Stormy
Stormy
While Doug Liman’s retaking of “Road House” may have been the favor and hype of the night at the 2024 South by Southwest Film Festival, about the same time, another equally massive event was playing out just nearby, a very crucial leg of the career journey of one of the last decade’s most unexpected public figures. “Stormy” deciphers the final years of Stormy Daniels, a person whose name will effortlessly solicit strong opinions from anyone across the globe. For those who exonerate the former President Donald Trump from any legal or moral blames, Daniels has been demonized into a villain whose only purpose is to chase the spotlight and money.
However, a growing number of people perceive her as a strong woman who bravely exercised her right not to be called a liar by a global leader. I would like to think that even the most ardent critics and detractors of Stormy will be able to appreciate the movie about her, because at the end of the day, it is a reasonable effort to deconstruct the politics around the figure, and give her the space to be a human being who has primary emotions, deep fears and chest-load of bravery.
Sure, this is pretty naive, however. Each of Trump’s enemies is viewed as an enemy by people on the opposite ends of the political spectrum. It’s not that they think Trump and Michael Cohen didn’t use campaign funds as hush money over an affair with Stormy Daniels, but rather that they accept, without question, that this is the case. A few of these facts have been wait for him and his henchmen to say openly for several years.
Daniels herself is quite forthcoming when recounting Trump’s early attempts to woo her into participating in the show, ‘Celebrity Apprentice’, explaining their single night together, which she carefully claims to have never wanted, and of course did not resist. Among others, she has a good reason to be calm about Trump’s behavior, saying that it was more about her mind than her body, despite the fact that Daniels is quite an actress and managed to become a successful pornographic film director and entrepreneur.
The issues did not really begin until the affair turned into a public affair, and then Trump came out with phrases such as ‘What will most people simply understand?’ turning Daniels into a liar. However, Daniels fought back like so many people that Trump has made it to his target. Cohen at last confessed that he had given 50,000 dollars to Daniels in silence, and Trump had been confused about the total amount of his awareness concerning the matter while Giuliani said that Trump returned money to Cohen. Campaign finance violations were charged against Cohen, and he was sentenced three years imprisonment and was barred from the legal profession. But as in most of the cases, Trump spun out of another disaster, leaving Daniels to confront nonstop abuse and even threats on her life.
Stormy’ draws on much of the footage shot for the documentary that Daniels began working on in 2018 and offers remarkable insight into a national controversy in a manner that humanizes the figure at its center. Whatever people’s views on Daniels, one may hope, is that she does not have to worry for her or her child’s safety. The level of violent threats escalated to such an extreme that there is an emotionally distressing moment where she essentially states that the film makers should use the tapes as evidence of what has been happening in case she is killed. Ironically ‘Stormy’ is a story about a woman who has had to live in fear, has seen her relationships fade, and has suffered harassment for no good reason – except for the fact that she indeed had the courage to talk about a check that was paid to her. It’s baffling.
Produced by Judd Apatow, smiles across the room are numerous as “Stormy” features humorists Seth Rogen and Jimmy Kimmel among Stormy’s numerous famous friends, but her story is the one that focuses the camera. She is a complicated mix of weak and strong, a woman who has endured a life filled with threats but does not let them control her. Yes, she’s cashed in on a few book deals here and there—an argument of her critics who would say that she is only out for the money, as if Trump has never used his office as a business opportunity—which is true, but she has also paid a huge price for it.
People probably have already judged Stormy Daniels about 2 years ago, but I am still ingnominy enough to think that perhaps someone may watch this engaging documentary and look for a story of inspiration, and courage enough to act against the bully among others who calls one a liar. Whatever Stormy Daniels may be in public or perceptions of her, “Stormy” is a great illustration of the lengths to which some women have to go in order to be heard. And why it is essential for us to have more such women.
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- Genre: Documentary
- Country: United States
- Director: Sarah Gibson
- Cast: Stormy Daniels, Travis Partin, Joy King
