As a relatively unknown actress, Jessica Chastain holds her own alongside her famous co-stars in Dan Ireland’s film “Jolene,” based on E.L. Doctorow’s story “Jolene: A Life,” in which she plays the title character. “Jolene” opens today at Laemmle’s Sunset 5 Theatre.
Jolene enters her first marriage at the start of the movie at age 15 as a way out of the foster care system. Jolene’s first husband, Mickey (Zeb Newman), offers Jolene a simple life, which she quickly becomes unsatisfied with.
While Jolene may appear innocent and naive, Chastain gives her character a certain overwhelming awareness of her poor situation in life, which necessitates her desperation for it to change. Jolene also pursues her talents as an artist even as she admits to her art teacher that she does not want to draw most of what she has seen in her life.
Out of her desperation for love and happiness, Jolene enters into an affair with Mickey’s Uncle Phil, played by Dermot Mulroney.
Mulroney delivers a mixed performance, as he comes across as the lustful older man preying on a young woman, even though through Jolene’s eyes he is a gentleman who offers her love.
Jolene’s love affair ends on a predictably bad note as she becomes a widower, a home wrecker and a juvenile delinquent sent to a juvenile psychiatric ward for treatment.
During her time at the ward, Jolene experiences some new things as she becomes the lover of lesbian guard Cindy (Francis Fisher). At this point in the movie, a trend appears as Jolene continues to attract love interests who she ultimately ends up leaving behind.
Jolene’s world opens up after she escapes and begins her travels, yet she does not get very far as she marries small-town tattoo artist Coco Leger, played by Rupert Friend (“The Young Victoria”). Her second marriage seems sincerely based on love, and Jolene even gets the opportunity to pursue her passion for art as she joins her husband and works as a tattoo artist.
But even the strangely endearing Coco breaks Jolene’s heart, which forces her to move on to other men. It would be difficult to say that her following lovers mark improvement in Jolene’s life as she settles with gentlemanly mobster Sal Fontaine (Chazz Palminteri) and later marries aggressive snob Brad Benton (Michael Vartan).
Yet despite her repeated claims that her men are “gentlemen,” it is difficult to dislike Jolene for seeking completion in her life, which makes her failures only more heart-wrenching. Chastain earns the audience’s sympathy, which creates a feeling of unease as she continues to struggle through sex, love and relationships.
The male characters define Jolene by her beauty and sex appeal, but she clearly seeks more as she understands herself through her art and eventually her role as a mother. Yet, as Jolene ages, the men she chooses define her as she climbs in sophistication to a position of wealth and marriage.
In addition to Chastain’s skills, co-stars Vartan and Palminteri also provide in-depth performances; Palminteri’s character exudes comfort as easy as Vartan’s ability to unsettle the audience.
Chastain’s interactions with her supporting cast members drive the movie as Jolene grows in and out of relationships. It is difficult to believe a heroine so young has experienced so much in a relatively small span of time.
Only a good actress can create a character that stirs an emotional response in the audience, whether it is sympathy or discomfort, and Chastain succeeds in creating such a character.
E-mail Cunard at ccunard@media.ucla.edu