Jennifer Garner (Daredevil, TV's Alias) and Mark Ruffalo (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) star in this hilarious flash-forward romance about a pre-teen girl who goes from geek to glamorous.With the help of some magi... more »c wishing dust, 13 year-old Jenna Rink (Garner) becomes 30 and gorgeous overnight, with everything she ever wanted, except for her best friend Matt (Ruffalo). Now, this grown woman must create some magic of her own to help the little girl inside find the true love she left behind.« less
A few good songs and dance scenes and moments but other than that, hit the 120X FF and seek out some better flicks.
Movie Reviews
Stick with the Special Edition version!
Cubist | United States | 02/08/2006
(3 out of 5 stars)
"Despite the unoriginal premise (the movie Big recast with a woman), 13 Going on 30 is a very entertaining movie and this is due in large part to its star, Jennifer Garner, who brings to her role loads of charm. This movie is the perfect vehicle for the actress because it allows her to break away from the action hero persona that she cultivated with the T.V. show Alias and Daredevil and prove that she can do a romantic comedy.
Garner, with her warm, disarming smile has a wholesome, girl-next-door quality that is quite endearing. She's beautiful but not in an unattainable way. She also has natural comedic ability, for example, in one scene, Jenna livens up her magazine's boring party with an impromptu dance to Michael Jackson's "Thriller," inspiring others to get up and dance as well. Garner also has a very expressive face that is perfect for the broad comedy of this movie. She is willing to take risks and make fun of herself. She is also willing to put herself out there and is not afraid to appear goofy and this only makes her that much more appealing.
13 Going On 30 is the victim of the dreaded double dip. If you already own the Special Edition version of the movie, the two new extras hardly warrant a re-purchase. Also, if you already own the previous edition you might want to hold onto it as the audio commentary by director Gary Winick and the commentary by producers Gina Matthews, Donna Arkoff-Roth, and Susan Arnold is not on this edition.
New to this edition is "Fashion Flashback: Into the 1980s" that features teen models gushing about how much they love the "retro" look of the `80s. It tells you what to look for and where to track down "authentic" clothes of that era.
"Making of a Teen Dream" takes us through the making of the movie in a fun, breezy way that is customary of most press kit type featurettes. The cast speak admiringly about each other in this self-congratulatory extra.
There is a "Bloopers" reel, a collection of blown lines and other assorted goofs that are quite cute.
Also included are two music videos, one for Pat Benatar's "Love is a Battlefield" and another for "Jessie's Girl" by Rick Springfield that allows you to immerse yourself in pure `80s cheese.
The most enjoyable extra is "I Was A Teenage Geek." The cast talk about what they were like in the `80s. Everyone tells amusing stories of what they were doing in high school with photos of what they looked like at the time.
There is also an "Alternate Beginning and Ending" that features different actors playing Jenna and Matt when they were kids. The scene is about the same length as what is in the movie but is edited differently. We get more detail on Jenna's desire to be one of the popular girls. Thankfully, these were not used.
Finally, there are 15 deleted scenes with more footage of Jenna and Matt at the magazine party and so on. These scenes flesh out the relationships between the characters."
BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR...
Lawyeraau | Balmoral Castle | 08/22/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is an absolutely charming and delightful comedy with an excellent cast. Do not, however, see this film unless you are ready to suspend disbelief. After all, the premise of this film is that a distressed thirteen year old girl suddenly finds herself propelled into the future and into the body of her thirty year old self.
Jenna Rink is a typical teenager, a little gawky, a little insecure. She pals around with her uncool best friend, Matt Flamhaff, but, at the same time, is trying to make it into the cool six chicks clique at her school, a nasty little group of teenage hotties who use Jenna for what they can get from her. They agree to come to her thirteenth birthday party, if she will do a class report for their leader. She agrees.
Matt is the first guest to arrive, and he gives her a little, doll sized dream house that he has made for her, replete with magic dust. When the other guests arrive, they soon depart with the needed report in hand, after playing a very mean trick on Jenna and leaving her desolate. A set of circumstances causes the magic dust to fall upon Jenna, just as she makes a wish that finds hers transported into the future and into the body of her thirty year old self.
Jenna discovers that she now has every thing for which she had dreamed when she was thirteen. She also discovers how she has changed, and it is not a change for the better. She turns to Matt, whose friendship, she is shocked to find, has been lost somewhere along the way. Jenna then sets about putting to right what went wrong. Of course, there are any number of humorous incidents that arise out Jenna's current situation.
