The Starling Girl 2023

In the heart of rural Kentucky, 17-year-old Jemima “Jem” Starling resides within a tight-knit fundamentalist Christian community. As the eldest of five siblings, Jem is expected by her parents, Paul and Heidi, to embody the epitome of piety and be a shining role model for her younger brothers and sisters. With courting on the horizon, Jem’s mother encourages her to get acquainted with Ben Taylor, the charming son of their esteemed pastor, who has already expressed admiration for Jem. However, Jem finds Ben’s immaturity and lack of intellectual curiosity underwhelming, and her true passion lies in dance, which she pursues as a member of her church’s vibrant dance troupe.

Following a rousing performance at a Sunday service, Jem is mortified when the pastor’s wife calls attention to her visible bra strap. Seeking solace, she steps outside the church to indulge in private tears, where she is unwittingly spotted by Owen Taylor, the 28-year-old son of their pastor and brother of Ben. Fresh from his missionary work in Puerto Rico with his wife, Owen has returned to Kentucky with a newfound flexibility in his interpretation of church doctrine. Before Jem departs, he implores her to keep his smoking habit a secret.

As Jem faces the possibility that her beloved dance troupe might disband due to the lack of leadership, she asks Owen, who oversees church programs, if she can assume the role of leader. After some deliberation, Owen agrees, and Jem finds herself drawn to the charismatic older man’s laid-back demeanor and encouragement of her artistic pursuits. Unlike others who view her passion for dance as a vain endeavor rather than an act of devotion, Owen sees it as a legitimate means of praising God. As Jem navigates her newfound role and deepening crush on Owen, she begins to challenge the rigid norms of her fundamentalist upbringing, setting herself on a path that will lead to profound self-discovery and growth.

As Jem’s spirits sink after a disappointing troupe gathering, she retreats to the church, her solitary prayers echoing through the empty halls. It is here that Owen happens upon her, his unexpected arrival breaking the silence as he invites her to join him in the kitchen for a late-night snack. The chance encounter yields a surprising gift: a pair of unclaimed seashell earrings, which Jem initially hesitates to accept due to her strict rules against adornment. However, with Owen’s encouragement, she takes matters into her own hands and pierces her ear, marking the beginning of a romantic connection that would blossom in secret.

As their illicit affair unfolds, Jem and Owen find solace in each other’s company, sharing stolen moments and exchanging whispers on a burner phone. It is during one such clandestine meeting that Jem confides in Owen about her growing unease, asking if she is indeed wicked for pursuing this forbidden love. Owen’s reassuring words – “I don’t think you’re wicked, Jem. I feel alive with you” – offer a fleeting sense of justification, as he reveals the unhappy reality of his own marriage to Misty, a union born from youthful impulsiveness and a failure to read the signs.

Meanwhile, Jem’s family life becomes increasingly strained as her father, Paul, succumbs to the temptation of old habits, relapsing into alcoholism and losing his job. As Jem spends more time alone with him, she uncovers a hidden passion – her father’s former life as a musician, before he traded in his guitar for a Bible. The revelation is met with a mix of shock and curiosity as Paul confides in Jem about the tragic loss of a former bandmate, using drink to cope with the grief. When asked if he misses his musical past, Paul insists that it was all part of God’s plan, a sacrifice he believes was necessary for his current path.

As tensions build within the troupe, Misty’s disapproving eye falls upon Jem’s performance, prompting a harsh critique and a subsequent overhaul to better suit her tastes. Faced with frustration and humiliation, Jem lashes out in anger, keying Misty’s car as a symbol of defiance. The act serves as a harbinger of the turmoil that will soon engulf Jem’s life, as she grapples with the consequences of her choices and the fragile balance between her secret romance and the expectations of those around her.

As the days unfold, Owen summons Jem to his home, where they engage in a candid confrontation about the recent vandalism. Jem apologizes profusely, and the two eventually make amends. However, their peace is short-lived, as Misty’s unexpected arrival forces Owen to hastily conceal Jem in the bathroom. As Jem waits patiently for Owen’s signal, hours tick by, leaving her feeling trapped and anxious. Eventually, she decides to take matters into her own hands, narrowly avoiding detection by Misty before escaping through a window. Her clandestine departure is witnessed by Rebecca, Jem’s younger sister, who looks on with concern.

Following this incident, Jem confides in her siblings that she believes it’s time for her and Owen to publicly acknowledge their relationship. However, Owen remains resolute in his decision to maintain the secrecy of their affair, prompting a heated argument between the two. Paul, sensing the tension, discovers Jem’s deception about her whereabouts and exacts punishment by forcing her to leave the dance troupe. The ensuing verbal sparring match culminates with Jem accusing Paul of dishonesty, leading him to lash out in anger.

In a desperate attempt to make amends, Paul takes an overdose of Heidi’s medication and falls into a coma. As Heidi rushes to be by his side at the hospital, Jem is left to care for her siblings. The church cookout provides a tense backdrop for Jem’s repeated pleas to Owen to communicate with her, but he remains evasive. The dance troupe’s performance without Jem only exacerbates her frustration, leading her to storm off into the woods in a state of distress.

Ben, sensing Jem’s turmoil, chases after her, despite her insistence that she wants to be left alone. As Jem becomes increasingly unhinged, she plunges herself into a pond, prompting Ben to intervene and risk being pulled under by Jem’s desperate flailing. The two teens engage in a struggle, with Jem nearly drowning Ben before he manages to break free. As they part ways, Ben’s words of condemnation hang in the air: “You’re a psycho.”

As Jem returns home that fateful evening, she’s met with the fiery wrath of her mother, Heidi, who’s incensed by her daughter’s reckless behavior towards Ben. The simmering tension boils over as Heidi reveals her discovery of Owen’s burner phone, prompting Jem to confess to a deeper connection between herself and the troubled young man. However, Heidi’s horror is palpable as she laments that Satan has taken hold of her once-innocent child. Despite Jem’s tearful apologies, Heidi’s fury remains unrelenting, leaving her daughter to sleep rough in the garage.

The next morning, Pastor Taylor appears, his eyes now open to the truth. He sits down with Heidi and Jem, his tone heavy with disapproval as he begins to interrogate Jem about the onset of her relationship with Owen. The pastor’s words are laced with a subtle blame-shifting, implying that Jem’s youthful naivety was the catalyst for Owen’s downfall. When Jem asks what Owen has to say in defense of himself, the pastor dismisses concerns, claiming that Owen is no longer interested and that his life is already in shambles due to losing his job and his wife’s desire to leave him.

Heidi and the pastor concur that Jem must face punishment at King’s Valley, a disciplinary camp. At church, Jem is called upon to publicly recant her sins before the congregation. As she prepares to depart, Owen approaches her, declaring his newfound independence from Misty and his desire to be with Jem. He reveals that his father had been influencing him but that he’s now made up his mind and wants to leave Puerto Rico behind, choosing instead to start anew with Jem.

However, Heidi is not having it, and with a sudden flash of anger, she delivers a brutal punch to Owen’s face. Defying her mother’s wrath, Jem refuses to back down and instead leaves with Owen in his car. The two find temporary refuge at a motel, where Jem becomes lost in the memories of her father’s music. The next morning, she slips away from Owen without a word and commandeers his car.

As she drives to a Memphis bar her father used to perform at with his band, the nostalgia washes over her like a warm breeze on a summer day. The familiar sounds transport her back to happier times, and as she loses herself in the music, the weight of her situation momentarily lifts, replaced by the carefree joy of remembering her father’s joyful performances.