Rating: 
Summary: Mandy Moore great again
Review: It is hard to classify this movie, it was not very funny and the drama was light. This is leaves the description of quirky. Bought this DVD as the only way to see Mandy Moore's performance (movie never released to theaters). She was 18 when this was filmed. She shows she can carry herself with more veteran actors, and will be a great star once she is given good material. Like her recent theater release "How to Deal", "All i want" has a poorly thought out slow paced script. This movie shows she has the talent to play mature characters, not just high school kids.
This movie is worth a look, Elijah Wood plays his character (Jones Dillon) with a tongue in cheek seriousness, but is clearly having fun. He has scenes where he appears child like, but this is countered by his skill at purchasing booze with fake id and a line, and his adult interactions with his mother (Elizabeth Perkins). The movie falls flat at the end, it was almost like the director stuck a pin in the overinflated plot which then collapses. High rating is due to Mandy Moore and Elijah Wood's performances. I enjoyed it overall especially as they shot scenes at my school, the University of British Columbia. Rent it, not worth purchasing. Paid about $18, too much as there are no extra features.
Rating:
Summary: All I want?
Review: It's tough being a seventeen-year-old virgin. Especially one with an active imagination, and gallons of hormones. Or at least, it's tough for Jones Dillon, the slightly neurotic teenage hero of "All I Want," a fitful but rather amusing romantic comedy that breaks some rules and sticks religiously to others.
Seventeen-year-old Jones (Elijah Wood) arrives at a university -- unless he enrolls, he can't access the sizable inheritance his grandpa left him. But after being scared off by the roommate from hell, he drops out and heads to a local sublet apartment building. The building comes with some unusual roommates: gay cowboy Brad (Aaron Pearl), sultry aspiring actress Lisa (Mandy Moore), and sullen photographer Jane (Franka Potente).
Settling into his new home, Jones bickers with his estranged mother from Texas, and writes (very imaginative) letters to the mysterious father he never knew. But to deal with the problems of his life, this confused teen will have to face up to the reality around him -- and the women who want him. Especially when he learns that the truth is harsh, and might just break his heart.
Romantic comedies are a dime a dozen, and most of them are forgotten the moment the credits roll. In contrast, "All I Want" (original title: "Try Seventeen") manages to be pretty memorable. Different settings, different characters, and a different kind of lead -- rather than a Holden Caulfield wannabe or a stud, Jones is the kind of likable kid who lives down your street.
The script is somewhat flawed. The ending is pure Hollywood cliche. And it's hard to see why Jones would prefer the alcoholic and abusive Jane over the sweeter if sluttier Lisa. However, relative directing newbie Jeffrey Porter shows plenty of quirks and humor that you won't find in any Julia Roberts comedy -- Jones daydreaming about blasting a car with a bazooka, while blonde bombshells fawn over him, is especially funny.
Elijah Wood gives a wonderfully nuanced, layered performance as Jones, a naive teenager whose life is in a tangle. Wood plays Jones as a sweet, wistful lad with some unusual quirks, but also gets to be rough'n'tough in the delicious "revenge" scene near the end. Mandy Moore shares good chemistry with him, and gives astonishing depth to what could have been a soulless role; her Lisa is flawed, but a pleasant person with regrets and personality. And most memorable is Blondie singer Debbie Harry, as a sexy matron who invades Jones's dreams.
A fun if flawed romantic comedy, "All I Want" features excellent acting from Wood and Moore, and a likably quirky sensibility. Fun and cute, and certainly worth curling up in front of.
Rating: 
Summary: Mandy Moore shines
Review: Mandy Moore is so natural and believable in this ridiculous movie that it almsot justifies the purchase of the DVD. I never even heard of Ms. Moore until about two months ago when I stumbled upon A Walk to Remember. Her heart breaking perfomance in that underrated film sliced my soul. Her next movie, How to Deal, was poor but her performance was rich, natural and charming and the critics started to recognize her talents. Although the movie was ravaged, her performance received enthusiastic praise from most of the reviewers (check out the Rottentomatoes.com.) Now she appears in this direct to cable mess and yet manages to impress with a subtle and convincing portrait of a manipulative, self absorbed young beauty. Hopefully, Hollywood will eventually get around to putting this remarkable young actress in better movies.