Jennifer Garner is sensational as a thirteen year old girl trapped in the body of a thirty year old woman. She infuses the role with just the right amount of innocence and joyous abandonment that teenagers often exude. Kittenish and coltish all at once, her charm is infectious. Mark Ruffalo is perfectly cast as the grown-up Matt. He exudes sensitivity and niceness, all rolled into one very compelling package. One cannot help but like both characters tremendously.
This is an entertaining film for those who enjoy light-hearted fantasy films. This film has been compared to the film, "Big", and while there are some similarities between the two, this film stands on its own two feet and deserves its own accolades. Deft direction by Gary Winnick and excellent performances by the entire cast make this film a comedic gem to be enjoyed by those who like a charmingly realized film.
"
More Profound Than We Would Have Guessed
Bradley Headstone | New York | 05/06/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"On the surface, this movie may seem like just another fluff movie. However, giving this movie its fair chance, we soon learn that it is anything but that. Basically, as the movie starts, we are introduced to the 13 year old Jenna Rink. She is unpopular and unhappy. More than anything, she wants to hook up with the 6 'cool girls' in the school. Her friend Matt tries to explain that to her that there really isn't much to admire or envy about the '6 cool girls.' Matt seems like a nice of enough person, but Jenna doesn't have her eyes on him. Rather, she is after the popular Chris Grandy. After reading some teen magazines, she decides she wants to be '30, flirty, and thriving' just like the people in her magazines. Well, somehow, she gets her wish and 17 years fly by. Not only is she 30, but she has a high paying job that she wanted, and her best friend is (or was)Tom Tom the leader of the 6 cool girls. She is understandably confused at first, but she soon becomes happy over her wish coming true. To some extent, she is still talking and acting like a 13 year old, but it does make sense. Well, soon the "Bedazzled" formula comes in. (If you saw that, you know as Frasier made his wishes, the devil or Elizabeth Hurley threw some unwanted element in.) Garner's movie is more profound. Jenna gradually realizes that even though she has gotten her wish, she doesn't like the person she has become. To be sure, she 'supposedly' did bad things in the missing 17 years she had no control over. But even in the time as a 30 year old she DID have control over, she gets notably shallow and self centered. Possibly, the most profound aspect of this film is that it exposes the hypocrisy of society. Remember, the magazines Jenna was reading as a 13 year old, filled her with the desires for the wish. And even after Jenna got the wishes that society filled her with, she was really unhappy with herself when she realized the kind of person she became. And the even worse price she may have to pay is Matt. Matt was never really popular, but he held to his important values even though they didn't make him popular. Jenna has lost his friendship; he has gotten engaged to another woman; while he to a generous extent finally forgives Jenna, Jenna realizes that they have become so different. Also, Jenna may have gotten the best friend she wanted. However, she eventually learns that being friends with 'whoever is cool' may not be real. They may be willing to drop you when they realize that your friendship is more dangerous or possibly less beneficial to them. One of the most powerful elements in this movie is that the company Jenna works for is in trouble, and the key to saving her place of employment may directly parallel what Jenna needed to resolve with herself. In all honesty, there isn't a dull moment. And you do walk away feeling like the time spent was enriching as well as entertaining. (RARE FEELING AFTER A MOVIE THESE DAYS!)"
Super sweet and whimsical movie!
Nicoletta Carlone | Los Angeles | 02/15/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is a feel good movie. It is not really creative on story line, and boils down to your basic romantic comedy with a little fantasy thrown in, none the less it makes a great movie to watch over and over again just because it is so fun.
This movie tells of Jenna, a girl who is a total sqaure when she is 13 and longs to be popular and respected. She makes a wish on her 13th birthday, using some "fairy dust" that her friend gives her to make a wish. When she wakes up, she is in a high rise apartment in New York City, with a hot hocky playing boyfriend and a job as a top magazine editor at the magazine she read as a teen, plus she has a closet full of fabulous clothes, what girl wouldn't want that??
Because of her wish, it turned out she got everything she wanted, except for the friendship and the love of her friend Matt. She must figure out how she will fix this relationship, so she can get him back, as well as save the magazine from the resident backstabbing snob.
This movie is very cute. Jennifer Garner plays the 13 year old stuck in a 30 year old's body well. This is a must see, must buy movie!"