Customer Reviews

Girl

5 star:		(48)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I passed by "Girl" at the video store on more than once occasion because the box didn't look all that interesting. Finally I decided to give it a shot, and I found that it's one of the true gems out there. It's definitely a keeper.

Andrea Marr (Dominique Swain) is 18 and about to graduate from high school. Her best friend Cybil is an aspiring rock star who performs with a couple of mutual friends (Chris Masterton from Malcolm in the Middle and David Moscow from Newsies) and is well on her way to being discovered.

Andrea is only mildly interested in her friend's stardom, because she is totally obsessed with local hot guy rock star, Todd Sparrow (Sean Patrick Flannery). She goes to all of his concerts and eventually they do hook up.

Because Andrea is so into Todd, she doesn't realize that when Cybil sings a love song she's singing it about Andrea. Cybil is in love with Andrea but this fact is slowly revealed through the film and oblivious Andrea has to be hit in the head with a brick to even notice. Even her other friend's (Selma Blair, painfully anorexic looking and well cast) bulimia is pushed aside for the great Todd Sparrow.

Andrea navigates the whole underground rock scene, exuding pure joy because this guy Todd notices her...and sleeps with her. After they have sex in a horse stall in a dirty barn after a concert, Andrea's voice over tells us she "feels like a princess." This film has got a great handle on the neediness of young girls and how much value they put on a guy's opinion. It explores how a girl can easily let a guy overshadow her, and how she puts him on a pedestal whether he deserves to be there or not. Like it or not, girls act like this. The film is honest and raw in its portrayal.

Andrea does wake up from her fantasy of being "Todd's girl." She finds her own identity and recognizes the fact that her worth is not measured by how she's judged by men, but by how she sees herself.

My favorite characters here are Cybil and Rebecca (Summer Phoenix). Cybil is just too cute with all her crazy hairstyles and that dry comeback to everyone's compliments ("It doesn't matter."). Rebecca is Andrea's sort- of guide through the "underworld" of guys, music and pop culture.

"Girl" isn't exactly like the book, but for what it is it's better than 99% of the teen tripe that's being produced these days which make teens look like [jerks]. This film shows how hard choices can be, how overwhelming love is, and how much teens really just want to be accepted and allowed to simply live without constant peer pressure and judgement. And in the end, it shows that they do learn from their mistakes and can be redeemed as they grow into adulthood.

(I gave this 4 stars out of 5 because I really hated all of the Todd Sparrow songs.)

First of all, I was definitely a groupie in the early 90's so watching this film brought so much of that back for me. I found this to be a realistic depiction of someone like myself who gets drawn into that whole scene and becomes obsessed over band members. It doesn't matter what state you live in or what kind of band, groupies always remain the same. Its this feeling that is so wonderfully captured. Its a coming of age story for teenage girls. I especially liked the fact that she finally realized at the end what it meant to be a true woman, she saw the error of her ways but at the same time, she didn't make apologies for the mistakes she made.

The whole feel of this movie is fantastic as well as the music. I enjoyed spending time with all these different characters that could have been quite a few people I knew at one time. Its one of the best teen films I've seen in a while. I also thought Dominique Swain is someone to definitely watch out for. She's a great actress who put a lot of heart into this role. Her groupie character is very realistic and believable.

This is a movie that I think anyone can enjoy. If you are a groupie or have been one at a certain time in your life, you will recognize the thoughts and feelings of the main character.

I LOVED this movie and was amazed that there was no soundtrack, especially when it centered around a (so-called) 'groupie' and the singer of a band! Finally I discovered that there is music available from The Color Green, apparently formed by Jon Kahn who provides the music that Todd Sparrow performs. Find it at mp3.com. You can order the DAM CD's which play like normal CD's as well as on mp3. 2 songs from the movie 'One Step Forward' and 'Girl' appear on "the color green -- Jon Kahn" [23587] and the song Cybil sings 'Never' plus 'Blood Brothers' and 'Look my way' are on the "the color green -- Acoustic" [71629]. I hope this helps other people who may have loved the music the way I did. Enjoy!

this movie was okay just because it was so different than most teen movies but it didn't get the book's message at all. Andrea is not a groupie, I don't know why they thought she was. The book was about how she watches her friend Cybil become this cool grunge rock chick (and a lesbian). It's about growing up and what happens to out-there people like Cybil, who is a joke in the movie.

If you were a teenager in the mid-'90s (and enjoyed it), you will probably love this movie and relate to it. It really captures the feel of the grunge era well.
If, however, you're one of those people who hates grunge music because it's dark/depressing, you probably can't relate.
Since I was in high school from '94-'98, I love Girl. I happened upon it by accident (someone recommended Girl when he actually meant Party Girl), and I was so happy that I did. But I know the time period has a bad reputation. If you loathe Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Candlebox, My So-Called Life, and dyed hair, this movie probably isn't for you.
All that said, I'm making my assessment of the movie without having read the book, so if you want a book/movie comparison you'll have to look at other reviews.

I read the book a while back and it is one of my favorite novels. The book was amazing. And while I may be biased, the movie was TERIBBLE. When I first heard about it I was so excited to see it come to life! Then I checked it out and I saw that Tara Reid was playing Cybil. Ewww. I literaly gasped out of horror. Tara is like the anti-Cybil. I'm still horrified. But still, I had hope. Then I saw that Carla was a white blonde and related to Todd (um..Carla was black and cool and definitley not related to Todd). So then I saw it and they left out SO much and changed the plot and Andrea seemed like the typical groupie, which maybe she was but we as an audience want our protaginist to be smart and independent and a little naive and like she was in the book! Not to mention the Color Green songs sucked and what happened to Matthew and Sins of our Fathers? Uhhhhg.

This is a must-see for all die hard Sean Patrick Flannery fans.It's not THAT awesome or hyped up like some of his other movies,but it's entertaining nonetheless.
Appearances by Tara Reid,Selma Blair, Summer Phoenix and Portia De Rossi made the movie an interesting watch. Plus,the soundtrack deserves an A-Plus!
Dominique Swain is excellent as the innocent but confused Andrea,and I think a lot of teen girls can really relate to her character (heh,I know I was like that once!). ;)

Might not be everyone's cup of tea,but it wouldn't hurt to give it a try.

When I first saw Girl, it was at the end and I never saw it from the beginning. Due to some stroke of luck, I actually got to see it. I was appalled and intrigued by what I watched. Appalled because the girl followed him around like some sick puppy, and that she lost her virginity to some guy because he had his album. I was intrigued though because I have always wanted to know what went on behind the scenes of these rock concerts(and no I am not a [...]), because they make these types of movies where the guy sticks with her and she goes wherever he goes. Plus she dumped him. I don't know if I would reccomend this movie, but I would definitely watch it every once in a while.

I know it's common that the 'book is always better than the movie', but this movie couldn't have done anything but hurt the book.
Thank GOD I read the book first or I never would have and would have missed out on an amazing story.
The movie cheapens everything that was magical about Blake Nelson's novel and cuts out the parts that they obviously think will travel right over movie-watcher's heads.
Read the book please, skip the movie.

This movie is a great "girl" flick. More important than the age or location of the actors in the film, GIRL deals with a young woman coming of age. Every woman can identify with a particular time in their lives' when they realize their personal worth and place in life. I found GIRL to be a bittersweet reminiscence of first love (or obsession!),inexperience with men, and the ultimate realization of the power all women have in their own confidence. A must see for all women -- very inspiring.