Thirteen

Rating:
Summary: Holly Hunter not convincing enough
Review: A movie shot with in your face camera style to make it seem like a documentary - to make you feel that you are watching a real family coming to terms with a rebellious teenager. "thirteen" is watchable, but is definitely not as good as reviews would have you believe. The critics have raved about Holly Hunter's role as a caring mother but she just didn't convince us at all.

Over-rated without a doubt.

Rating:
Summary: Passionate, Committed Film about What Matters Most: Our Kids
Review: The toughest and truest coming of age movie in years, THIRTEEN is not for the faint of heart--and not for children without a healthy dose of parental accompaniment. It's about what happens when the normal post-pubescent urge to individuate from family and find peer-group acceptance conspires with a severely decadent society to make adolescence a nightmare. Watching the downward spiral of the desperate-to-be-"all that" 13-year-old Tracy is as gut-wrenching as watching a car spin out in traffic yet being powerless to prevent the accident, partly because we've all known a "Tracy" or two, but mostly because of the passionate intensity that everyone involved has brought to this film. There's no sugar-coating to this story, no Disneyfication, no crippling compromise for the sake of broad box-office appeal, just utterly committed storytelling as authentic and chilling as BOYZ N THE HOOD and MI VIDA LOCA.

Writer-director Catherine Hardwicke, co-writer Nikki Reed, cinematographer Elliot Davis, and the entire cast have crafted a movie that adroitly navigates a minefield of clichés by focusing on telling details, thus particularizing Tracy (Evan Rachel Wood), her girlfriend Evie (played by co-writer Reed), her mother (Holly Hunter), and their interlocking relationships as well. Hunter received a well-deserved Oscar nomination for her searingly authentic performance as Tracy's recovering alcoholic single mom, Mel, who enables Tracy's self-destructive slide by ignoring the warning signs that something is dreadfully wrong and neglecting the active parental intervention that the situation demands. Co-author Reed is utterly convincing as the slyly manipulative Evie, who preys on Tracy's need to be regarded as cool, and on Mel's need to see herself as helpful and understanding. Yet as good as Hunter and Reed are, this is Wood's movie, and she all but steals the show with the gutsiest, most accomplished performance by a young teen actress that I can recall. (I suspect that only the MPAA's squeamishness about the subject matter kept Wood from an Oscar nomination of her own.) All the supporting actors give remarkably fine performances, too, especially Brady Corbett as Tracy's older brother, Mason, and Deborah Kara Unger as Evie's out-of-it guardian, Brooke.

I admired this movie far more than expected. It's not easy to watch, but that has nothing to do with D.P. Davis's judiciously artful use of the hand-held camera. Rather it's because the story rings so painfully true, and because--like Tracy's mom--our society often neglects what's best for our kids for fear of offending them or those who prey upon them. How many Evies and Tracys must suffer before we come to our senses and stop encouraging the conditions that enable such sorrows to flourish? In short, THIRTEEN is a gutsy and very accomplished film about something that really matters--our kids, and the need not to shirk our responsibility for their welfare, especially in the treacherously amoral world we are bequeathing them. I'd give it 4 1/2 stars if permitted, but given the choice Amazon allows, let's make it an even 5.

Rating:
Summary: The Wild Side of Junior High.
Review: When Tracy (Evan Rachel Wood) entered the 7th grade, she was a model student who had a close relationship with her mother (Holly Hunter). Feeling left out and too childish for junior high school, she aspired to be part of the school's hip, worldly crowd, whose center is a girl named Evie (Nikki Reed). Evie takes Tracy under her wing, and soon her world includes sex, drugs, violence and body piercing. Under stress from her new social life and problems at home, Tracy allows her wild lifestyle to turn into one long self-destructive binge.

