Harockerce What a beautiful movie!

MonsterPerfect Good idea lost in the noise

GazerRise Fantastic!

Doomtomylo a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

Movie_Muse_Reviews The title "The Diary of a Teenage Girl" sounds like it would entail a fairly tame iteration on a female coming-of-age story, yet Marielle Heller's debut as both writer and director happens to be the boldest coming-of-age indie ever made – and the most challenging."Diary" stars Bel Powley as Minnie, a 15-year-old aspiring cartoonist in 1970s San Francisco looking for an opportunity to lose her virginity. She does, and it comes in the form of her mother's (Kristen Wiig) boyfriend, Monroe (Alexander Skarsgard). As their illicit relationship becomes more and more involved and complicated, Minnie's relationship with her sexuality – and herself -- becomes equally so.There's no denying that it is difficult to overcome the moral issues of Minnie and Monroe's affair, and it requires of Heller a very sensitive touch and an iron-clad sense of purpose. She sugarcoats nothing for those with delicate sensibilities. There are a lot of sex scenes that by their very nature will make viewers uncomfortable, but Heller successfully avoids exploiting the character or veering off-message. She treats Minnie as an adult, and in her writing, it's clear that neither character is solely responsible or solely to blame for the relationship. The hardest thing to shake, as a viewer, is our tendency to be moral judges of Minnie's decisions and to hold notions of what the consequences should or will be for her actions. Switching gears and abandoning that approach to watching this story will be harder for some than others, but once it becomes clear that Heller's vision is completely judgment free, it becomes easier to embrace that aspect of the film.Naturally, the explicit nature "The Diary of a Teenage Girl" makes it instantly different than most coming-of-age movies. The usual archetypes associated with this sub-genre are much less ubiquitous, and the notion of a "loss of innocence" in the literary sense gets completely redefined here considering Minnie actively plays a role in it. The '70s time frame is a bit of a clue that this is not a movie intended for budding teenagers, rather for people who have already been through such formative, challenging experiences. Further evidence: the story comes from Phoebe Gloeckner's semi- autobiographical graphic novel of the same name.The maturity of the film, especially as it sees Minnie, requires a lot of Powley. She must be wide-eyed and optimistic, yet also advanced for her age and kind of devious. She must be sure of herself, yet unsure at various moments throughout the film. Powley (22 at the time of filming) is just old enough to get it down pat. As much as Minnie has flaws, we never come to despise her, and that credit belongs to the writing. There's a poetry to the diary narration in the film, but it's language that resonates. So much of what Minnie thinks and feels mirrors our own experiences (especially the insecurities), even if those experiences weren't as scandalous.Because we see the supporting characters from Minnie's perspective, they have to work harder to earn our empathy. It's virtually impossible for Skarsgard to earn it as Monroe, but he does convey that Monroe is a deeply lost, childlike soul. Wiig, on the other hand, does an impressive job in this non-traditional role for her as the mom, Charlotte. Charlotte does hard drugs with friends and says all the wrong things to her daughter, but her love for Minnie is apparent as are her other struggles. Her lack of affection and approval of Minnie undoubtedly has a hand in her desire to seek it through Monroe and others through sex.The animated graphic elements styled after the novel are excellent, if not underutilized. At the same time, adding this facet to the movie creates a slight bombardment of storytelling styles. You have the narration piece, the cartoon/animation piece and then the fact that this is a movie. It splinters the film's identity a bit, but all these media have something to offer the viewer in conveying Minnie's journey and experiences.Where Minnie arrives at the end of the movie is pretty satisfying and inspiring, even if you have to wonder whether a 15-year-old is really capable of arriving there. The story has a strong feminist message that people still struggle to learn, and has real-world value. It took some really uncomfortable, traumatic stuff for her to get there, but her self-discovery is more poignant than most of her indie coming-of-age peers.~Steven CThanks for reading! Visit Movie Muse Reviews for more

Alexis Smith Marielle Heller's debut film is not for the faint hearted. An unusually honest and brutal tale of love and coming of age - a story unlike most others in Hollywood. A gritty yet touching portrayal of 1970s San Fransisco with a shocking story like to fit the times. It's a good watch.

