"A
Brilliant Wake-Up Call"
THIRTEEN
RATING: B+
Starring:
Holly Hunter, Evan Rachel Wood, Nikki Reed, Jeremy Sisto,
Brady Corbet, Deborah Kara Unger, Kip Pardue, Sarah Clarke, D.W.
Moffet. Music by Mark Mothersbaugh, Co-Producer Rosemary Marks,
Editor Nancy Richardson, Director of Photography Elliot Davis,
Produced by Jeffrey Levy-Hinte, Michael London, Written by Catherine
Hardwicke & Nikki Reed, Directed by Catherine Hardwicke.
Rated R, Running Time 95 mins., 1.85:1 Academy Standard Aspect
Ratio.
I thoroughly enjoyed Catherine Hardwicke's debut feature, "Thirteen".
Some may find it disturbing, but I think this story of the downward
spiral of a"good girl" will ring true among many teen
girls. In the hands of a male director, I think the essence of
the story would have been held back and not seem like a bit of
truth at all. Someone like, say, Larry Clark might have concentrated
on the raw actions of the teen characters and left the love story
between a mother and daughter in the wind.
 Hardwicke,
a production designer who has worked with everyone from Costa
Gavras to Cameron Crowe, co-wrote the film with thirteen year
old Nikki Reed, the daughter of a former boyfriend who also co-stars
in the film. "Thirteen" is the story of Tracy (Evan
Rachel Wood) an over-achieving Junior High-School student who
gets high marks for her poetry but low marks amongst the clics
at school. Enter Evie (Reed), the popular girl at school who Tracy
is just dying to notice her. What starts out as a small friendship
struck between the two of them soon develops into a symbiotic
bond where their influences on each other leads them on a downward
spiral. Tracy becomes totally obsessed with Evie's world as she
changes her appearance, engages in promicious sex, self mutilation
and drugs. Her mother Mel (Holly Hunter) a recovering alcoholic,
thinks Tracy is just going through a phase. Mel has the difficult
job of raising Tracy and her older brother while contending with
support from an ex-husband and the fact that her daughter hates
her. Before long Evie has moved in, growing close to Mel as a
surrogate mother and becoming part of the family, due to the fact
that she was abused as a child and has lived with her beauty obsessed
cousin as her guardian (Debra Unger). Soon, Tracy is unable to
hide her metamorphosis from Mel as her live spins out of control,
jeopardizing her status in school and the unity of her family.
 "Thirteen"
is such a small independent feature, but its obvious that a lot
of love went into it by a talented cast and crew. Hunter came
aboard as one of the producers and puts in another memorable performance
as a mother who is unable to defend herself from her daughter's
agression towards her, a mother who's had her share of mistakes
in life and know that she sets a poor example for her daughter.
Wood, best known for her work on TV's "Once and Again"
takes on the role of Tracy as if she lived these experiences.
It's uncomfortable watching her evolve from a sweet and naive
girl to an addict. She doesn't just become addicted to cocaine
and alcohol, but, sex, clothes, stealing and the wild behavior
that even college kids shouldn't engage in. Tracy and Evie become
addicted to each other and their bond is almost impossible to
dissolve. For a first time actress Reed has a promising future
ahead of her as Wood's partner in mischief. Her work as an actress
and writer helps Wood take her similar experiences to the next
level. I also enjoyed the work put in by Jeremy Sisto, a former
child actor himself who's best known for his work on HBO's "Six
Feer Under." Sisto is completely believable as Mel's recovering
addict younger boyfriend, who wants to keep the peace but knows
that the tension within this family could cause him to slip back
into his habit.
 Hardwicke
has not only assembled a talented cast, but some individuals who
have put some time on big budget features and who normally aren't
cheap. Cinematographer Elliot Davis has worked with directors
from Soderbergh to Spike and has taken on the difficult task of
making a 16 mm film look good. I remember back in the *0's when
he took the Grace Jones Vampire flick "Vamp" and made
it look like Scorcese's "After Hours." He's done more
than that with "Thirteen", it looks great. I enjoy the
slight grain because it gives the film a raw quality, but also
his use of color, the moods of the characters almost seem to affect
the film itself. The saturation of color wonderfully alternates
from pale to vibrant. Editor Nancy Richardson has also worked
on some "Hollywood" features herself and I enjoyed the
way she splices together so many raw moments that convey so much
information in so little time without looking like an Mtv music
video.
I hope "Thirteen" enjoys more than just a modest success.
This film is a wake-up call, not to hinder and repress teens,
but to keep an eye on them, while giving them the space to become
individuals. At that delicate age girls as well as boys are starting
to figure out who they are, a process that extends all the way
into adulthood and almost never ends. Hardwicke and Reed are also
smart enough to realize that the media and advertising are no
help and that girls are constantly bombarded with images of "beauty"
as well as peer pressure. Its disturbing when I see even nine
year olds dressed like supermodels, wearing fashions that irresponsible
parents have introduced them too. It seems like so many are in
a hurry to fit in and grow up. Kids are going to want to experiment
and there is no harm in that as long as parents know what they
are doing and where they are doing it. Paying attention is the
key. It may seem like a disaster is coming but this film also
assures us that there is hope. Thirteen may be an unlucky number
but its also the title of a brave and excellent debut.
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