"Thirteen " was co-written by director Catherine Hardwicke and Nikki Reed. When Nikki Reed was thirteen years old, she and her friends were involved in the types of behavior depicted in the movie. Catherine Hardwicke was a family friend who encouraged Reed to find creative, as opposed to destructive, outlets for her energy. And one of those outlets was the screenplay for this film. Reed and Hardwicke based "Thirteen" on the experiences that Nikki and her friends had at that age. Nikki stars in the movie as well, very convincingly playing the slightly older, manipulative Evie. Evan Rachel Wood is fantastic in the lead role. Her performance as Tracy is one of the best of the 2003. Holly Hunter also strikes a perfect note as Tracy's mother Melanie who sensibly doesn't overreact to the discovery that her daughter is nearly grown and is going through an experimental phase, but becomes concerned when she senses Tracy's life is spinning out of control. The film looks remarkably good for something that was shot in 24 days on a small budget, which is a credit to Catherine Hardwicke and the cast. The performances are impressive. The story is interesting. But I have one apprehension about "Thirteen": Audiences tend to take negative or threatening depictions of teenagers in films as an indictment of young people and youth culture in general. I would hate for people to react this way to "Thirteen". It certainly isn't the filmmakers' intention. "Thirteen" treats young people and counterculture with a matter-of-fact respect that I find refreshing. The film depicts what can happen when people make bad decisions for the wrong reasons without demonizing sex, drugs, or belly rings and without claiming that young people should act like middle-aged people. It's just about coming of age by extremes.

The DVD: Both widescreen and full screen versions are on the same disc! Bonus features include a "making of" featurette, an audio commentary by the director and her teenaged cast, deleted scenes, and a theatrical trailer. The "making of" documentary is short and includes interviews with the actors. The audio commentary features the comments of director Catherine Hardwicke, Evan Rachel Wood, Nikki Reed, and Brady Corbet, who plays Tracy's brother. The commentary is fun, spontaneous and informative, although I found it difficult to distinguish Nikki Reed's and Evan Rachel Wood's voices. Dubbing is available in French and Spanish. Subtitles are available in English and Spanish.

Rating:
Summary: A good movie
Review: Thirteen is a good movie, not great. Hunter's performance is not the best. Wood has the best acting in the whole movie. It gets a little gory at some parts, but it's still real. The ending really leaves you hanging (bad!)

Rating:
Summary: maybe the worst movie i've ever seen...
Review: ...if only for the sheer amount of stolen ideas. seriously, if plagiarism was a crime, the entire cast of this movie would be in jail. for life. no, wait, two life sentences.

real quick question: any of ya'll 5-star-giving-"the makers of this movie are jesus"-spouting people ever see a little independent film released in 1995 called "Kids?" no? surprise!

first off, thirteen comes out swingin (figuratively and literally LO!L) with the two girls huffing those compressed-air things and then punching each other. that's neat. then, we're taken back 4 months earlier, to a point where tracy (the main character) is a sweet, innocent little girl with pie-in-the-sky poetry and big plans for her life. i mean, i think. they don't really ever flesh out character in this movie, so who knows.

shortly after her socks are made fun of for being too geeky (remember when dj wore the same clothes as her teacher and got made fun of on "full house?" like that), she throws out all of her clothes and all of her stuffed animals, starts snorting coke and cutting herself, and goes bisexual. waitwaitwait, i'm getting ahead of myself.

after that, she gets some new clothes and hangs out with the popular girls who (GASP) are a bad influence! this leads to all the aforementioned drugs, sex, blahblahblahblahblah.

see, the reason why this movie is horrible: because "Kids" came out almost 10 years ago, and is still more relevant and more shocking than this movie even ATTEMPTS to be. while harmony korine's street-prose writing skills make "Kids" seem like a documentary, every line in this movie sounds like something i saw on a sitcom. except with cursing. and while every single actor in "Kids" doesn't even seem like they're playing a character, the shmaltz flows like milk and honey in this movie. i mean, when Tracy is confronting her mom with "NO BRA, NO PANTIES, NO BRA, NO PANTIES" am i really supposed to feel intimidated? because all i really feel is sickeningly aroused. is that too much information?

you really come off feeling like this was created by a bunch of suits in a "focus group" or "power meeting" or "whatever it is that they do when they want to pander to a certain age group."

