Most Helpful Customer Reviews
|
|
298 of 319 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Tough, Rewarding Film, October 9, 2003
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2003--It would be easy to dismiss "Thirteen" as an exploitative exercise in shock, but to do so would deny the film its hard-edged realism, phenomenal acting and powerfully unsentimental story, which culminates in one of the most emotionally raw and unforgettable endings I have ever seen. Spinning the scary tale of a perfectly normal thirteen-year-old girl, Tracy, who, with the aide of a more "experienced" rebel named Evie, slips and falls into a hellish downward spiral of every parent's worst nightmare, "Thirteen" is a stunning work, but can be difficult to stomach at times. For instance, it opens with the two girls huffing aerosol cans and, so awestruck by the numbness in their faces, they start slapping each other for kicks. This is probably one of the less shocking scenes of rebellion, as later they delve into real drugs, take up beer drinking and experiment with their fragile sexuality. Nothing, however, is as hard to take as the scenes where Tracy finds some random sharp object and begins slicing up her own arm, all to temporarily escape the pain of living.Despite the many difficult things shown, the shock factor actually works in this movie because it all seems so horribly real. There's not a single part of this movie that couldn't be happening somewhere in this country right now, and that's what makes "Thirteen" so terrifying. Aiding the film in its realistic approach is the camerawork by first-time director Catherine Hardwicke. She shot the movie with a digital camera, and it often has the look and feel of a documentary. She also splashes the film with vibrant colors at points to add to the sense of decadence in the girls' care-free, dangerous lifestyles. Later, near the end, Hardwicke also seems to drain almost all color out of the scenes in order to display the cold reality of life when all the drugs and sex and partying lead to their natural conclusions. The film doesn't offer any cookie-cutter solutions on how to deal with wild teens, nor does it offer us a smiley-faced ending where it all works out and everyone winds up happy. Instead, in its final minutes, it offers only wrenching emotional truth and a quiet, subtle message of hope. Through all of this, the entire ensemble does nothing but impress. The main star of the movie, and the one who undergoes the most changes, is Evan Rachel Wood ("Once and Again"), who plays Tracy as if this were the story of her own life. Amazing in every capacity, she proves herself a worthy successor to our current generation of A-list actresses. As well, Nikki Reed, who plays Evie (and co-wrote the film with Hardwicke), astonishes in her first performance. She also has a bright future. Meanwhile, it's a reliable veteran, Holly Hunter, who, as Tracy's mom, becomes the "Thirteen"'s shaky moral center, a recovering alcoholic with more heart than brain, so clueless as to what's going on but undeterred in her determination to keep her only daughter safe no matter what. It's a tough role, and Hunter nails it. The final moments involve an emotionally intense scene between Hunter and Wood, and watching it, you realize that there are few-maybe none-who could have handled it better. "Thirteen" is an amazing film, which despite many uncomfortable moments, manages to stand out as one of the few great movies of the year. However, be forewarned: it is not for the faint of heart, nor is it a movie you would see to be entertained in the traditional sense. Still, whatever opinion you walk out of "Thirteen" with, you have to admit at least one thing: it stays with you, like the bitter chill on your bones during the cruelest winter.
|
|
|
83 of 90 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Terrifyingly real..., January 29, 2004
The litmus test for the realism in this one - watched it with a group of 12-18 year old girls and they all said it reflected the reality of being teenagers, with all the actual pressures and stresses of their high school and social lives. This is, quite simply, one of the most honest (and painful) movies about adolescence that I've ever seen..and it was written by a teenager who also stars in the movie...amazing!
At the start of the movie, Tracy (played by Evan Rachel Wood) is a good student with a not-so-great family life. Her mother is struggling to put food on the table and under a lot of pressure to hold family and home together.
So it makes sense that Tracy would be drawn to "the coolest girl in school", Evie, a wild rebel with a penchant for danger. Evie gladly takes Tracy under her wings, often pushing her into Tracy into situations she isn't prepared for (parents should be aware that some of the scenes are graphic, including sexuality and nudity).
It is impressive that this film is so utterly believable and the sensational and often shocking scenes make sense in the context of Tracy and Evie's lives. Adding to the strength of this film is Holly Hunter's strong performance as a mother who is desperate to save her daughter but isn't quite sharp enough to find the right path. One of the best films of the year, bar none!
|
|
|
24 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Powerful, gut-wrenching, and realistic, August 29, 2003
True, "Thirteen" tries to cram too much into a 95 minute film. Cutting, sex, drugs, and alcohol are just a few of the things these teenagers experience. And yes, not many 13 year old girls get to experience all that at such an early age, but wake up people, it IS out there despite what you think. And that's why calling "Thirteen" unrealistic because of what it portrays is unjustified. All of us, at one point or another, have had a hard time fitting in. We have all felt alone and useless and angry. And "Thirteen" portrays all those feelings extremely well. It isn't an expertly written film, but it has heart and emotion.A debut film from Catherine Hardwicke, Thirteen is a terrifying film about a little girl whose life goes right off the rails. Co-written by then 13-year-old Nikki Reed, who also co-stars in the movie, Thirteen features Evan Rachel Wood as Tracy, a nice kid in seventh grade, who wants to be popular. The movie begins with two girls engaged in a grotesque game of face-slapping and then goes back in time a few months. Here is an entirely innocent Tracy tossing out her stuffed animals -- a bit reluctantly -- while her mom looks on. Holly Hunter plays mom; she's a single mother and a hairdresser whose clients come to the house. Mom has her issues, but works hard to keep everything together. At school, Tracy can only look with envy at a trio of popular girls led by the beautiful, well-dressed, grown-up Evie (Reed). Soon, Evie and Tracy bond over a little shoplifting, and in a matter of weeks, Tracy's life has changed completely. She becomes best friends with Evie and immediately joins the likes of the In-Crowd. Everything spirals straight downhill from there... Evie is dangerous. She cons everyone who crosses her path, and before long she's actually living at Tracy's house and messing up the whole family. (On her side, Evie has for family only a narcissistic aunt, played with gusto by Deborah Kara Unger.) The descent into teen hell in Thirteen is a touch too quick to fully make sense, but the characters are so perfectly drawn and the performances so raw and so brilliant that the film manages to have an amazing impact. For a lot of reasons, Thirteen should be required viewing. The director, Catherine Hardwicke, has shown Thirteen at schools, teen centres, juvenile halls and the like; parents who don't shock easily should take their teenaged children to see this movie. Every parent's nightmare about how girls go wrong is packed into this movie and onto Hunter's frazzled face as she watches her daughter deteriorate. The whole thing would stink of phony moralizing if Catherine Hardwicke, who won the directing prize at Sundance 2003, didn't pack it with such raw vitality. Reed is strikingly good as Evie. She should be: She was thirteen when she wrote the semi-autobiographical script with Hardwicke, who used to date Reed's divorced dad. But the revelation is Wood, 15, formerly of TV's Once and Again, who makes Tracy's transformation harrowing and haunting. She's a live wire. Brace yourself for Thirteen -- it'll cause a commotion.
|
|
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews
|
DVD ~ Kirsten Dunst
DVD ~ Michelle Pfeiffer
DVD ~ Jason Schwartzman
DVD ~ Winona Ryder
DVD ~ Alec Baldwin
