|
|
Techtite's DVD Reviews! |
"It's a plotline that's been done before, so I can't bring myself to give it a higher grade. However; among all the many times this plot has been done, this was one of the best." --from the review ------------- Sidebar :: -------------
No sidebar comments for this review. Yet...
----------------- Feel free to contribute. As always, review submissions are accepted! ------------------
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
13 Going on 30
Click picture to order this DVD A Techtite ReviewAs Always, a review of The Film and The DVD (extras)! The Film: Sure, it's a fanciful, silly comedy. So what? 13 Going on 30 is one of the cutest, sweetest, and most charming romance comedies I've seen in years. This is surprising, considering how boldly cast this comedy was, particularly with Jennifer Garner in the starring role. The producer of this film made a bold move to cast an otherwise dramatically-known actress in such a campy film, but this decision turns out to be one of many reasons the film is so very engaging. Some critics have implied that this film's story is terribly easy to summarize, calling it a female version of Big. That's a pretty abridged way of describing it, and for the most part, it's a bit inaccurate. Big was the story of a boy who was suddenly an adult. Yet he became a grown adult "overnight," in present day, so he had different (and in some respects, easier) problems. This story is different in that a 13 year old, circa 1987, wishes to be 30, and automatically leaps ahead in her life to 2004. How a 1987 13 year old would react to suddenly being 30 in 2004 is one of many unique spins on this otherwise been-there-done-that story. Here's the less abridged story: Jenna Rink ( played as a 13-year-old by Christa B. Allen) wishes to be "30 and Flirty and Thriving" as her birthday wish, only to wake up and find herself 30 years old (Jennifer Garner). One of many problems in this birthday wish is that 17 years of her life has leapt away, while to everyone else, time went ahead normally. The bigger problem? To her, this change happened overnight, so she's still 13 at heart, having missed 17 years of maturity, schooling ...and even modern pop culture. This gives the story the one-two punch of a lesson in maturity, as well as a 1987 girl thrust into 2004 Americana. Whatever happened to Rick Springfield? What's that strange miniature-phone looking thing ringing in her purse? She soon learns that the ringing is coming from a cellular phone and that Springfield is now "passé." As you can imagine, that's the least of her problems. Here's where things get more dramatic: this "glimpse" into her future, she soon learns, is what might happen had she chosen to be too grown up, too fast. The life of "this" adult Jenna is that of a powerful magazine editor, though at what cost...? The only "friend" she has is the snooty girl she knew in junior high (Judy Greer), making her popular enough as a businesswoman, albeit not happy. As for her best friend since childhood, Matt (Mark Ruffalo); she broke up with him soon after her fateful 13th birthday party, simply because he was too childish for her, and she was too busy growing up too soon, and too fast. The lesson here is that in this alternate future, she is still a child at heart: a 13 year old at heart, ready to have some fun. However, is it too late to change? It was sheer brilliance to cast Garner in the title role of this movie. How funnier is it to see the hard-edged star of ABC's Alias, acting like a teenager? Her coworkers are supposed to be so shocked that this hard-edged advertising executive is suddenly acting like 13 year old, and since we, too, know Garner to be more dramatic than comedic, we are amused along with them. Such a role wouldn't have been as funny if a veteran comedienne was in the role. With an actress formerly known only for drama (Felicity, Alias, Daredevil), each punch line is ten times funnier. That said, and rather surprisingly; Garner is a very likeable comedienne. She's perfectly cast for the role. It was equally brilliant to cast Mark Ruffalo as Jenna's long-lost childhood friend, Matt. Ruffalo is equally a dramatic-actor on the majority, most recently known for his far grittier role as a hard-edged detective (In the Cut). This makes his character Matt equally believable as a serious-minded 30-something who has forgotten his childhood, only to find a teenage-minded Jenna a wholesome breath of fresh air. The romance comedy that ensues is very charming and endearing, especially when Jenna is supposed to be with the mind of a 13 year old, leaving the romance more sweet than smut. This is a cute, sweet romance comedy. Gripes...? Only petty nitpicks. Yes, it makes little sense that a 13 year old could so easily pull the wool over her coworkers eyes with nothing more than a junior high level education, though come on; how did Tom "Big" Hanks get a job as a toy manufacturer, just by playing a toy piano with Robert Loggia? This is a fantasy, after all, so as for the lack of reality...um, duh? Just leave the science books at home have fun with it. I know I sure did. In conclusion I can only say to adults who are forced into seeing this by their tween daughters; you're in for a very pleasant surprise. Like any good being-a-child-again story, it's hard for any 30-something to not feel a bit nostalgic after seeing this movie. They may even start feeling 13 again, themselves. This was a blast. I'm glad I saw it.
The DVD: Among the most brilliant additions in this film's "Special Edition DVD" are the inclusions of the two 1980's music videos touted from the film. Many 13-year-olds who watch this film may not even know what videos these are, given that 1980's music videos are rarely shown on TV, even when MTV remembers that it's moniker stands for Music Television. In short: Rick Springfield's "Jessie's Girl" and Pat Benetar's "Love is a Battlefield" are on this disc for all eternity. Neat. Equally brilliant is the featurette titled "I was a teenage geek." It offers a humorous yet very sweet and poignant look at the high school pasts of the film's lead cast, including Jennifer Garner. In an intriguing move, the creative talent behind the film is placed in a separate featurette, "The Making of a Teen Dream." If you want less flash for your behind the scenes buck, there's also a video gallery, which is sort of like the slide show of other DVDs, only it moves from picture-to-picture automatically, unless you press Pause. If these featurettes don't put you in the right mood for the film, maybe the two games can help, including "The 80's outfit challenge" and a trivia challenge about "Then and Now." Then there's the deleted scene reel. Most are actually extended scenes of scenes already in the movie, though they still cound as deletions, sort of. 18 such deleted scenes are offered; too many to list in detail here. In short summary they are of the sort of deletion that makes sense to have deleted to make the story move along, yet are worth seeing for either fans of the stars, the movie, or both. It's the thought that counts, though. Seriously; 18 deleted scenes was probably the entire cutting room floor. More extras? Yes...and a bit surprising, on a one-disc, one sided DVD. Audio commentary is offered by both director and producer. Previews are offered, as with other DVDs; think of it as the long batch of previews you'd see prior to the film, had you been in the theater. As the icing on the cake there's a blooper reel, in case you ever wondered if working with these stars would be fun. This is an awful lot of bang for your buck for a film that was already worth renting, and with these extras, will be worth buying, for many families...especially those with young teen girls. The best news: parents might have as much fun as their daughters will.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Burnout
Near
Miss
Small
Crater
Large
Crater
Deep
Impact
