13 Going on 30 [WS] [Blu-ray]

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

Thirteen-year-old Jenna (Shana Dowdeswell) has had enough with the trials of adolescence. In addition to being saddled with a devoted-but-nerdy best friend, Matt (Sean Marquette), she falls victim to one of the dangers of playing Seven Minutes in Heaven with the coolest kids in school: being stranded without a willing make-out partner. Humiliated, Jenna buries herself in the aformentioned make-out closet, wishing she could skip the whole adolescence bit and move straight into adulthood, and miraculously wakes just weeks away from her 30th birthday. Of course, a lot has changed since going to bed the night before, not the least of which being an impressive set of womanly curves. The new, older Jenna (Jennifer Garner) is a successful magazine editor with friends in high places and a lion's share of potential suitors -- including a hockey-playing boyfriend and a swarthy married man. The problem is that her mind hasn't matured with her body; Jenna not only finds living on her own more terrifying than cool, but is quick to dismiss any male over the age of 14 as "gross." Half excited, half mortified, Jenna seeks out Matt (Mark Ruffalo), whom she learns she had spurned as a teenager in an effort to join the popular crowd. Gary Winick directed, from a script by Josh Goldsmith and Cathy Yuspa; Gina Matthews produced. Choreographer Michael Peters - who died in 1994 - received posthumous credit, as his choreography from the Michael Jackson Thriller video is used in one scene. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide

DVD FEATURES:

• Region: ABC
• Number of Discs: 1
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 (Theatre Wide Screen)
• Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1
• Screen: Color, Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV
• Subtitle: Spanish, French, Thai, English, Korean
• Features:
  • 18 deleted and extended scenes
  • Alternate beginning & ending
  • "Making of a teen dream"
  • "Making of a teen drama: Another take"
  • Blooper Reel
  • Two filmmaker audio commentaries
  • "I was a teenage geek" featurette reveals those awkward high school years of the cast including Jennifer Garner
  • Pat Benatar's "Love is a Battlefield" and Rick Springfield's "Jessie's Girl" music videos
  • "Fashion Flashback: Into the 80's"
  • Photo gallery

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Cast:

  
       Jennifer Garner - Jenna Rink
       Mark Ruffalo - Matt Flamhaff
       Judy Greer - Lucy Wyman
       Andy Serkis - Richard Kneeland
       Kathy Baker - Beverly Rink

• Director:

  Gary Winick

• Producer:

  Susan Arnold, Gina Matthews, Donna Arkoff Roth

• Screenwriter:

  Josh Goldsmith, Cathy Yuspa

• Cinematographer:

  Don Burgess

• Composer (Music Score):

  Theodore Shapiro

• Featured Music:

  Michael Jackson

• Musical Arrangement:

  Pete Anthony, Jon Kull

• Musical Direction/Supervision:

  John Houlihan

• Editor:

  Susan Littenberg

• Production Designer:

  Garreth Stover

• Art Director:

  Chris Cornwell, Raymond Kluga, Desiree Van Til

• Co-producer:

  Allegra Clegg

• Associate Producer:

  Desiree Van Til

REVIEWS:

• Independent director and producer Gary Winick goes Hollywood with 13 Going on 30, a film that does little more than remake Big by changing the gender of the protagonist. Taking the lead for the first time in a movie, Jennifer Garner gives her performance everything she has. She nails down the physical awkwardness of a 13-year-old in a suddenly grown-up body, and she gets the vocal tics just right. The screenplay itself, though not bad, fails to offer up anything original. Anyone should be able to know exactly where this film is going at all times, giving the film the unmistakable feeling that it is little more than a product. Winick keeps the audience in the film with smart casting. One sure way to spot a talented actor is to see someone transcend banal material. In Mark Ruffalo, Winick has his ace in the hole. Ruffalo does not steal his scenes, he saves them -- including a bizarre and finally winning rendition of the monster dance from Michael Jackson's "Thriller" video. Ruffalo is unable to be anything but completely believable, and he helps Garner modulate her performance so that the audience believes that everyone else in the film never questions that she is 30 even when she behaves like a 13-year-old. Judy Greer, playing the duplicitous best friend like an evil fifth cast member of Sex and the City, offers solid support. There is not a bad scene in 13 Going on 30, but simultaneously, one wishes every scene were better than it is. Had the talent of the screenwriters matched those of the performers, this film would have given Garner the same career boost that Big gave to Tom Hanks. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
• Independent director and producer {$Gary Winick} goes Hollywood with {#13 Going on 30}, a film that does little more than remake {#Big} by changing the gender of the protagonist. Taking the lead for the first time in a movie, {$Jennifer Garner} gives her performance everything she has. She nails down the physical awkwardness of a 13-year-old in a suddenly grown-up body, and she gets the vocal tics just right. The screenplay itself, though not bad, fails to offer up anything original. Anyone should be able to know exactly where this film is going at all times, giving the film the unmistakable feeling that it is little more than a product. {$Winick} keeps the audience in the film with smart casting. One sure way to spot a talented actor is to see someone transcend banal material. In {$Mark Ruffalo}, {$Winick} has his ace in the hole. {$Ruffalo} does not steal his scenes, he saves them -- including a bizarre and finally winning rendition of the monster dance from {$Michael Jackson}'s {&"Thriller"} video. {$Ruffalo} is unable to be anything but completely believable, and he helps {$Garner} modulate her performance so that the audience believes that everyone else in the film never questions that she is 30 even when she behaves like a 13-year-old. {$Judy Greer}, playing the duplicitous best friend like an evil fifth cast member of {#Sex and the City}, offers solid support. There is not a bad scene in {#13 Going on 30}, but simultaneously, one wishes every scene were better than it is. Had the talent of the screenwriters matched those of the performers, this film would have given {$Garner} the same career boost that {#Big} gave to {$Tom Hanks}. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

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