MOVIE OF THE WEEK March 6, 2026: SILVER STAR
Like a younger version of Thelma and Louise — had Thelma been a troubled, formerly incarcerated Civil War re-enactor and Louise an impulsive, very pregnant teen with a motor mouth and a penchant for dramatics — the main characters in Lola Bessis and Ruben Amar’s Silver Star find themselves on the road while running from the law. But, also like Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon’s iconic duo, they develop a powerful bond in the process.
Billie (Troy Leigh-Anne Johnson) carries a lot of guilt for the mistakes she made that landed her in prison, especially because of the impact they had on her family — including her heroic, Silver Star-awarded father, whose health is now suffering. When she finds out that the family home is on the verge of being lost as the result, she hatches a desperate plan to rob a bank. Armed only with the mid-19th century replica pistol she uses when participating in the re-enactments she loves, she gets in over her head and ends up taking a hostage: brassy, defiant, chain-smoking teen mom-to-be Franny (Grace Van Dien).
Franny, broke and never one to miss an opportunity, is quick to offer Billie a deal: Cut her in on the loot, and she’ll help Billie dodge the cops. The two soon find themselves unexpected (and uneasy) allies, with a shared desire to avoid getting caught but little else in common. Billie can’t stand Franny’s constant chatter, and Franny wants Billie to lighten up. But in the way that road movies tend to do, the story throws various obstacles in their path, and each obstacle helps bring the two women closer together. Both are, above all, tired of fending for themselves, and having someone else to lean on and laugh with — in between eluding the authorities — is a relief.
Johnson and Van Dien both give strong performances, making a story with some familiar elements feel fresh. They’re aided by Bessis and Amar’s script, which does a nice job of developing both main characters. Van Dien’s dialogue, in particular, feels very true to who Franny is, and the scenes in which she pulls her little scams are some of the movie’s best. Her energy and enthusiasm for life are, it turns out, exactly what Billie needs, while Franny benefits from Billie’s focus. And, happily, their story doesn’t involve driving over a cliff. — Betsy Bozdech
Team #MOTW’s comments:
Nell Minow: We love stories about lost souls finding each other, especially if they seem to be opposites and begin as antagonists. That classic theme is handled with wit, confidence, and sympathy in Silver Star, the story of two young women, a quiet, drably dressed Civil War re-enactor and a glitzed-up chatterbox who is seven months pregnant, both without friends, family, or jobs. Their meet-cute is when the first one robs a bank and takes the second one hostage, but they quickly form a partnership over the money and then begin to develop genuine friendship, and we cannot help but root for them.
Leslie Combemale It’s the duo of Troy Leigh-Anne Johnson and Grace Van Dien as Billie and Franny that bring the spark and the charm to bittersweet road movie Silver Star. These performers milk the script by co-writers/directors Ruben Amar and Lola Bessis, in which two young women who have made some bad choices find themselves not only cast aside, but resorting to some pretty drastic measures to escape their circumstances. The film is driven by a sort of oil and water/mix of clashing personalities represented by BIlie and Franny, who are onscreen nearly every moment, and this mix somehow equally threatens to destroy them or heal them from their trauma. It’s a bit like a car wreck in slow motion. Will the drivers right themselves, or will they collide? Their story is compelling exactly because that is unclear.
Jennifer Merin For some breezy entertainment with alot of heart, cue up Silver Star, a purely fictional gal pal adventure in which two antagonistic young women who are each in heavy duty trouble team up out of necessity and become best friends while trying to escape their challenging circumstances. It’s a fact-free romp with welcome escape value. Filmmaking partners Lola Bessis and Ruben Amar co-wrote, co-directed and co-produced Silver Star. In their second feature film collaboration, they tackle several standard tropes — gal pal, odd couple, road trip, coming of age, crime caper — with enough twists to keep viewers amused and sufficient social relevance to keep them engaged. Stars Grace Van Dien and Troy Leigh-Anne Johnson play the two irreverent gals with heart and finesse that makes you care about what happens to them in a world that has given the little chance for success. The story’s pacing is just right and all the production values of this strictly indie flick are impressive.
