Disturbing yet enthralling

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

Yes, I am aware that some members gave this film a low rating. They were wrong. No disrespect. Wrong happens.1000 reasons why this "coming of age" vehicle should not have worked. Including the fact that it has been done before, hundreds of times, and this was yet another "Canadian" production (supported by the Canadian tax system) meant for the small screen and not really intended for an A-List rollout.But sometimes everything comes together and you end up with an exceptional result: * the script is superb. It is not enough that the daughter wants to accelerate her "coming of age" to rebel against her mother, she actually researches the topic and deconstructs it, creating a roadmap to maturity which of course is a roadmap to disaster. Clever! And innovative.* the acting is to die for. Eva Mendes may give the best performance of her life here. Cierra Ramirez steals every scene not otherwise nailed down and several that are. Arquette as the sympathetic school teacher sells it bigtime and makes us all wish we had a teacher like that in school.Really a great film, one that succeeds way beyond its aspirations. It is ironic that, for example, this reviewer took flak from members for ripping apart THE DUFF (a horrific A-List movie) but little gems like this often get lost in the shuffle.Highly recommended.

This comedy-drama about the Mexican family living in America talks about a girl who wants to be an adult in a short period of time. With the usual teen comedy, the story goes all around showcasing a girlie side of mischievous behavior. This was not a great teen movie, but acceptable. It's just letting us know what happen when teens are not supervised carefully by their parents. Clearly to say, it briefs the differences between maturity and the word opposite to that.A struggling poor family of mother-daughter's life is not getting better, instead becomes worse everyday. Grace (Eva Mendis) has been busy all day between her two jobs and a relationship with a married which put her daughter, Annsiedad in a negligence state. Since Annsiedad's mother is not giving any attention towards her, she grows a rebellious character within. One day she decides to become an adult by discarding all the childish character in her once she had experienced them all. So she makes a list to encounter 'coming-of-age' and leave behind her childhood. The plan won't end, according to she arranged. Takes a diverted path and the conclusion of the story is what delivers a message for parents who is so careless of their children.''So now I'm free to fly. And I hop on a bus to adult-ville. My coming of age story is complete. Roll end credits. Bring up the house light. I am not a kid anymore.''The whole first half was like a silly teen movie with usual narration and there is nothing special about it to highlight. The humors that is not really funny kind of stuffs. Maybe we get used to it for seeing in every teen movie. The last quarter is what makes the sense, a lesson is to learn from it, for that you have to watch the whole movie. Teens want everything to be done so quickly, slow and steady is not meant for them. In such a concept this movie happens which reminds a proverb 'Rome was not built in a day'. The casting was good, both, the mother character played by Eva Mendis and her daughter's was shelved very well. After seeing a fair end scene I thought the script should have had a little stronger in the initial portions to balance its overall strength. Anyway, an average movie, but can be enjoyed if you are not too serious about what you want to watch.

For those who remember Cher and Winona Ryder in Mermaids and liked it, this is an updated Hispanic irresponsible mother and cry for help daughter comedy. There are some laugh out loud moments. The drama and comedy don't blend that smoothly as hoped but overall it's a cute story.The performances are good. Eva is funny and touching. She is a great comedienne and very convincing in the more serious moments. It's nice to see her in a real latina role speaking Spanish. She is believable showing blue collar struggles - much more than Jennifer Lopez.Strange casting of Matthew Modine as the married cad who romances Eva's character. He is usually the good guy so it's a bit strange to see him in the role.Overall it isn't has polished as Mermaids but it's worth a watch.

CABIN IN THE WOODS has a group of kids unknowingly forced into a slasher film setting, becoming victims of other people's whim. Ansiedad, our lovely protagonist, uses the same concept with a different genre and is in complete control of the situation, almost.In an attempt to mirror the plot-points of Coming-Of-Age novels, she intentionally lives the life of a good girl who progressively turns bad and, like in the books, sets up a character-arc by becoming a geek in the Club and then befriending the mean-spirited popular girls; going to parties; and hooking up with a rebellious womanizer.Not all of these plans are carried through, and along the way she burns bridges not intended: like hurting her overweight best friend and distancing herself even more from her single mother Grace, played by Eva Mendes, a sexy working-class free-spirit having an affair with a married man.Not sure whether it's a quirky JUNO type indie holding back or a mainstream flick with an edge, the film lacks focus while the over-opinionated teen gets annoying. She knows too much for her (and our) own good. Thankfully there's Grace… working at a Crab restaurant and trying to keep her affair alive… to even things out, but even her tale feels clichéd and, eventually, predictable.But despite the flaws, the actresses (including Patricia Arquette as an English teacher) try their best make it work.