SWEET JANE

Streetwalker Jane is mildly disappointed to find out she's survived her latest intravenous-drug overdose. The subsequent HIV-positive diagnosis barely registers with her. All that matters to the young woman is where her next fix is coming from. The word has gotten out, however: Jane is damaged goods, and she's prostitute-non-grata even among other LA hookers and heroin-pushers. But to Joey, a 15-year-old boy who followed Jane out of the hospital, she's the answer to an unformed prayer. Despite her protests, Joey tags along after the increasingly desperate Jane. First he's an annoyance, but soon they're an alliance, two rebel untouchables against a cold, hostile world which would just as soon warehouse them both as human wreckage. With magical-realist storytelling and a ferocious pair of lead performances, SWEET JANE traces the defiant course of twin falling stars who discover something of immense value during their precipitous arc. Notably, it shares both a supporting actress (Mary Woronov) and musical stylings with another CIFF entry, the documentary LOU REED: ROCK AND ROLL HEART, and Reed's gritty junkie ballads find their dramatic equivalent in Joe Gayton's powerful film.