At first glance, I was surprised at the amount of well known actors in a movie that hardly anyone has heard of, but after gaining a lot of attention on the film festival circuit, I figured it was worth a shot. Also, I have become a fan of young Chloë Grace Moretz from her work in "Kick-Ass", "Hugo", and "Let Me In" so I was very interested to see what she could do while taking on her very own starring role.
At the beginning of the movie, we are introduced to 13 year old outcast Luli McMullen (Moretz) and her dysfunctional parents Nick and Tammy (Anson Mount and Juliette Lewis) during the young girl's birthday party which is being held at the local bar. As she sits at the end of the bar with her presents which include a key chain and a Smith and Wesson 45 (seriously!), her family and friends drink the night away.
After some stark realizations about what her future might hold, Luli decides to pack what she can in to her purse and head off for the bright lights and big dreams of Las Vegas. She even makes a list of pros and cons where she believes the only negative is that she might die. Clearly this is a better option than staying in her small home town in Nebraska and not really living at all so off she goes on an adventure she hopes will lead to the type of living that she has only seen in all the movies she has grown so fond of constantly quoting.
I firmly believe that we have a major star in the making with Chloë Grace Moretz as she has once again proves she can take on any role given to her and handle it ten times better than someone twice her age. In a movie that is a bit strange and doesn't seem to know quite what it is, she is able to make her character shine even alongside big names like Juliette Lewis and Blake Lively. Moretz's only real equal in this film is Eddie Redmayne who is another person you might just want to keep your eye on. After starring alongside Michelle Williams in "My Week with Marilyn", this English actor gets a chance to play a back woods cowboy who clearly isn't quite right in the head and he pulls it off nicely.
"Hick" has a lot of problems with a number one on the list being a lack of a compelling story. The whole thing just kind of plods along through Luli's runaway trip without really going anywhere. There are several moments that get your hopes up, but as soon as they pass you have to settle back in and wait for the next one to come along. I will say the cinematography is quite beautiful with some really big sweeping shots of mid west farmland that does a great job of not only establishing location but also giving a sense that this little girl has gone off in to a much bigger and stranger world than she ever thought she would find.
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