Rating: 
Summary: A Good Movie is "All I Want," But This Ain't It
Review: My dog circled the pen area, got ready and plop! A big, steaming pile of stuff called "All I Want" was there on the dirt. I loathe this movie and its fascination with teen independence. Elijah Wood is like twenty-five years old and he's playing a seventeen year old college student. And he has a romance with Mandy Moore who's supposed to be older than him! Wow, unbelievably bad!
Rating:
Summary: Overlooked Talent
Review: Okay, you come to see this movie in the corner at Blockbuster and have a few dollars to spare. Fortunately the money is well spent. Depending on your imagination this movie deals with everything of the the "what if" fantasy. Elijah Wood is quickly forging his career as the happly-go-lucky loner and if you seen any of his work you will know the quality of his acting with the such is quite well. Along with the sky-rocketing movie appeal of Mandy Moore's career you have a decent DVD purchase. To be able to appreciate this movie you have to have an open, adventurous spirit. Movies like this don't change worlds, they just take you to at one point or another the one you wanted.
Mr. Wood is 17 and rich and decides to find his place in the real world instead of putting up with the routine, humble enlightenment of freshman year at college. Of course most of us would love to overlook the reality of financial situations and be bleeding romantics like Mr. Wood's character is, which is why this is a "what if" film. He nests inside a quaint apartment building with absolutely nothing resembling furniture and absolutely everything resembling peculiar neighbors whom don't seem to talk to each other but give the impression of having history together, which of course gives you the feeling Mr. Wood was dropped into a boiling pot. Enter Franka Potente, the serious older woman photographer who seems to have as much inner monologue as Mr. Wood does. And Mandy Moore, the struggling actress who is roughly the same age as Mr. Wood yet more of a mature party-girl.
Unfortunately, there's only two things in this movie that invoke a charming care. One being the semi-witty dialogue Mr. Wood has with his mother throughout (Elizabeth Perkins) which hints at a deeper meaning behind his attitude towards life. The other being the relationship between him and the character played by Mandy Moore. Further diving into that "what if" fantasy of starting out somewhere new without any materials or friends and finding an incredibly attractive person to be lost with. The movie digs deep into this relationship right before it panders off to the "Mrs. Robinson" triumph of Elijah Wood's character finding a deeper solistice with Franka Potente's character. The soundtrack is unbelieveably great, which is sadly going to be overlooked since the movie is of a small caliber. It should of covered more of the struggle between the girls over Elijah Wood's character throughout with a more thorough "break up" between Mandy Moore's character and Elijah's ending with an eventual encounter with his father further developing his stance as a man. This sort of movie exposes the experiences of a loner in a strange, new world, which naturally makes you analyze the movie intently. Given the tone is reaction to action, the characters weren't given enough time to show their emotions. Another 5 million into and extra 45 minutes of plot cleaning and you would have had another fine example of a coming-of-age experience on film. I miss John Hughes.
Rating:
Summary: Very Good Teen Movie
Review: Over all, this is a very cute and entertaining movie. Elijah Wood is a 17 year-old who is out on his own in the world. He leaves college after only one day and gets an apartment where he meets two girls whom hate each other. Elijah is adorable (as usual) and you really feel for his character. Franka Potente is very good as well. While she seems crazy at first, she ends up being a very lovable character. Mandy Moore, on the other hand, was very unconvincing and had very wooden acting. I liked her in "A Walk to Remember" but she was just plain horrible in this. Besides her stinking up the movie, it is very lovable and I reccomend any young adult to see it.
