Adult World
John Cusack, Emma Roberts and Evan Peters star in this appealing porn industry dramedy
Ignore the tacky cover art that suggests John Cusack is Emma Roberts' favourite customer at a pole dancing club, the film contained within is a far more appealing comedy drama set on the fringes of the porn industry. In a bid for independence aspiring writer Amy (Roberts) takes a job behind the counter at a sex shop. She moves in with sassy straight talking transvestite Rubia (Armando Riesco) and obsesses over brooding local poet, Rat Billings (Cusack) in her desperate bid to get published.
It's probably Roberts strongest performance yet, effortlessly engaging and charismatic. The requisite love interest while a little rushed is believable (less surprising when you consider Roberts' American Horror Story co-star Evan Peters is her real life boyfriend). Cusack, who seems to be drifting into 'the where are they now' file, brings suitable bile and melancholy to the vitriolic poet who's star has faded. It's a bit self-consciously 'indie' but Adult World is a surprisingly charming story of friendship and connections amongst a group of loners, drop-outs and outsiders.