the man had ideas far ahead of his years.
The film 'Factory Girl' captures Warhol and one of his chief muses, Edie Sedgwick, in a period of whirling excitement, not only for them but for the world and of the changes that were being affected on a daily basis.
In case you are beginning to wonder what this review has to do with a music website, there is a character strongly based on Bob Dylan who appears centrally in the film and its hard to consider Warhol without doffing a cap to The Velvet Underground.
The Velvets may only be portrayed briefly in the movie but as they were possibly the key reason for this writer having a major interest in the film, lets start with them.
The Velvet Underground, for those unaware of them, looked fucking amazing and sounded at least ten times better than they looked. Linked with Warhol for their first album and for playing at his parties and happenings, their appearance sparks a new life into the film and soundtracks the decent of Sedgwick into madness. No doubt feeling spurned by the presence of ice-cool Nico to Warhols side, as The Velvets play onstage (here playing a soundalike of their track 'Heroin') theres an injection of manic-ness as the film speeds to its intended, yet tragic, conclusion.
The character of Warhol, a shy and very much insecure artist is played superbly by Guy Pearce, potentially rivalling Kylie for being the best escapee from Neighbours, with a film career with so many varied highlights.
The true standout is Miller and her portrayal of Sedgwick. It could be easy to be unkind and suggest it wasn't the greatest stretch for Miller to act as poor little rich girl, trying to make her way in a modelling and acting world with beautiful looks and possibly limited talent but that thought is eventually blown away by the consistency shown. It would be horrific to think if Miller was acting out her own life on screen during the film, as what happened to Sedgwick was horrendous and not something to be easily wished on anyone.
Both Sedgwick and Miller were/are clearly beautiful women, and whilst this writer would never know what it feels like to be classed as good-looking, its apparent theres a pressure attached to being considered good-looking. When even a lazy day when you dress down or can't be bothered changing clothes creates a stir across the world from a frenzied media braying for a new look, it must be hard to remain level-headed. No doubt this is where the access to drugs meets the supposed pressures which would facilitate drug-taking and as the film shows the swinging sixties in the manner it is historically considered, theres no stopping or slowing down on that score.
So the next time your great-looking friend or one who has a touch of the genius or superstar about them, is having a moan and you instinctively think what they heck are they moaning about, give it a second thought that not everything is as brilliant as it seems for them either.
Miller has faced some controversy recently, particularly for the comment that "drugs are fuckloads of fun." Anyone who views a model / actress as a suitable role-model for their children is clearly a bit deranged but to be honest, Miller has a point. When the good times are flowing and things are on the up, theres a good case to be made that drugs are indeed fuckloads of fun, otherwise why would so many people spend their recreational time taking them? And the film addresses this, with the giddy rushes of the swinging sixties captured perfectly.
Before the moral majority throw their hands up in the air, the film does balance this out showing the after party when things turn sour. As Sedgwick lies face down, unable to prevent or even care as she is taken advantage of and her possessions stolen with drugs being pumped into her backside. With the death of Sedgwick coming soon after she felt she was free of drugs abuse is yet another casualty in the rock n roll and artistic hall of fame, its difficult to say that drugs are always glamorous, as they're not. However, like so much in this film, both sides are shown and its left for the viewer to decide what to think.
Sedgwick is the confident go-getter who heads to New York and tracks down Warhol to further her dreams and yet is also the vulnerable woman whose beauty appears to be dripping from her as she starts to become isolated. Warhol comes across as callous and cold, tossing aside people when they no longer have any use for him but then you consider how all of these people initially used Warhol for his fame and to feel part of something bigger. Both seemed dwarfed by their relationship with a parent, Sedgwick defined by what her father did to her, Warhol constrained by a mother he reveres too much. The repeated use of "you're the boss, applesauce" by Warhol and his mother is creepy and unsettling.
Even the character loosely based on Dylan changes your opinion. Initially coming across as the unknown troubadour seeming like a strange mystic with all the answers hidden away, the truth was that Dylan knew no more than anyone else, he was just better at hiding this fact but his charisma made him seem like a man with all the answers. The scene where he is seen to rise from the chair but with an electric guitar strapped around informs the audience that this is a changed man, a man who could inspire fans to revolt against him and berate him as 'Judas', purely for playing an electric guitar. Such was the power a character such as this was felt to have held and for any denials to be made about this character not being largely based on Bob Dylan seem rather shallow and pointless.
And with all that, it was a really enjoyable film. It told nothing about the 1960s that we hadn't been told before, there was nothing new about a celebrity falling into a hole and being unable to dig back out, rock n roll casualties have littered the world for as long as we can recall and there are as many questions left as answers. However, for showing the wonderous yet eventually tragic relationship between muse and artist, by touching on potential relationships that perhaps may have saved the beautiful girl and lets face it, because it features The Velvet Underground, 'Factory Girl' is extremely deserving of a viewing.