America’s Independent Truckers’ Association estimates there are nearly 5,000 truck stops across the country, and although many offer nondescript places to sleep, eat, or shower, many others host a bustling shadow economy of sex and drugs.
The film’s three protagonists-Betty, Monica, and Jennifer-work on the fringes of the trucking industry. Indeed, what Perlman captures in Lot Lizard is visceral and harrowing. While his claim might sound hyperbolic-or like a canny bit of marketing-it rings true: He logged thousands of miles and hundreds of hours to make the film, braving roach motels, crack highs, and homicidal pimps. I suspect I may have developed some mild PTSD.” This is how filmmaker Alexander Perlman describes shooting Lot Lizard, his hypnotic new documentary about truck stop prostitution. “The truth is, making the movie was a really traumatic experience.
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