Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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53 of 66 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Outstanding! Hilary proves she is worthy of her mega-stardom, May 6, 2003
The Lizzie McGuire Movie picks up where the Hit Disney Channel Original TV Series left off. Hilary Duff is back as Lizzie, a gorgeous and good hearted, but totally insecure teenage girl, preparing to leave Jr. High and move on to bigger and better things. The movie focuses on a very special graduation trip that Lizzie and some of her classmates take that summer, to Rome, Italy. Hoping this will be her chance to find adventure instead of bad luck for a change, Lizzie and her best friend Gordo vow to take chances and have fun, and forget about the embarrassing social order of school and home. Once in Rome, Lizzie's friend-turned-enemy, Kate, mopes about being ignored by the Italian boys, meanwhile, Lizzie's old crush Ethan scopes the chicks, and Gordo repeatedly catches himself scoping Lizzie. But Lizzie is entranced by an Italian pop-star she's just met, Paolo, who's amazed at the likeness Lizzie shares with his former singing partner, the dark-haired beauty Isabella. Paolo begs Lizzie to perform on stage with him at a major awards show in the guise of the vacationing Isabella, and, remembering her vow to have an adventure, Lizzie agrees to go through with it. Time passes as Lizzie is being prepped for the fraud, and as it does, she finds herself growing closer to Paolo and discovering assertive qualities she didn't know she had. But as Paolo's scheme is rising to fruition, Gordo is having a heck of a time keeping Lizzie's adventures secret from the group of American travelers and their vicious chaperone/tour guide. Back home, Lizzie's little brother Matt, under the evil influence of his friend Melina, is working on another plan to ruin his sister's reputation, this time requiring himself and his parents to travel to Rome as well. When the day of Lizzie's big performance finally arrives, so does Lizzie's family, not to mention the mysterious pop-star Isabella! It's anybody's guess how the big show will turn out, not to mention who will get the girls in the end! The Lizzie McGuire Movie was a wonderful surprise, even for this loyal Hilary lover and long-time fan of the series. From the super cute and perfect opening scene, to the fan and crowd pleasing feel-good ending, this was a perfect movie for such a great hit TV show. I must admit, it WAS pretty weird to see all the Lizzie McGuire characters on the big screen, but it was very cool once I got used to it. The graduation scene bothered me a bit, because they felt they had to give an explanation for every major character, making statements the TV show fans already knew, like how Kate used to be Lizzie's best friend until she became popular, etc..., but that was the only thing in the whole movie that bugged me. It wouldn't even have been that bad, if not for the way they did it, rushing from one character to another like, "we need to get these character explanations out of the way," mentioning how Lizzie's other best friend, Miranda, was away in Mexico and things like that. But like I said, that was the only part that bugged me in an otherwise incredibly great movie! As a long-time fan of the show, a couple of parts nearly made me cry, though I'm sure sometimes it was just the result of seeing my dreamgirl, Hilary Duff, up there looking incredible and doing the best acting I've ever seen her do! The part where she gets on stage and does her thing, I was really getting choked up, because after coming to know the character the way we have from the TV series, it was amazing to see the things Lizzie was doing in this movie as she finally found her confidence! I should also say that Hilary has really improved as a singer, actress, and in everything else she does! She even did a great job as Isabella, the Italian pop-star! There were only a couple of times where she lost the accent a bit. But every girl should be able to look that good with both blonde AND brown hair! Ha. I wonder how Hilary would look as a redhead? I can't say enough good things about this movie! I just can't wait till it comes out on DVD. My eyes are even a little teary right now. Oh, what I would have given to have traded places with Gordo in that movie!
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A wonderful film for young girls!!!, May 14, 2003
Hillary Duff is going to be a big star and she is already on the bright road to a great future. Not only does she look cute, but she can act and sing to. Oh yeah, and she seems incredibly humble and sweet despite all of her success.Her Disney Channel series "Lizzie McGuire" makes its way to the big-screen in a finale movie that will certainly sit well with young girls. It's just a 90-minute episode of the popular television show, with some extra money in the budget to shoot on location in Rome. But we can be grateful that it is a nice, wholeome story created for an age group usually neglected by Hollywood. Duff has a warm, sweet presence and the use of a little animated Lizzie to comment on the action adds a liveliness to her adventures. She is a proficient comedic actress, and clearly doesn't find `Lizzie' much of a stretch. The film mainly serves as the aforementioned goodbye to the show, and another chance to plug Duff as a pop singer, which she is aggressively pursuing in real life. Now that her show is over, it will be interesting to see what Duff tackles next. Hopefully something more dramatic.
Jim Fall was an odd choice to direct. His only other film is the highly bawdy, R rated gay film "Trick," but he does a pretty decent job here, wonderfully capturing Duff's charming on-screen persona. Beautiful shots of Rome add to the atmosphere and the lively soundtrack adds to the fun.
The film is a delightful, sugary treat from start to finish. If it isn't exactly high art, but a fun teen-girl romp that traffics in cute boys, hip outfits, and loads of cheesy (but fun) pop music. Throw in some light morals about friendship, fame, and trust, along with adorable teen crushes, and there's something to recommend for fun family viewing.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not As Good As I Thought It Would Be, October 25, 2004
I found that this movie wasn't much like the Lizzie McGuire TV show. Actually, looking back, there are a lot of things about it that bother me. First of all, the cast and scenery. All the characters seemed a little different in some way, not completely the same. And Lizzie had a different house from that on the show. Second, the whole movie was basically about Lizzie blowing off Gordo and lying to get out of tours so she could hang out with Paolo. I found that to also be different from the TV series. Usually Lizzie is at least a LITTLE nicer than that. I also think certain things were taken to extremes in the movie, such as Matt, and Mr. and Mrs. McGuire flying all the way to Rome just because Matt missed Lizzie and the dad thought she might be around boys that wanted to be her boyfriend. There were a few things I liked, though, such as how Lizzie and Kate got along in some parts.
Overall, I would say that if you love Lizzie McGuire, you might like this movie. But don't expect it to be too much like the show!
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