Sandie Angulo Chen: Silver Star is part crime dramedy part buddy road trip, wrapped up in a coming-of-age tale about two vulnerable young women – one 18, pregnant, and out of options (Grace Van Dien) and the other 20, out of prison, and on probation (Troy Leigh-Anne Johnson) – on the run from authorities. The two leads make deeply flawed and unlikable characters sympathetic and compelling. Written and directed by filmmakers Ruben Amar and Lola Bessis, the movie manages to be simultaneously humorous, heartwarming, and occasionally devastating.
Loren King It’s far too reductive to call Silver Star a millennial Thelma and Louise but there were many times that I was reminded of that classic and cathartic film. Mostly that’s due to the still unusual centering of two women, blue collar and marginalized, who drive the film’s action and who bond as they flee both the law and their own complicated pasts.
Featuring memorable performances from Troy Leigh-Anne Johnson as taciturn, wounded Billie, fresh from doing time for an altercation with a cop over a traffic stop, and Grace Van Dien as outgoing Franny, very pregnant and struggling to make ends meet. In the first reel, her well meaning but poor judgement gets her fired from her job at a nursing home. She’s broke and her prospects dim. Billie, meanwhile, desperate for money that might repair her fractured relationship with her war hero father who suffered injuries during the confrontation with the cop, botches a bank robbery and takes bystander Franny hostage. The two young women end up on the lam. Motormouth Franny is supposed to be annoying and she is, though in Van Dien’s hands she also strangely endearing. There are moments that strain credulity but the film, written and directed by Ruben Amar and Lola Bessis, manages to keep the characters and the situations fresh and engaging and the visual choices compelling.
Liz Whittemore French filmmaking duo Lola Bessis and Ruben Amar’s road movie Silver Star follows a young woman fresh out of prison and the pregnant hostage she takes from a botched bank robbery. Two outcasts become allies on the road to redemption. Bessis and Amar provide “good trouble” shenanigans from Franny, leveling the playing field in Billie’s journey. This is a story about feeling seen and accepted. Troy Leigh-Anne Johnson rightfully emotes from a deep-seated racial injustice trauma. Between this unlikely duo, Billie is the grounding role. There is no denying that Silver Star‘s uniqueness stems from the tour-de-force performance by Grace Van Dien as the fearless, motormouthed Franny, who delights at every turn. This is a cinematic pairing from the heavens.
Cate Marquis In co-writers/co-directors Ruben Amar’s and Lola Bessis’ fictional Silver Star, two outsider young women go on the run in a criminal gal-pal adventure, that starts with one taking the other hostage during a bank robbery. Billie (Troy Leigh-Anne Johnson) is an ex-con with anger-management issues and a load of guilt for letting down her beloved grandfather, a Silver Star medal winning veteran with a proud family military heritage going back to the Civil War. His granddaughter Billie still participates in the Civil War re-enactments her granddad loved. That grandfather is the link to the other misfit young woman in this tale, Franny (Grace Van Dien) a pregnant instructor for a water aerobics class for seniors, which includes Grandpa. The lively instructor is just out of drug rehab, also sort of on probation herself, because her rebellious nature puts her job at risk. These two meet by chance at the bank, and find themselves on the run together, with little left to lose and with a horse trailer in tow. Yes, comedy, silliness, surprises, and adventure are on the menu in this oddball film about oddballs who find unexpected friendship along the way.
FILM DETAILS:
Title: Silver Star
Directors: Lola Bessis and Ruben Amar
Release Date: March 6, 2026
Running Time: 102 minutes
Language: English
Screenwriters: Lola Bessis and Ruben Amar
Lead Performers:
Distribution Company:
AWFJ Movie of the Week Panel Members: Sandie Angulo Chen, Betsy Bozdech, Leslie Combemale, Loren King, Cate Marquis, Jennifer Merin, Nell Minow, Sherin Nicole, Liz Whittemore
Other Movies Opening This Week
Edited by Jennifer Merin
