Review: Like a teenage spin on Todd Haynes, ‘To the Stars’ delivers bittersweet take on the past

A deliberately paced melodrama set in 1960s Oklahoma, “To the Stars� follows the friendship of two girls headed in opposite directions on the two-lane highway of life. Directed by Martha Stephens from a script by Shannon Bradley-Colleary, it’s a bittersweet story of small-mindedness and self-discovery in a time that may not be all that removed from our own.

Kara Hayward plays Iris Deerborne, an awkward, near-sighted teen beset by a weak bladder, an alcoholic mother, a taciturn farmer father, and a high school ruled by a mean girl and her adoring sycophants. Lonely to the extreme, Iris finds her only escape in a tragically haunted swimming hole where she ponders the night sky.

Into this setting plunges Maggie (Liana Liberato), a seemingly glamorous new girl from the big city — Kansas City, that is. Full of swagger and braggadocio (and a big secret), she cows both the mean girls and the football players, befriends Iris, and gradually tugs on the town’s loose threads until a few come undone.

The characters are mostly standard issue, small-town types inhabited by a good supporting cast that includes Jordana Spiro, Shea Whigham, Malin Akerman and Tony Hale. Adelaide Clemens is especially good in an understated role as a beautician quietly looking for a fresh start.

Though “To the Stars� shares some period sheen and thematic interests with Todd Haynes’ “Far From Heaven� and “Carol,� it lacks those films’ crisp execution and bite. But as it floats by on period music supervised by Tiffany Anders and a gentle score from Heather McIntosh, it is a movie that will reward your patience.