Taln Hess
10-16-2003, 06:53 PM
I grew up as the good kid in my household... the fairly responsible older child, babysitting my sisters while my mother worked and schooled trying for a better job after my parents divorced.
My younger sister, the middle child of our household, was the troubled teen. If there was trouble around, she would get into it. Luckily we grew up in a rural country neighborhood so there wasn't as much trouble as in a city's streets, but she still managed to find more then her fair share of trouble. A particularly memorable birthday of mine was spend riding around the back-dirt roads of the county with my dad trying to track down where my sister was - the phone number she gave us for the house didn't work. The behavior continued beyond high school. She was the first of us to move out of the house, and not too long after the first to move back into the house. Luckily at some point she learned her lesson and turned her life around. I can't point out a particular moment that caused it, but over time it happened.
Thirteen is a difficult movie to handle. Any parent that has lived with a troubled teen... any troubled teen that has turned their life around and looks back at that time wondering what the hell they were thinking... hell, any sibling or friend of a troubled teen is going to have a difficult time watching this film. Parts of it hit a little too close to home for comfort and that's what makes it a good movie. People who don't identify aren't going to get the film.
Holly Hunter, Evan Rachel Wood, and Nikki Reed (co-author of the script) deliver great performances... with Hunter giving the best of the three in a completely unattractive role as the mother of the family. Shot in a rough chaotic style that verges on MTV music video ish but well represents the chaos of the teenage life they are exhibiting, the film shows well the almost worst case scenario of choosing friends based on popularity instead of personality or quality. A lot of what it portrays could be considered schtick or cliche, but somehow it brings a new light to it's presentation, making it just a little more real, and a little more harsh. It is just short of predictable, making one cringe as each poor decision is made by the teen couple of Tracy and Evie, and one feel sorry for Hunter's Melanie.
I've read a lot of opinions of the end of the movie, feeling there was no consequences for Tracy's action... what can you do? She's your teenage daughter who has been pulling away for months and you're finally aware of the extent of the issues. Yelling and screaming won't do any good it'll only pull her away more. Grounding? Forget about it. The rules in place have had no affect so far. All you can do is give them your support and love. Let them know you still love them even though they messed up, and let them know you are going to help them fix their life.
That's life... There is no defining moment in the movie of hitting bottom. Certainly Tracy could go a lot farther down - hardcore drugs, prostitution, etc... but we see her reach that realization that she's out of control, and that her mother is there for her. That's all that can be done.
Very touching movie... but a rough ride.
My younger sister, the middle child of our household, was the troubled teen. If there was trouble around, she would get into it. Luckily we grew up in a rural country neighborhood so there wasn't as much trouble as in a city's streets, but she still managed to find more then her fair share of trouble. A particularly memorable birthday of mine was spend riding around the back-dirt roads of the county with my dad trying to track down where my sister was - the phone number she gave us for the house didn't work. The behavior continued beyond high school. She was the first of us to move out of the house, and not too long after the first to move back into the house. Luckily at some point she learned her lesson and turned her life around. I can't point out a particular moment that caused it, but over time it happened.
Thirteen is a difficult movie to handle. Any parent that has lived with a troubled teen... any troubled teen that has turned their life around and looks back at that time wondering what the hell they were thinking... hell, any sibling or friend of a troubled teen is going to have a difficult time watching this film. Parts of it hit a little too close to home for comfort and that's what makes it a good movie. People who don't identify aren't going to get the film.
Holly Hunter, Evan Rachel Wood, and Nikki Reed (co-author of the script) deliver great performances... with Hunter giving the best of the three in a completely unattractive role as the mother of the family. Shot in a rough chaotic style that verges on MTV music video ish but well represents the chaos of the teenage life they are exhibiting, the film shows well the almost worst case scenario of choosing friends based on popularity instead of personality or quality. A lot of what it portrays could be considered schtick or cliche, but somehow it brings a new light to it's presentation, making it just a little more real, and a little more harsh. It is just short of predictable, making one cringe as each poor decision is made by the teen couple of Tracy and Evie, and one feel sorry for Hunter's Melanie.
I've read a lot of opinions of the end of the movie, feeling there was no consequences for Tracy's action... what can you do? She's your teenage daughter who has been pulling away for months and you're finally aware of the extent of the issues. Yelling and screaming won't do any good it'll only pull her away more. Grounding? Forget about it. The rules in place have had no affect so far. All you can do is give them your support and love. Let them know you still love them even though they messed up, and let them know you are going to help them fix their life.
That's life... There is no defining moment in the movie of hitting bottom. Certainly Tracy could go a lot farther down - hardcore drugs, prostitution, etc... but we see her reach that realization that she's out of control, and that her mother is there for her. That's all that can be done.
Very touching movie... but a rough ride.