The 10 Commandments of Chloe
Based on the two films of his that I’ve seen, writer-director Princeton Holt has something to say. Of course, a lot of filmmakers have something to say, but I’d be willing to bet that Holt is smarter, more focused than most. With his 2009 film, “Cookies & Cream,” and now, “The 10 Commandments of Chloe,” he has almost completely devoted himself to showing us stories of women along the edges of the entertainment industry, trying to navigate it as best they can.
In “Cookies & Cream,” his main character, a single mother working in adult entertainment, was already a part of the industry, and trying to find a way to have a satisfying personal life in spite of it. In “Chloe,” the title character (played by co-writer Naama Kates) is on the outside looking in. She’s a singer-songwriter who’s come to Nashville to get her foot in the door, but as with all people looking to find success in music, it’s about finding our way in, and accepting that it might take some time. Chloe meets similar people, artists on the fringes, just trying to survive, and also meets a person (Brandon, played by Jason Burkey) she finds herself drawn to.
Holt structures the film by letting us in on the titular “10 Commandments of Chloe,” giving us our most clear picture of Chloe as an individual. They include ideas such as, “Focus,” “Persist,” although these are only things the audience sees. She doesn’t let in those around her, such as Brandon, who want to care about her, but don’t get their affection reciprocated through communication. She’s one of those people who feel like they can only express themselves through their art, and others need to be able to accept that. Of course, life is not meant to be lived like that: we need to grown beyond our own world view; we need to share ourselves with others; we need to take risks. In the end, Chloe seems to understand this, although we’re not sure if she understands the overall cost by giving herself over completely to what she thinks she wants.
The film Holt and Kates, who gives a terrific lead performance, have made is rooted as much in intellect as it is in emotion. The structure, the “commandments,” give us much to think about, while the struggles we see Chloe experience ground the film emotionally, and carry us the entire way though the film’s 72 minutes. The result is a movie that, while I didn’t like it quite as much as I did “Cookies & Cream,” nonetheless speaks to me in a way few filmmakers have been able to do, and makes me hope that in the future, Holt’s films will find the broad audience they deserve.
