Beyond the Lights

A rising young pop star (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), stressed out by the pressure from her driven mother (Minnie Driver), flirts with jumping from her hotel balcony and is coaxed back from the edge by a cop on security duty (Nate Parker). The incident is passed off as an accident and the cop wins his 15 minutes of fame—plus the heart of the grateful star. Writer-director Gina Prince-Bythewood stretches her tissue-thin story to the very limits of its appealing young stars and the acting prowess of Minnie Driver and Danny Glover (as Parker's solemn, dignified father). Is this a satire on the shallow glitz of showbiz, or are we supposed to believe that this moderately talented singer really is superstar material? It's hard to tell in this glossy, flashy movie about the gloss and flash of the pop-music world.