Thirteen
The Plot:
This is the story of a 13-year-old girl, Tracy (Wood), and her experience of growing up in Los Angeles in an environment where pressures surround her, encouraging her to grow up too fast, leading her down a road of drugs, sex, materialism, and reckless teenage abandon and rebellion. Central to the story is Tracy's friend, Evie (Reed), whose wild influence has a peer pressure effect on A-student "good girl" Tracy. (From Yahoo Moves)
My Thoughts: (Reviewed by Big Pun)
Another strong independent film worthy of viewing is Thirteen….a harsh, harrowing and unforgettable film directed by Catherine Hardwicke….this film was one of the most disturbing transformations of a main character that I have ever seen on the screen...this is a film that holds nothing back…a film that is meant to draw a reaction…and a film that will definitely make you uncomfortable at times….
Holly Hunter leads a cast relative unknowns (Evan Rachel Wood, Nikki Reed, Brad Corbet, Jeremy Sisto) take us through the story of 13-year old Tracy (Wood) as she struggles with the pressure of growing up in LA and in an environment that drugs, sex and rebellion linger at her every turn….Tracy is an “A” student, a good girl…the kind of girl you have as a babysitter….only problem is, Tracy desperately wants more, she want to be accepted, she wants to be in the “cool” click…and she is determined to find a way in….
It starts innocently enough….a quick change in wardrobe and she seems to be in with the coolest girl in school, Evie (Reed)…But to gain Evie’s attention, one must take it a step further and Tracy proves up to the task, swiping a wallet filled with cash from an unsuspecting bystander and our duo is off on a shopping spree….from here we sit front row to Tracy’s down fall….drug use, drinking, teenage sex, stealing, self abuse….the list goes on and on…its often painful to watch a character we first see as so pure and whole be ripped apart….
Hunter plays Tracy’s mom, Melanie…a women with plenty of her own problems now trying to cope with the apparent changes in her daughter…and to say the least, she does a poor job…but it’s Mel’s compassion we feel….we see here willing to trust the deceiving Evie even though she continues to lie and lead her daughter down a path she knows is wrong….Maybe it’s because she just wants her daughter to be happy….that she can’t possibly envision her daughter to be that bad off…maybe its her own failed relationship with Tracy’s father (who has a brief scene as the too involved dad to realize his daughter is in trouble).
Tracy’s older brother, Mason (Corbet) also plays a key role…he want to help, he sees what is happening to his sister….but he is too young to deal…he doesn’t know how to handle what is happening either….
The film builds and build until we see it all come to a crashing halt…we watch as Tracy’s life ravels so out of control and then the crash and burn….tough to watch, tough to watch.
This film left me with lots of mixed emotions…I hated Evie, I hated her with every once of my being….Tracy was everything a parent could ever want at the start of the movie and we are forced to watch as Evie twists and turns her into something so tortured and jaded it kills you….I also had my issues with the mom…cause at first, its easy to say, “Well, she needed to be more involved in her kids life….its her fault it got that far”…too easy a cop out in my opinion. The more and more I thought about that aspect of the film, I felt bad for Mel…here is a single mom, struggling to make good in the world, keep her family together…and she just wants her kids to be happy….but it comes a too high a price unfortunately.
I wish I could say that there is a big happy ending and that all is well in the family’s world, but I can’t….Like we often see, art often inmates life….and in this film, like in life, there are no easy answers…there are no easy ways to clean up life’s messes…and that is one of the things this movie leave you with….a harsh reality….maybe most families in this country don’t have to deal with such problems as drugs, alcohol abuse, sex, self abuse, etc….but then again, maybe they are more often then we think….
This movie really made me think about growing up and what it means….I reflected on my own childhood and teen years, thinking how I never had to face any of these issues…maybe its environment i.e., where you grow up, who your friends our, your school….I don’t know, but I do know that things are a lot tougher today than they ever have been before….and that makes me sad…sad because the innocence of youth can be so easily lost….and that’s what I got from this film…..
The cast, as a whole is very good in this film….Wood takes on her haunting ride in convincing fashion…Reed, who also co-wrote the film with director Harwicke, is pure evil as Evie…but in truth, is a hurt and tortured soul herself and the only way to cope is to act the way she does…in truth, I felt maybe the most compassion for her than anyone else in the movie…
There are a few other actors you will recognize in this movie in Jeremy Sisto (Clueless) as Melanie’s sometime live in boyfriend…his relationship with Tracy is a key sticking point to some of her emotional problems….also Kip Pardue (Remember the Titans) as the neighbor who has a run in with the teenage duo….
This is a very good film and worthy of your viewing….just be warned, it is a rough and bumpy ride at times…..be prepared…..
Starring:
Evan Rachel Wood, Holly Hunter, Nikki Reed, Brady Corbet, Jeremy Sisto
Directed by: Catherine Hardwicke