Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.
When her family moves from the city to the suburbs, 11-year-old Margaret navigates new friends, feelings, and the beginning of adolescence.
- Released: 2023-04-27
- Runtime: 106 minutes
- Genre: Comedy, Drama
- Stars: Kamryn Phillips, Abby Ryder Fortson, Rachel McAdams, Kathy Bates, Benny Safdie, Wilbur Fitzgerald, Elle Graham, Ethan McDowell, Mia Dillon, JeCobi Swain, Gary Houston, Aidan Wojtak-Hissong, Sloane Warren, Amari Alexis Price, Simms May, Landon S. Baxter, Samantha LeBrocq, Natalie Maguire, Francesca Black, Jane Klecker
- Director: Kelly Fremon Craig
Comments
- xnicofingerx - 7 April 2024
There was not the attention it deserved here
Every year, these cosy films come around again, time travel, which in the best case, this one, work because of certain predicates: preferably a coming-of-age scenario, with likeable written protagonists, generally good actors, an appropriate budget for an authentic setting, of course the soundtrack and, last but not least, an interesting core theme. Here it is, see the reference in the title, a question of faith. Don't worry, no direction is favoured here, if then rather that of disbelief. But the rest of the usual themes are also presented in an appealing way: family, friendship, first loves, but without overly problematic constellations. So it's more of a feel-good film, unjustly underrated. - ethanbresnett - 9 January 2024
A thoroughly enjoyable coming of age film
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret is an awkward, funny, emotional and engaging coming of age story driven by a great lead performance from Abby Ryder Fortson.
The story follows Fortson as the eponymous Margaret, who must tackle all the awkwardness that growing up brings with it as she moves to a new school and tries to settle in to a new chapter of her life.
Although there are elements of this story that will resonate much more with it's female audience, there is still a universality to it that everyone can relate to. As a result it's a really endearing and absorbing story that produces lots of laughs and emotional moments.
As well as the more obvious themes you'd expect in a coming of age story, there's an interesting religious theme that maybe could have been explored a tad more but which brings a good added layer to proceedings.
I've already mentioned the great lead performance from Fortson, but there's a great collection of supporting performances, namely from Rachel McAdams and Kathy Bates who bring these three generations of women and the relationships between them to life perfectly.
The result is a solidly enjoyable coming of age story that has pretty much everything you could want. - spasek - 11 November 2023
Growing Up
Back in the 70s, many kids, including myself, were avid fans of Judy Blume books. "Tales of the 4th Grade Nothing" and "Superfudge" were among my favorites. She had a way of creating family environments and writing from the point-of-view of young preteen kids that you could easily relate to.
Not many film adaptations from books are actually very good, but this one is definitely an exception. It's sweet, filled with preteen angst about the trials and tribulations of growing up, going to school, making new friends, and perhaps some crushes along the way!
Margaret Simon has moved from New York to New Jersey. Her best friend is her grandmother, played exceptionally well by Kathy Bates.
It isn't long before Margaret finds herself talking to God. Hence, "Are you there, God? It's me, Margaret." From new boy crushes, to going through puberty, to trying to settle the religious questions, she invariably finds herself talking to God.
Margaret is a sweet girl who finds herself navigating all of the preteen angsts from buying a bra that she doesn't need, to asking God when her chest will finally begin developing (leading to a hilarious ritualistic chant with her friends!), to looking at anatomy books as well as Playboy magazines for some "enlightenment."
However, Margaret quickly finds that things aren't always what they seem. Her neighbor and friend, Nancy, is one of those arrogant kids who profess to have all of the answers to life's questions; that is until she finds herself in the middle of reality and sobbing in the women's bathroom stall.
Margaret is also unwittingly put front and center in terms of religion. Her father is Jewish. Her mother is a Christian, with neither of them being practicing participants. Margaret explores different churches as she tries to find God, but always seems to find herself being left well short of that goal.
A turning point in the film is when Margaret finally meets her other grandparents (grandparents who disowned her mother for marrying a Jewish man), and realizes that their only goal is to convert her to their religion.
With some irony, Margaret writes her research paper about religion and makes a very wise and insightful discovery. She concludes, "I didn't find God in any of these churches. Just me."
Nothing has done more damage or brought greater harm to humanity than religion, and it's especially sad when children are caught up in the middle of it. As it's stated in "Angel Heart," there's enough religion in the world to make men hate but not enough to make them love.
However, by the time this gem of a film ends, we are confident that Margaret is well on her way and in very capable hands--her own!
Performances across the board are very good, but young Abby Ryder Fortson gives us a young, sweet, intelligent, and somewhat naive Margaret Simon who is simply endearing, which is a big reason why the film works as well as it does.
So many preteen films are told from the boys' point of view. How refreshing that this classic book was finally brought to film and we could see things from the girls' point of view. Not only is it refreshing, but it's also needed for the young girls today! While it does have a PG-13 rating, girls from 10 and up will find this appealing and informative as well!
