Synopsis

Factory Girl, released in 2006, is the dramatic biography of Edie Sedgwick which portrays her rise in the film industry and eventually ends with her demise due to a drug overdose. It focuses on the intertwined stories of young artists Andy Warhol and Edie Sedgwick. Originally from Massachusetts, the rich Edie decides to move to New York and quickly becomes involved with Andy Warhol, an eccentric artist of the time. Dazed by her personality and beauty, he asks her to star in his experimental movie project. She then goes on to do multiple projects with Warhol and slowly becomes his inspirational muse. While earning international success, Edie is still mentally strained by her family’s issues as her brother recently passed away and her father used to sexually abuse her. Her new found success leads her down a destructive path of drugs, debt, and spending sprees.

Later, Edie enters into a relationship with Billy, another emerging artist who she met through a mutual friend. Andy instantly becomes jealous of her relationship and although Edit attempts to make peace amongst them, she ultimately fails. A fight breaks out at Andy’s factory and Edie chooses Andy over Billy, infuriating Billy and causing him to leave. However, they aren’t able to maintain a healthy relationship as Edie’s drug habit causes her to stray in her career and personal life. She almost dies in one instant as she falls asleep with a lit cigarette.

Syd, Edie’s friend from Massachusetts comes to her rescue and reminds her of her inspiring past. He urges her to embrace art again and get back on her feet. The movie then fast forwards to the present when Edie is being interviewed about her drug addiction problems and how she overcame them in her home in California. In the future, Andy is also interviewed and when the topic of Edie comes up, he shrugs her off as a thing of the distant past.

Production & Reception

Factory Girl was directed by George Hickenlooper and produced by Harvey Weinstein in 2006. The movie experienced a number of delays as the budget shrank from $8 million to less than $7 million. Furthermore,  there were numerous scheduling conflicts between the the lead artists Pearce and Miller. Additionally, the production team became involved in a lawsuit with Sony Pictures over distribution right in North America. The set of the movie included locations such as New York City, Toronto, and Connecticut.

Rated a Biographic Drama, the movie became “R” rated as it displays nudity, drug taking scenarios and sexual content. Whereas the film received generally negative views, the lead performers Guy Pearce and Sienna Miller were critically acclaimed for their accurate portrayal of their roles. The New York Times review concluded that Miller gave a “furious, thrashing performance as a lost little rich girl” (Holden 1). Negative remarks from the New York Times comment on the lack of substantial storyline that encompasses “…a spurious power struggle between Warhol and Bob Dylan for possession of Edie’s soul” (Holden 2). A review titled “A Very Nasty Portrait of the Artist: How Factory Girl Insults Andy Warhol” comments on the negative spotlight Andy Warhol is placed into for the entirety of the film. His role turns into one of the antagonist while his true talent of creating relatable and brilliant art for the masses is downplayed in this film by the sob story of  Sedgwick. While the movie does an excellent job at casting performers for their respective roles according to physical approximations, it fails in terms of balance in the plot. Inadvertently, the direction of the plot focuses less on the struggles of the film industry and rather places a spotlight on a custody battle for  Edie Sedgwick between the hated Andy Warhol and the heroic Bob Dylan (Lewis 1). Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a 19% rotten rating as it portrays a superficial story and doesn’t delve deeply into the mindset of Edie Sedgwick (Mauzner 1). The Guardian, a credible news provider, had similar things to say about the film as their final remarks are “Edie Sedgwick’s story is sad, but never appears important or interesting” (Bradshaw 3). Overall, the film received highly negative reviews about its historical accuracy and direction of plot on screen. However, I believe the audience owes it a one time watch as it displays the downward spiral many people in the media industry face as a result of drugs and other addictions.

Seminar Themes

One of the very important seminar themes that this movie relates to is “What is art and its purpose?” I believe that the production team’s motive behind producing such a film was not only an in depth review of Edie Sedgwick’s life, but also to comment on the inhospitable atmosphere that exists in the media industry. The film reflects a social commentary on the personal lives of some of America’s most famous artists-where they find their inspirations in this world and how they lose themselves in the entrapment of drugs. Furthermore, a scene that really stood out to me in the film was when Edie’s friend Syd comes to visit and finds Edie, unconscious, being filmed naked by unknown men. This scene pungently portrayed the downfall of American artists as they stood at their lowest. It can seen as a warning against drug use as well as caution when entering the film industry.

Another seminar theme that this film deals with is “Meaningfulness.” Fame and fortune are two ingredients for happiness as people believe, however this film portray how they don’t have any real meaning in life. Edie earned fortunes throughout her career however she blew them all on drugs and wasteful spending-in the end it became the reason for her death as she overdosed at the age of 28. Moreover, she is the perfect example of how money is not the key to happiness. Fortune was in Edie’s blood as she came from a wealthy family but she still had a terrible family life as her father sexually abused her since the age of 8. Similarly, many people believe that fame is the end goal of life as it brings about happiness. However, one can clearly see that fame did not bring any of the characters happiness as the industry and media aggressively picked at the artists like vultures until they had nothing left. The film does a beautiful job of showing the lack of meaning behind material things in life.

Works Cited

Bradshaw, Peter. “Factory Girl.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 16 Mar. 2007, www.theguardian.com/film/2007/mar/16/drama.

 

Holden, Stephen. “Factory Girl – Movies – Review.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 2 Feb. 2007, www.nytimes.com/2007/02/02/movies/02fact.html.

 

Lewis, Jim. “How Factory Girl Insults Andy Warhol.” Slate Magazine, 7 Feb. 2007, www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2007/02/a_very_nasty_portrait_of_the_artist.html

 

Mauzner, Captain. “Factory Girl.” Factory Girl (2007) – Rotten Tomatoes, 7 Nov. 2017, www.rottentomatoes.com/m/factory_girl/.