Howard Schumann Set in San Francisco in the mid-1970s, first-time director Marielle Heller's The Diary of a Teenage Girl looks at life from the perspective of a fifteen-year-old girl growing up absurd in an environment that provides little to no emotional support or guidance. Written by the director and based on the graphic novel by Phoebe Gloeckner, the film was the winner of the Grand Prix (Generation 14plus) at the Berlin Film Festival and was nominated for a Grand Jury Prize at Sundance. Minnie, in a remarkable performance by British actress Bel Powley ("A Royal Night Out"), is a confused and troubled teenager who lives with her divorced mother Charlotte (Kristin Wiig, "Welcome to Me") and her younger sister Gretel (Abby Wait).It is an environment that seems to be modeled after media notions of the San Francisco hip culture of the sixties, though, in reality, there was very little counter-culture left in San Francisco by the mid-seventies. Powley captures Minnie's innocence and personal appeal as well as her more manipulative moments, and manages to portray her as likable in a sea of unsympathetic characters. A talented comic book artist, Minnie speaks into a tape recorder in her room to journal her quest for a meaningful relationship, but the tapes are filled with self doubt and feelings of isolation that threaten to morph into self-loathing.The film opens when Minnie proudly announces that she's just had sex for the first time. Her sex partner, however, is her mother's 35-year-old boyfriend Monroe (Alexander Skarsgard, "The Giver"), who freely enters into the relationship with the teenager, mindless of any ethical or legal concerns. Minnie is definitely not an innocent victim and Monroe is not a predator, but both act like emotional adolescents who are caught up in the moment and seem powerless to extricate themselves. Minnie's continued sexual relationship with Monroe enhances her self esteem and she has a stake in keeping it going regardless of the danger that her mother will find out.The only real friend she has is Kimmie (Madeleine Waters) who brags of many sexual conquests herself and Minnie feels comfortable in confiding in her details about her affair with Monroe and other experiments that include different types of relationships with both men and women involving drugs and prostitution. Unfortunately, Minnie keeps coming back to Monroe who has by now become a sad character. The Diary of a Teenage Girl is an honest film that presents the characters and situations as they are without judgment or evaluation.Yet while it does not judge its characters, it closes its eyes to morally dubious behavior, not commenting on Charlotte's outrageous invasion of her daughter's privacy when she listens to her private tape recordings which reveal the extent of her relationship with Monroe, or addressing the question of a parent's responsibility to provide emotional support for a an emotionally fragile teenager, regardless of the environment in which they are living.While Minnie and Monroe go through the motions of self-reflection, ultimately there is little substance to their quest for self understanding. There is only an emptiness inside that the film touches on but hardly explores and leaves us with a sense of unfulfillment. Minnie tells her friend that Monroe has gone to participate in the EST Training in Sacramento which she describes as a self-improvement seminar. That is the last we hear of it, however, and we never see any positive results from Monroe's experience or that it in any way had touched his life. The only results that Monroe reports are that during the weekend he was arrested for drunk driving.The message of the film is about the importance of loving yourself before you can love others and Minnie takes a long road towards that goal but female empowerment should not only be about sexual awakening but about integrity, taking responsibility for your life, awakening to the beauty and mystery of life, becoming involved in things larger than yourself. Given the emotional vacuum in which Minnie lives, there is nothing to indicate that any lessons have been learned. Ultimately, this is a film that displays the forms of self-awareness but lacks its substance.

jadavix "The Diary of a Teenage Girl" should be re-titled "The Diary of a Ridiculously Lucky Teenage Girl, the Kind that Only Exists in the Movies".It's a teen angst pic with a teen who has little, if anything, to be angsty about. The girl is ugly, and yet she has sex with typical Hollywood hunk Alexander Skarsgaard many times throughout the movie, and doesn't stop there. She also has to fend off the advances of a beautiful high school boy, who she of course also ends up bedding.Oh, but we get obligatory scenes with her crying and screaming and wailing. About what?She should be so lucky!Come on. Teenage girls are just as horny and sex obsessed as the male variety. This story would have packed some kind of punch if the guys she got with were even half as believable. How would you feel about a "teen angst" pic about a boy, ugly, sullen and withdrawn, who loses his virginity to Elle McPherson one night, and then has to fend off the attentions of Jessica Alba, who he still ends up bedding.Would you be able to take that seriously? Would you watch and empathise with his "angst" and cry his tears and want to hug him? Or would you just laugh at the ridiculous movie-land plot trying to be serious and meaningful?What's the difference?