Movie Review 13 Going On 30 (2004)

 

13 Going on 30 | 2004 | 1h 38m
Genre: Romance/Comedy | Country: US
Director: Gary Winick | Writers: Josh Goldsmith, Cathy Yuspa
Cast: Jennifer Garner, Mark Ruffalo, Judy Greer
IMDB: 6.3
My Rate: 9/10

Jenna, turning 13, wakes up as her 30-year-old self, complete with all her accomplishments and success. But Jenna doesn't realize that all her success comes with a bunch of other complicated problems.

Warning:

Contains sensual scenes, strong language, and violence.

 
Synopsis:

Jenna Rink (Christa B. Allen), a 13-year-old who isn't super popular at school, wants to be part of the Six Chicks, a group of popular teenagers led by Lucy 'Tom-Tom'. Jenna invites them to her birthday party. Lucy and her gang agree to come, but only if Jenna does their chores. Even though Matty (Sean Marquette), her best friend, isn't really into it, he can't do anything about it.

On her birthday, Matty gives Jenna a dollhouse he built himself. He also sprinkles 'magic dust' that's supposed to grant all wishes. But that happiness doesn't last long. Jenna hides Matty's gift in the closet and starts ignoring him when Lucy and her friends arrive.

Lucy, bored with the party, suggests a game of seven minutes in heaven to Jenna. Jenna is asked to go into the closet with her eyes closed. Lucy says that the guy Jenna likes will go in there. Jenna doesn't know it's just Lucy's trick to escape with their chores. Lucy also tricks Matty and tells him that Jenna is waiting for him in the closet.

A misunderstanding happens between Matty and Jenna. Jenna locks herself in the closet and accidentally gets hit by the magic dust. Jenna wakes up as her adult self, 30 years old. Jenna (Jennifer Garner) is surprised by her achievements, she's an editor at her favorite magazine, has a hot boyfriend, and is also part of the Six Chicks. But it turns out that her relationship with Matty isn't what she pictured.

Does the future go as she expected?

 

Review:

13 Going on 30 has a really cool story idea. A lot of us think that adult life looks way more exciting. We even think that being an adult means all the problems we face will be easier to deal with. But in reality, adult life throws a lot more complicated challenges at you than you imagine. That's the message you get when you watch this movie.

The story is told in a way that's easy to follow and understand. The foundation of the story, the conflict, and the resolution are all done pretty well. It's a light and fun watch. There are some scenes that are heartwarming and some that are funny. The problems that come up are balanced and don't overlap too much. Although there are a few things that could be improved, especially the ending.

Spoiler alert. The ending feels a bit unsatisfying because it only focuses on Jenna and Matty's relationship. There's no further explanation about Jenna's life, like if she took the same career path, if she's as successful, etc. You only see Jenna and Matty's relationship end well. It's a shame, because the story before that focuses on 'Jenna's dream life' with all her ambitions and success. It should have shown the success she achieved in the future according to her version, not just how things worked out with Matty.

The casting is pretty good. You can see the resemblance between the characters as kids and adults. Jennifer Garner also does a great job showing the 'teenager' trapped in an adult body. The supporting actors are also great and their chemistry is good.

The music and sound effects are well-chosen and fit each scene. The makeup and clothes are also really cool. Overall, it's a fun movie and a good one to add to your weekend re-watch list.

 

Memorable Scene:

Jenna goes back to her childhood home and finds it empty because her parents are on vacation. She goes into the closet where she was last before waking up as an adult. In this scene, Jenna looks really sad and hits herself a few times, hoping to go back to her childhood.

Kids see 'being an adult' as something really promising and awesome. But it's not easy to actually live it. Maybe there's a little bit of regret when the image and expectations of adulthood are different from what's in our minds.

 
Memorable Dialogue:

"If I hadn't made those mistakes, I wouldn't have learned how to make things right."

 

Ending:

Happy Ending

 

Recommendation:

Must Watch

 

(Aluna)