The jt leroy story does a remarkable job of casting a sympathetic lens towards the work of albert and leroy as the fruits of an unrivaled literary masterpiece. Diane kruger joins cast of jt leroy movie cannes deadline. None, that is, beyond leroys adopted family of local couple laura albert and musician geoffrey knoop, who happily exploited the fame wave. Albert published three books of fiction under the jt leroy pseudonym sarah. Leroy was presented as the author of three books of fiction, which were purportedly semiautobiographical accounts by a teenage boy of his experiences of. Fabrication of identity is one of our cultures favourite pastimes, fueled by the cult of celebrity and, in. Leroy is a tougher, better movie than author and generally comes off as more honest. Identifying himself as genderfluid, jt had earlier reached out to his favourite writers via fax. If you know the truth about jt leroy who came out of nowhere in 1999 with the gritty, apparently confessional novels sarah and the heart is deceitful above all things then youll be a few. It will be great to see what sturm has to offer on a higher budget, she has clearly demonstrated a strong aptitude to weave fascinating narratives. In 2005, new york magazine charged that jt leroy was not a real person but the creation of laura albert, a new yorkborn writer in her 40s.
Mar 07, 2015 the cult of jt leroy is astutely framed as a stillevolving mystery, with sturm letting its participants the most notable nonparticipants being albert and savannah knoop, as well as. Leroy burst onto the literary scene in the early 2000s with sarah and the heart is deceitful above all things. According to this account, which was backed up by further reporting in the new york times, albert was the real speedy, with a fake brit accent. Sep 24, 20 the cult of jt leroy also made the best of 2014 list at film international and the best of 2015 at keyframe. The cult of jt leroy directed by marjorie sturm pierces the heart of this both figurative and literal cause celebre. With asia argento, beth bachtold, stephen beachy, bruce benderson. Jt leroy was a teenage prostitute, heroin addict and hivpositive when a therapist encouraged him to write down the story of his life. The cult of jt leroy starts out by following a young homeless kid who had suffered a tremendous amount of abuse, and ends up addicted to heroin while prostituting on the streets of san francisco.
Laura victoria albert born november 2, 1965 is an american author of writings that include works credited to the literary persona jt leroy, whom albert described as an avatar, saying she was able to write things as leroy that she could not have said as laura albert. Jt leroy was a teen prostitute, addicted to heroin and infected with hiv, when a. Sure, few attempt to separate themselves from reality, but ultimately, only some succeed in the pursuit thereof. Aug 10, 2015 the cult of jt leroy is a doc thats gained momentum playing the likes of doc nyc, hot docs, outfest, qdoc and won the jury prize for best documentary at the sf indie fest is an. In fictional storytelling, truth is something to strive for. While it was never personal for me, it was for others, and their cumulative hurt is exactingly documented in cult. A bizarre tale of a literary celebrity the cult of jt leroy, which follows a mysterious literary figure who captured the imagination of many a celebrity, is a. The jt leroy story takes us down the infinitely fascinating. Mar 06, 2015 filmmaker marjorie sturm, director of the cult of jt leroy stands next to the tenderloin office she worked as a social worker in san francisco, calif. Even if you wanted to write a cautionary tale about the present ages toxic sanctification of victimhood and celebrity, the rise and fall of jt leroy would seem too outlandish and audacious to be true.
The official facebook site to learn about the documentary the cult of jt leroy along with ideas tangential to the topic. Watching the cult of jt leroy made me much less forgiving. Buoyed by a cadre of celebrities, he published three critically. Were sorry but jwapp doesnt work properly without javascript enabled. The jt leroy story, a documentary, offers a complex and deeply fascinating account of a decidedly unusual chapter in recent american cultural history. Having begun filming the subject in 2002, and with a background in social work. The cult of jt leroy is astutely framed as a stillevolving mystery, with sturm letting its participants the most notable nonparticipants being albert and savannah knoop, as well as. For that, youve got to watch the cult of jt leroy, the much quieter jt documentary without backing from bigwigs like authors magnolia films and vice from two years earlier that, according to its director marjorie sturm, albert tried to prevent the release of with imminent legal threat. A feature documentary about the writer jt leroy ethically charged, controversial, and confusing, jts life and death sprang open a pandoras box of powerful questions about literature and culture, identity and celebrity, and the reality of the society we live in.
Each of the novels deals with darker themes like abuse, abandonment, and addiction. The affair has already been tackled dispassionately in the cult of jt leroy, and will likely become a docudrama movie, probably made by james franco. The jt leroy story will hit theaters on september 9. Release dates 6 also known as aka 2 release dates usa 14 november 2014 doc nyc usa march 2015 san francisco, california usa april 2015 florida film festival canada 25 april 2015. Authorized and unauthorized, the cult of jt leroy won two jury awards, and was nominated four other times, for best feature documentary in 2015. Leroy might not be a real person, but alberts ability to conjure his voice and lifes story onto the page is a feat of extraordinary brilliance, destined to be admired. Directed by justin kelly, who wrote the script with knoop, it focuses on savannahs role in. Jeremiah terminator leroy, or simply jt leroy is a literary persona created in the 1990s by american writer laura albert. Dozens of books and documentaries on the subject have been created over the years most notably the cult of jt leroy and the more wellknown author. His debut, sarah, became a critically acclaimed success, also thanks to help from a lot of celebrities. See the full list of the cult of jt leroy cast and crew including actors, directors, producers and more. The story of jt leroy, so, naturally, jeremiah terminator leroy, hollywoods version of the story with brandname actors in tow, is finally here. In 2002, marjorie sturm began work on a film documenting the life of praised alternative author jt leroy.
