Seriously. You have to roll a good distance into the film to discover exactly what has caused Greta to become a terror, but eventually it unfolds, raising all sorts of questions: is her suicidal tendency for real? Has she inherited her father's mental illness? That fear alone is enough to make a frightened teen lash out -- especially as her mother, her only anchor/support, shows a surprising lack of empathy (she sends Greta away to "save her marriage"). An ego-crushing blow, to be abandoned by one's sole surviving parent.
There are, of course, inevitably stock characters to flesh things out, and it's impossible not to recognize them very quickly: the sensitive and caring guy of a similar age--the *only* teen we see outside the dangerous Asbury Park slums Greta sneaks away to explore. And with his sweet, soft voice, gentle face and intent gaze, we recognize immediately that Julie (Evan Ross) is the romantic interest--whatever Greta's initial intent might be (shock the grandparents? Check!). Just as we recognize that Greta's grandmother (Ellyn Burstyn) will provide the friction, and her grandfather (Michael Murphy) will serve as a caring mediator, managing things with a patient humor.
That being said, Hillary Duff's performance is at its best when she is the brash, rude and rebellious Greta, and later when her armor starts to chip and she shows the pain underneath that callous exterior. Once Greta becomes more happy with life, Duff falls back on her Disney acting chops (yawn). Although the supporting characters are stock, they don't descend into boring because the parts are so well acted. It would have been better to see more of Greta's mom (Melissa Leo) on screen, to understand what makes her so seriously prickly and incapable of parenting her daughter. At 88 minutes, and layered with so many of the animated journal scenes, the film could have spared the time to pull this off.
Is this film like "Juno"? Essentially no. I found the character of Juno to be kind of precious, and artificial, and the film's conclusion saccharine. "According to Greta" deals with a teen-aged girl overwhelmed by the psychological scars (from dad, on several levels) and open wounds (from mom) of serious emotional trauma. And I was glad to see that she was such an intelligent and rebellious fighter--if she stopped fighting, she may have followed through with her suicide plot, far away from anyone who could save her. The conclusion was also well-done precisely because it was so open-ended. Will Greta and Julie live happily ever after? Probably not (how many of us are with our first teen sweethearts?) Will all be well between Greta, her mom, and her stepfather? Probably not. But that's life, and it remains a work in progress.
There are, of course, inevitably stock characters to flesh things out, and it's impossible not to recognize them very quickly: the sensitive and caring guy of a similar age--the *only* teen we see outside the dangerous Asbury Park slums Greta sneaks away to explore. And with his sweet, soft voice, gentle face and intent gaze, we recognize immediately that Julie (Evan Ross) is the romantic interest--whatever Greta's initial intent might be (shock the grandparents? Check!). Just as we recognize that Greta's grandmother (Ellyn Burstyn) will provide the friction, and her grandfather (Michael Murphy) will serve as a caring mediator, managing things with a patient humor.
That being said, Hillary Duff's performance is at its best when she is the brash, rude and rebellious Greta, and later when her armor starts to chip and she shows the pain underneath that callous exterior. Once Greta becomes more happy with life, Duff falls back on her Disney acting chops (yawn). Although the supporting characters are stock, they don't descend into boring because the parts are so well acted. It would have been better to see more of Greta's mom (Melissa Leo) on screen, to understand what makes her so seriously prickly and incapable of parenting her daughter. At 88 minutes, and layered with so many of the animated journal scenes, the film could have spared the time to pull this off.
Is this film like "Juno"? Essentially no. I found the character of Juno to be kind of precious, and artificial, and the film's conclusion saccharine. "According to Greta" deals with a teen-aged girl overwhelmed by the psychological scars (from dad, on several levels) and open wounds (from mom) of serious emotional trauma. And I was glad to see that she was such an intelligent and rebellious fighter--if she stopped fighting, she may have followed through with her suicide plot, far away from anyone who could save her. The conclusion was also well-done precisely because it was so open-ended. Will Greta and Julie live happily ever after? Probably not (how many of us are with our first teen sweethearts?) Will all be well between Greta, her mom, and her stepfather? Probably not. But that's life, and it remains a work in progress.