A fine docu about "at risk" kids, "Girl Trouble" follows three young San Francisco women on the brink of adulthood -- and a possible lifetime stuck in the revolving door of crime and incarceration -- over four years' course. Juvenile delinquent stereotypes are usefully demolished while the lack of supportive environs and services for such girls becomes painfully clear.
A fine documentary about “at risk” kids, “Girl Trouble” follows three young San Francisco women on the brink of adulthood — and a possible lifetime stuck in the revolving door of crime and incarceration — over four years’ course. Juvenile delinquent stereotypes are usefully demolished while the lack of supportive environs and services for such girls becomes painfully clear. Fast-moving, involving item is a natural for public TV slots and educational outreach.
Related Stories
VIP+Generative AI Fueling ‘Exponential’ Rise in Celebrity NIL Rip-Offs: Exclusive Data
Christopher Ciccone, Artist and Brother of Madonna, Dies at 63
Protags run an ethnic gamut but have overlapping issues, with arrest histories going back as far as age 13; they’re all 16 to 17 at pic’s start. Sheila is serially busted for selling drugs. Court view of her as incorrigible can’t encompass the uncomfortable truth she’s the only working member of a family on SSI in a violent housing project, with seven siblings, bills to pay, and dad in prison.
Popular on Variety
Shangra lives on-and-off with an older sister, but despite latter’s advice, refuses to distance herself from a heroin-addict mother whom she frequently joins in homelessness. Stephanie is eager to stay out of the law’s eye, given a standing arrest warrant due to her prior flight from a group home. But this means she’s reluctant to get help when battered by her boyfriend — even after she’s given birth to their baby.
All three girls spend time working and being counseled at the Center for Young Women’s Development, a rare peer-run org targeting female juveniles. Its director, Lateefah, herself just 24, has experienced similar “troubles” first-hand. She bemoans the cycle of domestic violence, premature single motherhood, drug use, support issues, institutional recidivism, et al. that funnels many girls toward the dead-end of adult prison. Stressing that they do have options, the center has had miraculous success turning some young lives around. But it’s an uphill struggle.
There’s no lack of drama, as Sheila is imprisoned for shooting her brother (he’s only wounded) during a drug and alcohol binge, while Shangra and Stephanie deal with much legal and personal turmoil. Rather amazingly, all three stories end on an upbeat note, with each girl in much-improved circumstances — a success rate that’s surely atypical, but inspiring all the same.
Closing titles note that while females comprise about one-third of the juvenile system populace nationwide, so far only 2% of the preventative/supportive services available are targeted toward them.
Vid-shot feature is compactly packaged, with outstanding editing by Josh Peterson and Laurie Schmidt reducing what was no doubt many hours of original footage into a sort of cogent shorthand that’s fleet without feeling rushed.
Jump to CommentsGirl Trouble
More from Variety
Kris Kristofferson’s 10 Best Songs
Virtual Production Growth in Focus at IBC Event
Barbra Streisand Remembers ‘A Star Is Born’ Co-Star Kris Kristofferson: ‘He Was Something Special’
Kris Kristofferson, Country Music Legend and ‘A Star Is Born’ Leading Man, Dies at 88
What Film Fund From AI Startup Runway Means for Content’s Future
Most Popular
Inside the 'Joker: Folie à Deux' Debacle: Todd Phillips ‘Wanted Nothing to Do’ With DC on the $200 Million Misfire
‘Menendez Brothers’ Netflix Doc Reveals Erik’s Drawings of His Abuse and Lyle Saying ‘I Would Much Rather Lose the Murder Trial Than Talk About Our…
‘Joker 2’ Axed Scene of Lady Gaga’s Lee Kissing a Woman at the Courthouse Because ‘It Had Dialogue in It’ and ‘Got in the Way’ of a Music…
‘Kaos’ Canceled After One Season at Netflix
Kamala Harris Cracks Open a Miller High Life With Stephen Colbert on ‘The Late Show’
Saoirse Ronan Says Losing Luna Lovegood Role in ‘Harry Potter’ Has ‘Stayed With Me Over the Years’: ‘I Was Too Young’ and ‘Knew I Wasn't Going to Get…
Kathy Bates Won an Oscar and Her Mom Told Her: ‘You Didn't Discover the Cure for Cancer,’ So ‘I Don't Know What All the Excitement Is About…
Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried to Star in ‘The Housemaid’ Adaptation From Director Paul Feig, Lionsgate
Disney World, Universal Orlando Theme Park to Close as Florida Braces for Hurricane Milton
Kamala Harris Watches Maya Rudolph’s ‘SNL’ Impression, Praises the Mannerisms: ‘She’s So Good!’
Must Read
- Film
COVER | Sebastian Stan Tells All: Becoming Donald Trump and Starring in 2024’s Most Controversial Movie
By Andrew Wallenstein 3 weeks
- TV
Menendez Family Slams Netflix’s ‘Monsters’ as ‘Grotesque’ and ‘Riddled With Mistruths’: ‘The Character Assassination of Erik and Lyke Is Repulsive…
- TV
‘Yellowstone’ Season 5 Part 2 to Air on CBS After Paramount Network Debut
- TV
50 Cent Sets Diddy Abuse Allegations Docuseries at Netflix: ‘It’s a Complex Narrative Spanning Decades’ (EXCLUSIVE)
- Shopping
‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Sets Digital and Blu-ray/DVD Release Dates
Sign Up for Variety Newsletters
By providing your information, you agree to our Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy.We use vendors that may also process your information to help provide our services. // This site is protected by reCAPTCHA Enterprise and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.Variety Confidential
ncG1vNJzZmiukae2psDYZ5qopV9nfXGAjp%2BgpaVfp7K3tcSwqmifmae5bsDRqKybpJVifnN8j25qbG9kZnw%3D