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Directed by: Gary Winick Starring: Jennifer Garner In 1987, Jenna Rink makes a wish on her 13th birthday: to be 30 years old and successful, leaving her difficult teenage years - and her unpopularity - far behind. When her wish comes true, Jenna discovers that she has achieved all of her dreams; she is sexy, wealthy and powerful. She hasn't exactly been an angel, however. Jenna has stepped on anyone and everyone to make her way to the top and will soon discover that her life at 30 is nothing to be proud of. I have to admit, I went into this movie expecting to completely hate it. Despite the movie's shortcomings, I was pleasantly suprised. Make no mistake about it, this is predictable fluff. It takes more than one page from the Tom Hanks classic Big, as well as countless other "teenager in adult body" movies. What's satisfying about 13 Going on 30 is Jennifer Garner's charisma and appeal; she carries nearly every scene and singlehandedly creates a satisfying, likeable movie. She shines in a suprisingly emotional scene in which she returns to her childhood home to see her parents. Supporting cast is bland and unimpressive, but it was nice to see Andy Serkis (Lord of the Rings' Gollum) in a small role as Jenna's overstressed boss. This movie does only what it set out to do - make you smile, hum along to a few pop songs from the 80s, and make your date squeeze your hand a little bit tighter. Tune out the formulaic plot and you will find yourself enjoying a good date movie. RATING: 4 PROS: Good date movie, some nostalgic scenes, Jennifer Garner CONS: Tired cliches, predictable plot ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Syrinxx fucked around with this message at 16:03 on May 4, 2004 |
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May 4, 2004 15:58
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| # ? Apr 26, 2024 05:24 |
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Its a good date movie. It is esentially just a remake of Big with some different themes about childhood wishes. Its true, it makes you smile but other than that is is fairly unremarkable. 3.5/5
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May 4, 2004 16:06
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I too saw it on a date. Predictable at many points. Not incredibly original. But Garner was cute and did a good acting job. I agree that she did surprisingly well in the more emotional scenes. I also thought the actors playing "Matty" did well. The young actor created a very convincing unconfident young boy - a role many people can familiarize with. As an adult, the actor created a man who had moved on with his life, but the insecurities still lingered in the background. The character was not a gross exaggeration, but portrayed the familiar socially-outcast unpopular guy in a very real light. Overall, the actors and writers managed to take a very formulaic and unoriginal idea and shape it into a surprisingly fun movie with rather poignant serious moments. 3.5/5 - Even if you don't like fluffy movies like myself, it's enjoyable.
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May 15, 2004 20:50
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The 13-year-old scenes really suck; you can pretty much feel the screenwriter going down the checklist of what he has to set up for the scenes in the future. But overall, it's a nice little movie. I generally liked the romantic scenes, Mark Ruffalo's an interesting person to watch, but the whole plot with Jenna saving the magazine (that is only a spoiler if you have never seen a movie before in your life) was mostly boring and saccharine, although her competitor's redesign idea for a "hardcore fashion" theme is hilarious. Overall, above average as far as romantic comedies go. 3.5
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May 16, 2004 01:08
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Aside from Jennier Garner, who's so goddamn adorable here that I feel the urge to reassemble a truck engine to reassure myself of my manliness, this movie is pretty dull and predictable. They pick the easiest targets from the 80s, the men are either scum or saccharine (or gay), the ending is retarded, and it has about five or six thousand examples of characters being poignant and poetic about following your dreams and poo poo. Nice effort, but it's still contrived crap. Two.
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Sep 29, 2004 03:05
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| # ? Apr 26, 2024 05:24 |
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I loved this movie! At the beginning of her becoming "30" I thought it was going to be absolute crap, but the ending was incredibly sweet and I was pleasantly surprised. 4.
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Sep 30, 2004 03:29
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