Cult following unmasked in jt leroy documentary the daily. Jt leroy was a teen prostitute, addicted to heroin and infected with hiv, when a therapist encouraged him to write his life story. The cult of jt leroy 2014 directed by marjorie sturm. Sarah, the heart is deceitful above all things, and harolds end. She has also used the names emily frasier and speedie, and published other works as. His psychologist, who he called into regularly, encouraged him to start writing his stories down, and soon, the world took notice. Diane kruger has joined the cast of justin kellys jt leroy, the feature film based on the true story of a pair of woman who created the persona of a boywonder author, fooling the. This is a feature documentary about the writer jt leroyethically charged, controversial, and confusing, jts life and death sprang open a pandoras box of.
It stars kristen stewart, laura dern, kelvin harrison jr. An earlier version of this article misidentified savannah knoop as laura alberts niece. The novels charged tales of vicious child abuse inflicted on young queer kids earned the mysterious author comparisons to william. Jt leroy was a teen prostitute, addicted to heroin and infected with hiv, when a therapist encouraged him to write his life stories. The elaborate hoax of writer jt leroy, a fictional identity that both captured attention and perplexed global media, is examined in this documentary.
The film returns for a regular run at the roxie march 18. The cult of jt leroy not rated 1h 32min documentary, biography, crime 14 november 2014 usa jt leroy was a teen prostitute, addicted to heroin and infected with hiv, when a therapist encouraged him to write his life stories. Leroy struck up a close friendship with novelist dennis cooper and by the age of 16 he had poems and short stories published in nerve, new york press and others. The cult of jt leroy, directed by marjorie sturm, examines what ends up being a incredible literary hoax in an eyeopening documentary that exposes much more than the title characters.
Filmmaker marjorie sturm, director of the cult of jt leroy stands next to the tenderloin office she worked as a social worker in san francisco, calif. Buoyed by a cadre of celebrities, he published three critically acclaimed books. The cult of jt leroy is a testament to this bizarre and elaborate story that has captured the attention and fascination of the worlds media, and perplexes to this day. Laura dern in talks to join justin kellys biopic jt leroy. Leroy whose first novel generated a cult following last year and whose second book comes out this weekis the perfect. The jt leroy story, a documentary from jeff feuerzeig, is as truthful as it gets. Mar 07, 2015 a literary hoax that picked up extraordinary steam before imploding is charted in the cult of jt leroy. Sf indiefest presents the bay area debut of the cult of jt leroy at the roxie theater, screening from feb. Dennis cooper, george miles, and jt leroy outtake from the cult of jt.
Courtney love, who once mixed in jt leroy s circle, appears briefly in an inconsequential role, but theres nothing in any way incisive here about the cult of celebrity. San francisco filmmaker marjorie sturm started filming leroy in 2002, when he was the darling of the bay area literary scene. Marjorie sturm talks the cult of jt leroy indiewire. Its subject was purportedly an hivpositive teenage male prostitute in san francisco who became a minor literary celebrity about 15 years ago. Laura victoria albert born november 2, 1965 is an american author of writings that include. Cult following unmasked in jt leroy documentary the. Sep 08, 2016 author is not the first film to take on this strange story. Jt leroy is a writer from the late90searly2000s who published a few novels. Aug 01, 2016 the cult of jt leroy holds up a cracked mirror, probing into the complex cultural, psychological, and sociallyreinforced motivations for pulling off, and buying into, such a scam. Jt leroy was a supposed homeless queer youth who rose to notoriety after the publication of her autobiographical works sarah and the heart. Leroy was presented as the author of three books of fiction, which were purportedly semiautobiographical accounts by a teenage boy of his experiences of poverty, drug use, and emotional and sexual abuse in his childhood and adolescence from rural west virginia to california.
Sturms the cult of jt leroy offers a sober yet somewhat punchdrunk reminder of what it felt like when the local literary wunderkind with a disturbingly tragic past was shown to possess an even. The extraordinary stories that brought the author a cult following at the age of. Release dates 6 also known as aka 2 release dates usa 14 november 2014 doc nyc usa. January 10, 2016 alabama premiere in birmingham at the sidewalk series. Watch the cult of jt leroy now on your favorite device. Watch the cult of jt leroy 2014 full movie free online. From the director of the devil and daniel johnston, author. A book deal was in place a year later and in 2000 the novel sarah was published. He wrote three books, and the heart is deceitful above all things was adapted to the screen by asia. Eclectic outtakes from the cult of jt leroy youtube. A literary hoax that picked up extraordinary steam before imploding is charted in the cult of jt leroy.
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