13 Going on 30, 2004

13 Going on 30, 2004
Director: Gary Winick
Cast: Mark Ruffalo, Jennifer Garner, Judy Greer, Kathy Baker



Stage: Home theatre, on a sunny Thursday after a beautiful afternoon

13 Going on in short: After total humiliation at her thirteenth birthday party, Jenna Rink wants to just hide until she's thirty. Thanks to some wishing dust, Jenna's prayer has been answered. With a knockout body, a dream apartment, a fabulous wardrobe, an athlete boyfriend, a dream job, and superstar friends, this can't be a better life. Unfortunetly, Jenna realizes that this is not what she wanted. The only one that she needs is her childhood best friend, Matt, a boy that she thought destroyed her party. But when she finds him, he's a grown up, and not the same person that she knew.


Preps: Well, I remember this one. I believe I am in a romantic mood for a comedy.


Reality: Well, this is a fairly cute comedy. However, you need to have the obligation to rest and you cannot expect your brains to fall out of excitement.

The scenes and dialogues are somehow witty and can drag my attention easily. I spend a lot of time figuring out how the girl will transform into a responsible adult. And she almost passes with merits until real »adult« stuff comes along, within this the sexual life she's supposed to have with her boyfriend and the responsibilities at work.

I am somehow surprised the director took the lighter path (or the screenplayer). I believe it's not so easy to fit into the adult shoes as here is shown, plus, there would be more complications deriving from »no experience with credit cards, payments, etc« boundaries. On the other hand, the light showing of a »dream come true« for a teenager ends up in dissapointment where she discovers, what a bitch she has become and becomes really depressed about it.

Cute music that fits the purpose, doesn't stand out and just emphasize the importance of different sequences of the story. It is vital that you don't feel overburdened with the music in the movie. In this type of stories, the view and the concentration should be on the story and main cast, the interaction within the actors. It is kind of cute finding your long lost best friend and falling in love again. The movie gives us the feeling we all have second chances. At least this is the first feeling I get and this couldn't be more wrong.. Maybe more important, we don't always have a second chance, therefore we should seize the day and grab the opportunity as they really fly away.

Don't think you will gain too much of this experience. However, Garner plays lovely and will give you a glimpse how it is for a 13 year old who doesn't know what she's having in front of her head and how hard it must hit her to appreciate it.

My personal rating: 6,0 (quite good in this genre, I believe I can live with seeing something like this every now and then. To remind me to live while I am alive and not thrive for being older and more experienced)


13 Going on on IMDB

Letters to Juliet,

Letters to Juliet, 2010
Director: Gary Winick
Cast: Amanda Seyfried, Vanessa Redgrave, Gael Garcia Bernal

Stage: Home theatre



Letters in short:An American girl on vacation in Italy finds an unanswered "letter to Juliet" -- one of thousands of missives left at the fictional lover's Verona courtyard, which are typically answered by a the "secretaries of Juliet" -- and she goes on a quest to find the lovers referenced in the letter.

Preps: Hm, one in the row, waiting for my attention. The title? Sounds romantic, but I don't know the story neither the cast. So let's get the fingers crossed :=)

Reality: Well, the movie is a very cute one. The story that touches you and even you don't have to be in love or something. But you need to have a certain feeling towards romantic places, like they are shown here. Verona for instance is a place where you need to see Juliet's house and you think obviously about endless love or love that puts you underground. The idea of having women writing letters to all the people loooking for an answer in love is cute, however, unreal. They don't really write the addresses there, do they? That was however, my thought after the movie, when thinking of this. The people write their problems, but in most cases don't write the addresses. A typical mistake in movie, I might say. Or am I wrong or is there a wishing well that makes people believe they will be given an answer if they state the address? Whatever the right answer is, the idea of writing back with some answers is cute. And even cuter, the idea of finding the love from 50 years ago. Extremely romantic.

Through the voyage, the beautiful italian scenery, with cuisine, people that are breathing with the land, romantic places.. all the reasons for going to Italy. They make me lure for a vacation indeed. The obvious thing, romance, dwells somewhere inbetween.

The important message, that a couple should go on a vacation before getting married, is not really hidden. But you think about this afterwards, after all the beauties of the placement in this piece. The couple doesn't have much in common on vacation. It is not true that you need to spend the every minute together, but come on, one week apart on a pre-honey moon? Or any type of vacation for that matter?

A bit of a cheesy ending, but romantic souls might fall on their knees. An appropriate piece for cuddling under blanket, if you are a bit mushy :)





My personal rate: 7,0 (very cute comedy, makes you rethink your virtues and things you are chasing while being left in your life. Making you want to go to Verona and Italy and taste it. Yum!)



Letters to Juliet on IMDB

Where to go in Italy here