thirteen (film)

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For the TV miniseries of a similar name, see XIII (miniseries).
thirteen

Promotional poster for the movie.
Directed by Catherine Hardwicke
Produced by Jeff Levy-Hinte
Michael London
Written by Catherine Hardwicke
Nikki Reed
Starring Evan Rachel Wood
Holly Hunter
Nikki Reed
Jeremy Sisto
Brady Corbet
Music by Mark Mothersbaugh
Cinematography Elliot Davis
Editing by Nancy Richardson
Distributed by Fox Searchlight
Release date(s) August 21, 2003
Running time 99 min.
Country United States
Language English
Spanish
Portuguese
Budget $2 million
Gross revenue $10.1 million

thirteen is a 2003 drama film co-written and directed by Catherine Hardwicke, and co-written by Nikki Reed. It is an autobiographical film based on Reed's life at age 12 and 13. The script was written in six days and originally meant to be a comedy.[1] The film caused controversy upon its release, because it dealt with topics such as underage sexual behavior along with drug and alcohol abuse and self-mutilation.

Tagline: It's happening so fast.

Contents

[edit] Plot

Evie and Tracy skip school to run around downtown Los Angeles.

Thirteen-year-old Tracy Louise Freeland (Evan Rachel Wood) writes poetry and is a straight-A student. Her divorced mother Melanie (Holly Hunter) is a recovering drug addict and high school dropout who struggles as a hairdresser to support Tracy and her older brother Mason (Brady Corbet). At Portola Middle School in Los Angeles, she is teased about her "cabbage patch" clothes by more popular girls. Melanie buys Tracy new clothing items from a discount vendor in a van. Thus clothed and much to her delight, Tracy is invited by Evie Zamora (Nikki Reed), one of the most popular girls at school, to go shopping on Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Although Evie gives her a disconnected telephone number, likely as a mean-spirited joke, Tracy takes a bus to Melrose Avenue anyway, where she finds Evie and a friend shoplifting. Tracy later steals a woman's pocketbook while she is distracted and the girls go on a shopping spree, whereafter Tracy and Evie become fast friends and Evie moves into the Freeland house.

Meanwhile Tracy is angered by and torn between her divorced parents, both of whom are struggling to earn enough money to live. Unknown to her mother, Tracy has been cutting herself as a way to cope with her stress. Tracy neglects her old friends and at home taunts Melanie's boyfriend, a former cocaine addict (Jeremy Sisto). Melanie sees hints of what is happening with the two girls but is unable to stop them, further thwarted by Evie's manipulative but likely truthful claims of childhood abuse. As Tracy steadily shuts Melanie out of her life, Tracy and Evie become very close, even talking to each other in their own ludling language. However, after the early thrills, Tracy's newfound popularity doesn't make her happy.

In one scene, underage Evie and Tracy try to seduce Luke (Kip Pardue), a lifeguard in his early twenties who is a friend of Mason's. Drawn at first into their kisses, Luke throws them out of his house and soon after moves away. One night in Hollywood, Mason and a friend make comments about a cute girl who has her back to them. When she turns around and answers with a scathing remark, Mason is shocked to see this is his sister, with a belly ring. In another scene, the two girls take turns inhaling from a can of gas duster and become so high they laughingly hit each other for kicks, drawing blood.

Melanie isn't aware of how deeply the girls have fallen into petty crime and drug abuse, but seeing the harmful impact Evie is having on their lives, takes Evie back to live with Brooke (Deborah Kara Unger), her guardian, an aging model and aspiring actress who also works as a bartender and is going through a painful recovery from cosmetic surgery. Tracy seems to agree with this step, after which Evie betrays her at school.

Failing seventh grade, Tracy comes home one day to find Evie, Brooke, and Melanie waiting for her. When the women confront Tracy about the girls' drug use and stealing, Tracy angrily blames Evie. Brooke says Tracy was the bad influence and that they are moving to Ojai to get away from her. Melanie stands up for her daughter, saying Tracy was "playing with Barbies" before she met Evie. Brooke grabs Tracy and pulls her sleeve up to show Melanie the many cuts and long scars on her daughter's left arm. Melanie, taken aback and shaken by this sight, tells Brooke and Evie to leave. Both mother and daughter weep on the kitchen floor as Melanie kisses her daughter's heavily cut arm. Although Tracy tearfully pleads with her mother to let go of her, Melanie holds on tight and they wind up in Tracy's room where they carry on hugging and fall asleep. The movie ends the next morning as Tracy wakes up with a start. Tracy later spins alone on a merry-go-round in the park, screaming.

