Directed by Martha Stephens
Written by Shannon Bradley-Colleary
Starring Kaya Hayward, Liana Liberato, Jordana Spiro and Shea Wigham
Running time: 1 hour and 49 minutes

by Audrey Callerstrom

To the Stars is reminiscent of those feel-good dramas that seem ready for a slot on a family-friendly cable network, like the early Natalie Portman films and the mid-career Drew Barrymore ones. The performances are good, even if the characters are two-dimensional, and the film appears to be directed well, even if it’s at least 20 minutes too long. Scenes transition in an organic manner and it’s edited in a cohesive fashion. It also looks good. It’s F-Rated, being written by a woman (blogger Shannon Bradley-Colleary) and directed by a woman (Martha Stephens). But it’s forgettable, contrived and many of the film’s elements, such as the setting (Oklahoma) and the time period (the ‘60s) seemed thrown together as an afterthought and, as such, it prevents us from ever seeing anything human in what is supposed to be an emotional story about two lost souls becoming friends.