Based on a true story, Mope tells the tale of would-be porn stars Steve Driver (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett) and Tom Dong (Kelly Sry) who start working for a small-scale production company. As time goes on and his dream gets further out of reach, Steve begins a slow spiral to destruction.
A cold, dark retelling of a true story, Mope is an odd beast. As a mainstream movie about the porn industry, it has to grapple with the same riddle every other non-pornographic movie has to deal with in portraying the industry.
The movie nails certain aspects of the genre's aesthetic - an eternally moving camera; editing that feels akin to a post Greengrass action movie. Even the score resembles the synth doodling of porn.
This is not so much fly-on-the-wall as cockroach in the drain. While the movie does feel lo-fi and sleazy, it feels odd that the movie keeps the sex out of frame in an incredibly familiar way.
It feels odd and discombobulating, because of the movie's aesthetic choices feel so of the genre.
I spent this movie wondering how to approach the subject without showing it. I found myself wondering whether the movie would benefit or not from that level of verisimilitude. There were scenes where it felt like there needed to be more, yet the only time the movie showed anything it was as a punchline to a joke.
On top of its aesthetic choices, I was left wondering what the movie trying to say? The movie it reminded me the most of was Pain & Gain in that it felt like the movie was presenting a thesis that it proceeds to leave undeveloped.
Does its point-of-view genuinely empathise with him, or see Driver as a joke? Nathan-Stewart brings vulnerability to the tortured protagonist, but the movie around him feels insecure about whether it is a comedy or a drama.
The performances overall are terrific. Sry brings an awkward empathy to Dong, and Brian Huskey provides great support as their pragmatic, and hapless boss, Eric. In a minor role, David Arquette adds a couple minutes of sleaze as a major director our heroes cross paths with.
An interesting story, with a great central performance, Mope is worth checking out - but it somewhat less than the sum of its parts (off-screen or otherwise).
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