“I am 18 and entirely unremarkable,” Jenna Ortega says at the beginning of Miller’s Girl, the feature debut of writer-director Jade Halley Bartlett. But not for long. In the psychological thriller co-starring Martin Freeman, a student-teacher relationship turns into a dangerous liaison when a lonely teen’s writing assignment sparks intimacy with a much older man.
“No one is a perfect villain or a perfect victim. They don’t exist,” Bartlett told Forbes about the film’s controversial subject matter. “These characters are quite nebulous and gray, which I think is closer to real-life people.”
Martin Freeman in Miller’s Girl
Cairo (Ortega), a high school student, lives alone in a big old house called Lovell Hill. Her lawyer parents are, as she says, “permanently abroad.” Cairo feels completely unexceptional, having not made a mark on the world. To cure her feelings of isolation, she writes. It helps her get through the endless days in her small Tennessee town, one she’s never left. But the writing only helps so much, and the college hopeful has zero achievements she thinks are worthy enough for her Yale admission essay.
But then Cairo starts taking an English literature class taught by Mr. Miller (Freeman), a frustrated writer who instantly takes a liking to her: She’s already read every book on the syllabus and she’s even read his book — which is an ego boost for Miller, who hasn’t written in ages. Plus, Cairo seems intrigued by him, too.
So Cairo’s friend Winnie (Adlon) pitches her an idea: Write an essay about the dynamics of age and sex in teacher-student affairs. Despite the massive red flags from every angle, Cairo and Mr. Miller start spending time together outside of class. And soon, Cairo’s ill-advised writing exercise becomes all too real.
No, it’s not based on a book.
Martin Freeman and Jenna Ortega in Miller’s Girl
No. The film is fictional.
Miller’s Girl takes place in “the wilds of nowhere, Tennessee,” according to its main character, Cairo.