"well, those 'troubled' kids say naughty words and do drugs, right? let's use that as the basis for the movie. thoughts?"
"i've been thinking. people like nypd blue and the shield right? and what do they have in common? THE SEIZURE-CAM. you know. the one that can't hold still, that zooms in like a kid who accidentally pressed the button too hard. that's IN. i can FEEL IT."
"LIGHTBULB! let's make the mom a single mother, but she's really COOL. she knows what's up, and she's confident."
"like in gilmore girls?"
"...no, this is MY idea."

the only thing this movie does is consistently drag out stereotypes of characters seen in other movies, television shows, etc.

but, you know. different strokes for different folks. if stories about how peer pressure and hanging out with the "wrong crowd" aren't done-to-death enough for you, then thirteen will be right up your ally.

Rating:
Summary: Yes, this is real...
Review: I've noticed that alot of the reviewers of this movie have been questioning the credibility of some of the events that take place and wondering at the motives a young girl would have for catching herself in a downward spiral like this.
Being 15 myself, I have to tell you that I've witnessed every aspect of this movie at one time or another, if not personally then through one of my friends or aquaintances. Yes, kids really are this bad. Its hard to explain, but you don't need a reason to do things like this...you get so caught up in everything that you can't stop and nothing seems real.
This movie is an excellent and strangely beautiful portrait of adolescence today. I suggest you see it if you haven't already.

Rating:
Summary: Come to Life
Review: This is the most affecting tale of debauchery i've ever seen commited to film. Anyone alive in the 1990s and aware of what went on in teenage life can identify with this film. Perhaps that's why i found it so profound in its storytelling, even if most of the action is implied, the story is as transfixing as being alive in that moment of time.

Rating:
Summary: 'Clueless' meets 'Kids'?
Review: I actually enjoyed this movie. Holly Hunter and the soundtrack make this a solid 3 and a half-star movie.

Rating:
Summary: Disturbing and unforgettable!
Review: A young girl livinig with a single mother who's doing her best to raise two kids, Tracy is thrilled to start seventh grade. However, after getting there, she discovers that she isn't nearly as cool or as popular as she wants to be.

Abandoning her friends, Tracy (superbly portrayed by Evan Rachel Wood) befriends one of the popular girls, Evie (played with finesse by Nikki Reed). That is just the start of things, as Tracy's life develops into a downard spiral of drugs, sex, and crime...all to gain popularity (which, of course, in the end eludes her).

Holly Hunter, as Tracy's mother, is outstanding. Everybody is perfectly cast; at times, it's hard to tell that this is a movie. Which, in a way, is disturbing. This is not a film for the squeamish; it's realistic, and it's brutally honest. However, it is a good example of teen peer pressure (I'm a teen, so I'd know) and how some people can't cope with it.

It's been a week or two since I've seen THIRTEEN, but I still can't stop thinking about it. It's gritty, it's engaging, and it's real--you may flinch, you may cry, you may gasp "oh my God!", but you'll come away with a sense that you've been in the mind of a troubled teenage girl, and are the better for it. A classic film.

Rating:
Summary: Two 13-year old girls out of control! Excellent story.
Review: Wow! That's the only word that comes to mind about this 2003 film. I felt I had just been on a wild roller coaster ride into the lives of a couple of 13-year old girls who are out of control and going too far in their experiments with life. The film is written directed by Catherine Hardwick who I understand met Nicki Reed, a troubled 13 year old and suggested that she keep a diary. This film is a direct result of that diary with Nicki Reed, who is listed as a co-writer, cast in the role of the bad girl. The other young star is Evan Rachel Wood, who starts out as a well-behaved seventh grader, but who, under the influence of her friend, starts to run wild too. Their performances are so real that I cringed constantly, remembering my own early youth. And then there is Holly Hunter, cast as Evan Rachel Wood's mother who loves her daughter but is overwhelmed with her own life and clueless about how to help. Some of these scenes between mother and daughter are heart wrenching and tributes to love. This film packs a big punch.

Along the way we get a glimpse of the lifestyle of some California teenagers. O.K. Maybe they aren't typical. But they do exist and we pass them on the street every day. They have pierced tongues and navels. They wear provocative clothes. They hang out at the Mall and shoplift like crazy. Of course there are boys in their lives. And steamy romances. And easy access to every kind of drug imaginable. Sometimes they even practice self-mutilation.

The film is fast paced, the dialog is crisp and nasty, the settings absolutely realistic. There's tension throughout and it never lets up. I was completely swept into the story. This is not a comfortable film to watch, but I think it's a "must see". Highly recommended.