[edit] Cast

[edit] Production

Melanie comforts and loves Tracy at the end of the movie.

Director Catherine Hardwicke has called Nikki Reed a "surrogate daughter", having known her since she was 5 years old. The two began the screenplay as a comedy project which would be shot to video at minimal cost. The screenplay was written in 6 days and quickly shifted into a tale of early teen angst and self-destruction in Los Angeles, with Tracy's character drawn from Reed's own recent experiences as a pre and early teen. Hardwicke didn't think it would be fitting for Reed to play Tracy and auditioned hundreds of girls for the part. After becoming aware of Evan Rachel Wood, Hardwicke came to believe she could make the film only with Wood in the role of Tracy and only that year, with Wood at that age. Hardwicke has said Holly Hunter's agreement to play the role of Tracy's mother Melanie was a key boost to bringing the production together. About $2,000,000 was then raised, almost all through independent equity financing, a very low budget for any American film meant for general cinematic release in the early 21st century. Most of the adult actors were widely known and all of them reportedly agreed to low pay because they liked the script along with other members of the cast and crew. Wood and Reed were both 14 during filming (Wood turned 15 during the shoot).

Their first audition together was at Hardwicke's house, which wound up as a slumber party that night. The wardrobe worn by the girls was mostly their own. As filming progressed, they began dressing similarly without being asked to do so. Although the girls are seen smoking, the cigarettes were made mostly with catnip. The crushed pills they are shown snorting from the cover of a children's book were harmless dietary supplements. During the belly piercing scene, the line in which Tracy asks "What the fuck did you do?" was not scripted but rather, Reed's thumb had slipped and she accidentally stabbed the top of Wood's belly button with the needle, from which she carried a scar. Although Reed's tongue piercing was real, Wood wore a costume version held onto her tongue by a small suction cup which was painful when taken off. Wood later said she swallowed a few during filming. All of the scenes in which Tracy cuts herself were shot in a single day and Wood recalled running to her brother for emotional support between some takes. Wood later described the shooting of the scene in Luke's house as "awkward". The whole scene was rendered in a single, long and uncut take with Wood, Reed and Pardue, but was tightly choreographed with several crew members, social workers and parents also in the small room, carefully staying either hidden or behind the camera as it panned more than 200°, showing all four walls.[1]

The movie was shot on lower cost super 16mm film. The camera was small, had a Panavision lens and was mostly hand-held by cinematographer Elliot Davis. This allowed shooting in very tight spots, such as in the bathroom. One tracking scene was shot with the camera mounted on a discarded shopping cart which the crew happened to find nearby. More or less all of the scenes were filmed on location, with some on Hollywood Boulevard and at Venice Beach. The Freeland home scenes were shot at a rented house on Babcock Avenue in the San Fernando Valley. The many outdoor school scenes were shot at Portola Middle School in Tarzana, most of them on a single Saturday in searing heat. Many of the extras were students and a few were crew members. Some scenes in the film were carefully and colorfully lit, while others were shot only with whatever daylight could be had. The shooting schedule was limited to less than a month and the underage actors could only work 9 1/2 hours each day, closely watched by a paid social worker. Taken altogether, this reportedly made for a frenetic production atmosphere which cast and crew later said matched the script and added to the film's fast and emotionally taut pace. The film stock was transferred to the digital domain wherein the colors and saturation were highly manipulated for some segments.[1]

thirteen was picked up by a major distributor only after production was completed. Because of the film's R rating in North America, the underage stars had to be accompanied by adults to see it at public showings.

[edit] Critical reception

thirteen received positive reviews. The film is currently rated as 82 percent "certified" fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, including 89 percent fresh among cream of the crop critics[2] and a 77 percent fresh among the Rotten Tomato community. Holly Hunter was nominated for 2003 Academy Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. Both Hunter and Evan Rachel Wood were nominated for Golden Globes the same year, respectively for Best Supporting Actress and Best Actress in a Drama.

[edit] Pop culture and urban culture references

In order of their appearance in the film.

