Sharp Stick

Sarah Jo, a 26-year-old babysitter who had a hysterectomy at age 17, loses her virginity to her employer.[1]

• Kristine Froseth as Sarah Jo
• Taylour Paige as Treina
• Jennifer Jason Leigh as Marilyn
• Jon Bernthal as Josh
• Scott Speedman as Vance Leroy
• Lena Dunham as Heather
• Tommy Dorfman as Tali
• Janicza Bravo as Mercedes

Sharp Stick is the second feature film directed by Lena Dunham (pictured).

In April 2020, Lena Dunham moved from London to Silver Lake, Los Angeles, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. She passed the time watching a number of films from the 1970s, including Belle de Jour, A Woman Under the Influence, Remember My Name, and An Unmarried Woman. The films, as well as the impact of a hysterectomy, motivated Dunham to write, direct, and star in Sharp Stick. "It was about processing my life. And then, obviously, it becomes about the characters — and not about you at all." After receiving the script, Jon Bernthal and Jennifer Jason Leigh were immediately on board to star. Taylour Paige, however, was initially hesitant with joining the cast: "If I'm being honest. I was like, 'Don't you think this character was written as a white person?" Dunham convinced Paige to star by telling her that she had written the part with her in mind.[1]

With an all-female production crew, filming took place in secret in Atwater Village and Eagle Rock, Los Angeles, in early 2021. According to lead actress Kristine Froseth, "There was a good energy all around. We had an amazing intimacy coordinator. Everything was choreographed — no surprises." In March 2021, the film was presented to buyers at the 71st Berlin International Film Festival.[2] In August 2021, Tommy Dorfman was confirmed to star.[3] Dunham's husband Luis Felber composed the musical score.[1]

The film premiered virtually at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival on January 22. In an interview, Dunham said "There are many greater tragedies than me not getting to see my movie premiere but I was so excited for my cast to get to see it together. We did it on such a small scale, and everyone really brought everything to it. It was such a harkening back to how I started. But we're planning a Zoom party. I guess people Zoomed into my wedding — and they'll Zoom into my premiere."[1] In February 2022, Utopia acquired the film's distribution rights.[4] It is scheduled to be released in theaters on July 29, 2022.[5]

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 44% of 52 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.0/10. The website's consensus reads, "A series of promising ideas lost in scattershot execution, Sharp Stick stands as a disappointing setback for writer-director Lena Dunham."[6] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 55 out of 100 based on 14 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[7]

• Sharp Stick at IMDb