Rating: 
Summary: Definitely Rent Before You Buy
Review: Rent it before you buy it. I wish someone had given me that kind of advice before I took this plunge. What a waste of two hours and twenty dollars. Mandy Moore's adorable. I love her, but although she's shown herself to be a talented actress in the projects that she's done, this performance isn't going to go down in history as one of her best, at least as far as I'm concerned. I actually thought that her part may have been a little too overacted at times. Franke Potente does an adequate job of portraying her character, and I did find it interesting how the conflict between the two girls unfolded. At first, we only know that Jane (Potente) doesn't like Lisa (Moore) for some reason, and then we slowly find out why. Now, the actor who I have my real problem with is Elijah Woods. I don't know how old he is, but despite his age, he hasn't yet been able to lose that childlike, pre-pubescent face of his. Not only could I not, as an earlier reviewer commented, picture him drinking and smoking, but I also had a very hard time picturing him in sexual situations with either of the leading ladies. They possess the image of mature, grown women, and he just doesn't come off as the male equivalent. And the "Mrs. Robinson" sequence with Deborah Harry was ridiculous. I know that the idea was too have a young, naive, inexperienced guy pitted against older, more worldly gals, but I'm sorry. Where this one's concerned, I may have paid for it, but I still haven't bought it.
Rating: 
Summary: simply a nice film
Review: simply a nice film and the sound track was good 2.
Rating:
Summary: Funny, sad, thoughtful, quirky film, great script/acting
Review: This is a marvelous film which I look forward to watching over and over again. The story is an interesting mix of very funny and very serious, sometimes sad, and yet the film doesn't seesaw between these emotions... they are somehow dovetailed... the film feels much like real life. On any given day, humor and sorrow can exist side by side.
The script is amazing. Not one scene is superfluous. The direction is clear, clean, direct, and serves the story well. The acting, by ALL the principals, is splendid. Elijah Wood as Jones Dillon has to carry this film, and he does so with ease and complete believability; Jones has to run to gamut emotionally, and in addition Wood is great at comedy. Elizabeth Perkins as his mother is wonderful, Mandy Moore is appropriately airheaded and full of herself(as the script calls for), Franka Potente is almost scarily complex/dark as Jane, and the other supporting players are perfectly cast. Debbie Harry (of BLONDIE) is fantastic in her short time on the screen. The film is very very funny in places, very sad in others, and thoughtful, always. It is a shame it was not released theatrically, but they probably weren't sure who to market it to. It doesn't fall neatly into any one category. It's too thoughtful for the mass teen audience, and possibly too young in 'feel' for older audiences... but anyone over 30 could have seen this film and related to one or several of the characters... for many of us, simply by looking into our own past. My only complaint was that alcohol is featured quite casually in almost every frame. Not sure what the director was trying to tell us, on that one... possibly that young people like Jones (at 17 and wanting to be older/more experienced) feel that drinking is a true sign of adulthood? Not sure...
Nothing about designated drivers. I guess that (sadly)reflects real life, as well. There is SOME strong language used in the film, giving it the R rating, but not nearly as much as you'd hear in 20 minutes on MTV. There are sexual situations, but no actual sex scenes and no nudity. The love scenes are handled beautifully and believably, illustrating three different (emotional) 'levels' of sexual encounter... allowing Jones to choose which he prefers, and allowing the audience to choose, along with him. The Walter Mitty-like fantasy sequences are wonderful, some just plain funny, some hysterically so. The ending may be **slightly** implausible, but only slightly.
I LOVED THIS FILM and I would recommend it wholeheartedly to ANYONE, and if you are an Elijah Wood fan, get ready to faint.
He is simply perfection, in all ways.
Rating:
Summary: Pretty good.
Review: This movie was a pleasant surprise. Everything else was rented out in Blockbuster, so I decided to try this one out. And I enjoyed it the whole way through.
Elijah wood plays a college drop out who has never spoken to his father but writes him a letter almost every day (that he never sends, of course). His life takes a turn when he moves into an apartment smack in the middle of Mandy Moore (A Walk to Remember, singer)and Franka Potente (Run Lola Run, Bourne Identity). Will he fall for Mandy, who is the beautiful, sexy, vivacious but not so deep blonde? Or for Franka, the cranky photographer who still has ex-boyfriend hang ups?
Elijah Wood is really a great actor. He continues to impress me as he gets better and better. And Mandy Moore was an absolute delightful surprise! I loved her in a Walk to Remember, but this is such a different role for her, yet she plays it so convincingly. This girl is going to have a great career as an actress!
It was a really entertaining movie. I recommend it.
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