Ashlee Simpson, playing a young would-be actress named Clea, explains why her hunky friend hasn’t hit it big. “Luke has integrity. He wants to make it, but on his own terms.” Yes, this lecture on artistic integrity comes straight from the former 7th Heaven star who botched a lip-synched SNL performance and dyed her blonde locks black in order to rawk out. Oh, sweet irony.
Undiscovered follows young star-crossed lovers seeking fame and fortune in Los Angeles, and it’s all shot with the slick, hip, overcast feel of a mopey urban rock video or an episode of Angel.
Luke Falcon (Steven Strait), a character with the worst rock ’n’ roll name ever, falls for model Brier (Pell James) after a chance meeting on New York’s subway. They’re serendipitously reunited after both move to Los Angeles seeking success — he as a musician and she as an actress. Brier resists Luke’s advances, claiming she doesn’t want to get mixed up with a rock star, but maybe it’s really because of his overly-moussed-to-be-grungy mop. Luke, Eddie Vedder called from 1992 and he wants his hair back.
Simpson’s Clea is the matchmaker in the story, pushing Luke and Brier back together. Her fans (all three of them) will be pleased that she performs several songs alongside Strait, who in real life is in a band called Tribe — which hopefully isn’t nearly as drippy and emo as the crap that Luke Falcon churns out. Like its music, Undiscovered has about as much emotional depth and romantic sensibility as an episode of a Simpson sister MTV reality show.
Clare Pfeiffer Ramsey writes about film for Metro Times. E-mail letters@metrotimes.com.
