DVD Release Date:  July 17, 2007
Theatrical Release Date:  December 29, 2006 (limited)
Rating:  Unrated (original film was R for pervasive drug use, strong sexual content, nudity and language)
Genre:  Biopic/Drama
Run Time: 1 hr. 39 min.
Director:  George Hickenlooper
Actors: Sienna Miller, Guy Pearce, Jimmy Fallon, Mena Suvari, Shawn Hatosy and Hayden Christensen

Long before Paris Hilton hit the scene, with her “famous for being famous” status, there was heiress Edie Sedgwick (Sienna Miller).  Born in Santa Barbara, California, in 1943, Sedgwick descended from a family line that included the first major general of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, a signatory of the Declaration of Independence (William Ellery) and a great-great grandfather who reportedly created and promoted New York’s Central Park.  Before Edie’s birth, the Sedgwicks moved West, where Edie’s father (whom they all called “Furry”) oversaw a large ranch in Southern California’s wine country.

In the ’60s, Edie briefly attended Cambridge Art School.  She also dabbled in modeling, appearing in LIFE magazine in 1965 and VOGUE in 1966.  During that time, Edie’s friend George Wein (Jimmy Fallon) introduced her to Andy Warhol (Guy Pearce), the pop culture icon.  Warhol pulled Edie into his fold.  In the ’70s, the hip place to hang would be Studio 54.  But in the ’60s, it was Warhol’s “Factory,” where an eclectic group would party, use drugs and produce offbeat silkscreens and lithographs.  Factory regulars included rockers like Lou Reed, drag queens and transsexuals.

After meeting Edie, Warhol started casting her in his independent films, which were a rambling mishmash of depraved sex acts, drug use and reality-style interviews that typically screened at gay venues.  For a time, she was Warhol’s “It Girl,” and he brought her to parties and openings all over the city, bragging that Edie was his “superstar.”  She became the toast of bohemian New York for a time, with young girls imitating her signature blond haircut and kohl-rimmed eyes. 

Fame was not enough to battle the demons of Edie’s childhood, however, which was full of abuse and neglect.  It was also not enough to sustain the young woman financially—especially in the face of Warhol’s blatant manipulations.  As Edie’s drug use began to spiral out of control and her father stopped financing Warhol’s lifestyle via his daughter, Edie suddenly became less fascinating to the artist.  Jealous after an aborted dalliance with a folk rocker (based on Bob Dylan and portrayed by Hayden Christensen), Warhol dumped the young woman like an empty paint can.  She overdosed in 1971, after a stint in a Santa Barbara hospital.