Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. (2023)

April 29, 2023 5:40 PM

When her family moves from the city to the suburbs, 11-year-old Margaret navigates new friends, feelings, and the beginning of adolescence.

Judy Blume has stated in interviews that the movie is better than her book. What do you think?

Written and directed by Kelly Freemon Craig, who also wrote/directed The Edge of Seventeen from 2016

posted by bearette (6 comments total)

I saw this today. It was very good! The actor playing Margaret is great, really expressing the nuances of feelings and anxiety that come with the character and the age group. like the book, the script nails the frank talk about sex and bodies and the excitement, fear, and cruelty that often comes with being in 6th grade.

I was really emotional while watching this movie. The confusion over God and religion and the 6th grade social dynamics (especially the ostracism of the girl was more physically developed) got to me especially.

Loved the soundtrack, too
posted by bearette at 5:51 PM on April 29, 2023

I was surprised they chose to set this in its original historical period rather than updating to the present day. That took some guts but was absolutely the right choice.
posted by rikschell at 4:56 AM on April 30, 2023 [1 favorite]

I really enjoyed this! I had just reread the book prior to seeing it and it does the book justice and I think the minor changes were great. All the young actors were excellent and I liked the expanded roles for her parents (Rachel McAdams is a delight here).

It's funny (as is the book) but it's always on the kids' side. It's never cruel toward them (they can be to each other, of course). It felt very relatable and I'm glad it translated that aspect of Judy Blume's work onto the screen.

The soundtrack was perfect, too!
posted by edencosmic at 7:42 AM on May 1, 2023

Just saw it and really enjoyed it. The performances were all great, and I thought the religious sections were handled really nicely. There were a bunch of lines and moments that felt anachronistic to me, but overall it was a fun watch, and I’m glad I saw it in the theater (even if only to give the studio my money to encourage them to make more movies like it)
posted by Mchelly at 2:23 PM on May 11, 2023

Movie Hutchinsons seem like they want to still have Barbara in their lives when they leave.

Sylvia sings a bit of the melody of "To Life" from Fiddler on the Roof at dinner. The movie didn't come out until late 71 but the internet broadway database says the touring production came to Columbus ( the closest city to movie Hutchinsons) in 67. Would there have been local radio and TV ads at the time?
posted by brujita at 6:11 PM on July 2, 2023

I don’t remember the scene, but TV variety shows would regularly feature Broadway performers, and a lot of popular singers would cover Broadway tunes (Sammy Davis Jr. as one notable example). Any hit show tunes would get pretty wide play. Plus Sylvia is from New York and could easily have seen the show on Broadway herself.
posted by Mchelly at 7:07 PM on July 2, 2023