Review of Thirteen (2003) by Jeremy K — 04 Sep 2012

If you wanna watch a light, humorous, quotable teen film from this time period...go with "Mean Girls." This is the raw, gritty, almost uncomfortable cautionary tale. It's not an easy movie to watch, regardless of your age or gender.

It's real and it's powerful, thanks to the writing, the cinematography, but most of all, to the acting. Holly Hunter, Evan Rachel Wood and Nikki Reed are so compelling and convincing in their roles, I believe everything they say and do.

And I love how this film doesn't set out to make Reed's Evie the traditional "bad girl." There are certain complexities to this character that make her three-dimensional. This could've been a stale, cliche Lifetime movie, but it's handled with class and seriousness.

Now I have one question: what in the world happened to director Catherine Hardwicke after making this? Her portfolio following this movie: "Twilight" and "Red Riding Hood." Well, whatever.