''Glam'' is a 1997 experimental

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by Josh Evans.

Plot

Sonny (

William McNamara William West McNamara (born March 31, 1965) is an American film and television actor. Personal life Born in Dallas, Texas, McNamara is the son of a Ford Motor Company employee and an interior designer. He attended Salisbury School, Columbia Un ...

) travels to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

to visit his cousin Franky (

Frank Whaley Frank Joseph Whaley (born July 20, 1963) is an American actor, film director, screenwriter, musician and comedian. His roles include Brett in ''Pulp Fiction'', Robby Krieger in ''The Doors'', Jim Dodge in '' Career Opportunities'', young Archie ...

), and is introduced to a grim world of sex and violence.

Cast

as Sonny Daye *

as Franky Syde *

Natasha Gregson Wagner Natasha Gregson Wagner ( Gregson; born September 29, 1970) is an American actress. She is the daughter of film producer Richard Gregson and actress Natalie Wood. She has appeared in films including '' Lost Highway'', '' Two Girls and a Guy,'' ' ...

as Vanessa Mason *

Valérie Kaprisky Valérie Kaprisky ( Chérès; born 19 August 1962) is a French actress. Life and career She was born Valerie Chérès on 19 August 1962 in Neuilly-sur-Seine. Kaprisky is her Polish mother's maiden name. She is of Greek-Ottoman and Argentine de ...

as Treasure *

Tony Danza Tony Danza (born Anthony Salvatore Iadanza; April 21, 1951) is an American actor and retired professional boxer. He is known for co-starring in the television series ''Taxi (TV series), Taxi'' (1978–1983) and ''Who's the Boss?'' (1984–1992 ...

as Sid Dalgren *

Jon Cryer Jonathan Niven Cryer (born April 16, 1965) is an American actor. Born into a show business family, he made his film debut with a lead role in ''No Small Affair'' (1984); his breakout role was as Duckie in the John Hughes (filmmaker), John Hughe ...

as Jimmy Pells *

Ali MacGraw Elizabeth Alice MacGraw (born April 1, 1939) is an American actress. For her role in '' Goodbye, Columbus'' (1969) she won a Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer. She then starred in '' Love Story'' (1970), for which she was nominate ...

as Lynn Travers *

Donal Logue Donal Francis Logue (born February 27, 1966) is a Canadian-American film and television actor. He played the starring role of Sean Finnerty on the sitcom '' Grounded for Life'' (2001–2005), and Detective Harvey Bullock on the DC Comics adapta ...

as Tom Stone

Production

The film was Josh Evans' second effort as a director, following 1994's ''Inside the Goldmine'', which also featured actress

. When ''Inside the Goldmine'' performed well at

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

and

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

festivals, independent film company Cineville agreed to back his next project ''Glam''. Cineville were able to finance its seven figure budget through foreign pre-sale contracts.

Music

Once principal photography wrapped in

, Evans flew to Europe to work on the film's score with German electronic duo

Mouse on Mars Mouse on Mars is a German electronic music duo formed in 1993 by Jan St. Werner and Andi Toma. Their music is a blend of electronic genres including IDM, dub, krautrock, breakbeat and ambient, featuring heavy use of organic analog synth and ...

. Evans would end up rejecting the soundtrack they created, due to its overly experimental and unorthodox sound, instead creating his own electronic score. Mouse on Mars later released their music for ''Glam'' in 1998, to critical acclaim.

Release

''Glam'' premiered at the Vancouver International Film Festival in October 1997. Prior to being released in America, the film received an

NC-17 The Motion Picture Association film rating system is used in the United States and its territories to rate a motion picture's suitability for certain audiences based on its content. The system and the ratings applied to individual motion picture ...

rating for "a scene of explicit sexuality and some sexual dialogue."

Reception

Leonard Klady of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' reviewed the film in November 1997, stating "Josh Evans’ second feature, ''Glam,'' is another downbeat saga certain to enhance his rep but unlikely to break the bounds of specialized exhibition. A grim tale of Hollywood hustlers and marginals, the film is confident, disturbing and sometime diffuse. A technical tour de force, its assured vision will divide both audiences and critics but will leave an indelible impression on the few willing to venture inside the nightmarish world." Kevin Thomas of the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' wrote in 1998 that "Evans really is fearless: He's made the kind of picture that those who aren't ready to go along with him will dismiss as arty and pretentious but that pays off for those willing to pay attention and go the distance."

References

External links

* * {{rotten-tomatoes, id=glam, title=Glam 1997 films 1997 drama films Films set in Los Angeles American drama films 1990s English-language films 1990s American films