Reference Part of the movie Supporting quotation (If applicable)
Cabbage Patch When Tracy throws something in the garbage and Astrid criticizes Tracy's socks. Astrid: "Who let her out of the cabbage patch?"
Usher When Tracy, Noël and Yumi are eating lunch and Tracy says she has to go the bathroom so she can try and impress Evie. Yumi: "Ok, so for the project I'm doing J-Lo, how about you?"
Noel: "I'm doing Usher"
Tracy: "Uhh... I have to go to the bathroom."
J-Lo
(This one not in order) Referred to a second time right before Evie finds Brady's clothes in the laundry room Melanie: "You two aren't the only J-Lo's in the house; check out these sexy colours".
Melrose The first time Evie talks to Tracy and invites her to go shopping. Evie: "Call me after school. We can go shopping on Melrose."
Emporio Armani On a billboard as Tracy goes to Melrose for the first time on the bus to meet Evie. Quotation not applicable
Calvin Klein
Red Balls A popular store in California that sells urban style of clothing and accessories. This is where Tracy meets Evie and Astrid and learns that "shopping" really means "shoplifting".
Skechers USA The store where Tracy, Evie, and Astrid buy all the shoes with the stolen money.
Marijuana When Tracy gets high on drugs for the first time at the park at night.
LSD
Itsy Bitsy Spider A altered version of this song is sung by Evie when Mason brings them home from the park. Evie: "The Itsy Bitsy Spider dropped acid at the park."
Crack cocaine When Tracy has a flashback of Brady overdosing on crack which shows her dislike for him. Quotation not applicable
Christina Ricci When Tracy visits Evie's house for the first time and sees a picture of Ricci in Evie's room Tracy: "I love you Christina Ricci."
Bong When Evie and Tracy try to seduce Luke. Evie: "Luke. Where's your bong?"
Signs (2002) In the background on a billboard when Tracy, Evie, Melanie, and Brady are all on the way to the movie theatre. Quotation not applicable
Hollywood Wax Museum The place were Tracy and Evie went to when they were supposed to be at the movie.
Coca-Cola The two sodas that Tracy steals when Mason notices her belly button ring that she shouldn't have. Rafa: "Hey Tracy. Here's your cokes."
Tracy: "I didn't pay for them anyways."
Voodoo Juice What Tracy uses to get drunk when looking for Evie while they are supposed to be at the movies. Tracy: "What the fuck is that?"
Un-named character: "It's my voodoo juice my friends made."
Starbucks Part of a lie Evie uses to explain why they weren't at the movie theatre. Evie: "You guys. We went to go get something to drink at Starbucks. What's wrong with that?"
Bubba Sparxx When Mel discovers Tracy's bellybutton ring, and asks what is going on, Tracy quotes a line from Bubba Sparxx's first single 'Ugly' Tracy: "How else can I say it? I don't speak no other languages."
The Big Book When Brady tells Melanie that he can't live there anymore because Tracy is out of control. Brady: "I can't stay here anymore. This place is fucking with my head."
Melanie: "Go see Mario. He'll read you The Big Book."
Barbie When Tracy and Melanie get into a fight with Evie and Brooke at the end of the movie. Tracy: "Where do you think I learn all this shit from?"
Melanie: "Tracy was playing Barbies before she met Evie."

[edit] Soundtrack

The score was written by Mark Mothersbaugh.

[edit] Track listing

  1. "Mas" - Kinky
  2. "Super Bad Girl" - Iffy
  3. "The Equaliser" - Clinic
  4. "Ivanka" - Imperial Teen
  5. "(So I'll Sit Here) Waiting" - The Like
  6. "Make It with the Best" - Folk Implosion
  7. "Beso" - Carmen Rizzo (ft. Kinnie Starr)
  8. "Killer Inside Me (Meat Beat Manifestation Mix)" - MC 900 Ft. Jesus
  9. "Explain It to Me" - Liz Phair
  10. "Lemon" - Katy Rose
  11. "Baby" - Supervision
  12. "Pay Attention to Me" - Orlando Brown
  13. "The Freshest" - The Freshmaka
  14. "Nicotine" - Anet
  15. "Bien Caliente (Edit)" - The Tormentos
  16. "Score: The Shoot Out" - Mark Mothersbaugh
  17. "Score: Hit Me" - Mark Mothersbaugh

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment DVD video release, thirteen (audio commentary by Hardwicke, Reed, Wood and Corbet), UPC/EAN: 024543106586, 27 January 2004
  2. ^ Thirteen - Movie Reviews, Trailers, Pictures - Rotten Tomatoes

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thirteen_(film)"
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