![]() It’s thrilling to see such unprecedented characters on any screen, and “Betty” deserves credit for putting them there. Though her direction is visually crisp and oftentimes arrestingly beautiful, Moselle seems to have stopped short at offering her newbie actors much guidance, instead settling for whatever semi-authentic naturalism they could muster. But these subdued scenes would be more compelling if the stoned conversation was more clever, or if the actors felt more grounded in their relationships. ![]() The pilot episode hangs around a wild goose chase for a lost backpack, while the other half of the crew gets high in the back of a van. Unfortunately, even with funny writers like Moshe Kasher, Lesley Arfin, and Patricia Breen, “Betty” doesn’t hold together in the same way. The members of the all girl skate crew spend their days nailing tricks, smoking weed, and alternately fighting and flirting with the asshole dudes who think they own the skate park. Re-titled “ Betty,” the show brings back tomboy shredder Camille (Rachelle Vinberg), stoner lothario Kirt (Nina Moran), beguiling weed dealer Indigo (Ajani Russell), shy but totally funky Honeybear (Moonbear), and good-natured Janay (Dede Lovelace). Shrewdly building on the solid foundation Moselle laid in “Skate Kitchen,” HBO has given the filmmaker a six-episode, half-hour series to further explore her unique cast of characters. The result was one of the best movies in recent memory to portray contemporary, young, adult women with the style and tenacity they deserve. For her evocative portrait of an all-girl skate crew, Moselle cast first-time actors primarily on visual style and charisma, then shaped the story around them. Her luminous narrative feature debut, “Skate Kitchen” (2018), represented a confident transition from inventive documentary style into a compelling but loosely constructed narrative. But although Vinberg is a talented actor, several of the supporting characters hint at stories that would be far more interesting than the familiar “naive teenager moves to New York City” narrative.Since making an astonishing debut with 2015’s riveting hybrid documentary “The Wolfpack,” filmmaker Crystal Moselle has continued to push the envelope with her distinctive style, honing her singular cinematic voice while expanding her artistic palette. Skate Kitchen is both a touching story about female friendship and a way to feature some incredible athletes. But Camille finds trouble within her new crew when she develops a crush on leader Janay (Ardelia Lovelace)’s ex-boyfriend, fellow skateboarder Devon (Jaden Smith). Though the girls-all New Yorkers-are an outspoken and close-knit group, they instantly accept shy, lonely Camille. While her mother is at work, Camille takes the train into New York City to meet up with the all-girl skate crew she found on Instagram. Of course, Camille doesn’t give up that easily. Rachelle Vinberg stars as Camille, an 18-year-old who lives in Long Island and loves to skateboard-but after she gets “credit carded”-falls crotch-first on her skateboard-and needs stitches, her mother ( Orange Is The New Black actress Elizabeth Rodriguez) bans her from skateboarding. Moselle immersed herself in the girls’ lives while writing the movie, meaning that there’s a naturalistic feel, Instagram drama, and plenty of New York teen slang. Director Crystal Moselle’s ( the Wolfpack) first narrative feature stars members of the real-life all-girl skateboard crew Skate Kitchen.
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