Jersey Girl is something new for writer/director/star Kevin Smith and, opening to credits, it's his first big-name all-"serious" flick, and it's wonderful. 10/10 material, in this reviewer's opinion. As stated elsewhere, this movie would have been box office gold if not for the media circus surrounding "Bennifer" before its release.
Jersey Girl stars Ben Affleck as Oliver Trinke (Trink-ee), a successful young publicist who falls in love with Jennifer Lopez (er, her character Gertrude Steiney). Tragedy ensues, and not to spoil the moment, but Affleck must raise their daughter as a single parent. Trinke's stress at having to be a single parent drives him to explode at work during a critical press conference, and he loses his job. Now depressed by both the loss of his job and his single parent status, Trinke must find a way to deal with life and love once again as he seeks out a new place for himself in the world.
Liv Tyler makes a splendid performance as a sort of love interest for Ollie, and it's a credit to Smith that Tyler looks so good. Somehow, he made all the makeup artists calm down and just let Tyler look like her natural self- it's a breath of fresh air, and goes a long way to showing how down to earth this movie really is. Look out for Will Smith in a wonderful cameo that's set up perfectly by events in the movie, and George Carlin in the most endearing role I've ever seen him in. There are actually a few near- tearjerker moments delivered by Carlin, a sort of range I've never seen from him before.
But the movie is really about Ollie's (Affleck's) relationship with his child Gertrude ("Gertie")- played by the amazing Raquel Castro. Castro is amazing in her role, and looks perfect as the offspring of Affleck and Lopez- something few movies of this sort ever manage. She's adorable, and she's perfect in her part. Also look out for baby Gertie. I usually HATE this sort of 'chick flick' movie in general, but I was cooing out loud at the wonderfully cute moments in this flick. Again, no spoilers, but there's one scene in particular with baby Gertie and Affleck that won't leave a dry eye in the house, nor fail to put a smile on each and every face. Cinema gold.
Many people will comment that the ideas in this movie are rehashed. A father feels out of place raising kid alone, father tries to get back to his life, conflict arises, ho-hum. But there's something more to that- this story doesn't just recycle ideas, it uses them. Sure, the plot elements have been seen before, but what movie doesn't? You know the action hero's going to get the girl, and you know he'd going to save the day, but you pay for a movie ticket because you want to be entertained on the way there. This movie accomplishes that in spades.
In short: Lots of the performances in this movie should have been Oscar contenders in this reviewer's opinion, even if this flick really is just a light family story in the end (baby Gertie scene!). Affleck demonstrates that his bad name in the press really is undeserved, and Raquel Castro is the perfect daughter to Affleck's Trinke. Marred by Bennifer, and disrespected by former Smith loyals who expected something more crude, this flick may never see the credit that it deserves. Do yourself a favor, round up the kids/spouse/signifigant other, and enjoy this dazzling flick with a box of Kleenex handy. Truly amazing. Jersey Girl
This is a comedy that does not present the viewer with novel ideas and that does not use innovative ways to make us laugh. But, even though the plot may be trite, the outstanding Raquel Castro, in her role of Gertie, gives a freshness to this film that makes it worth watching. This little girl captivates the hearts of the viewers, and allows us to enjoy the time spent on this otherwise average comedy.
Ollie Trinke (Ben Affleck) is a successful New York publicist working for the music industry. One day he meets Gertrude (Jennifer Lopez), a serious business woman, who right away makes him fall for her. Everything happens quickly; Ollie takes Gertrude to Jersey to meet his father (George Carlin) and then asks her to marry him, getting her pregnant that same night. Things are going great, the couple is in love, they keep up with their busy lives and they are fashionably late for every event they have to participate in. Everything turns south though when Gertrude dies after an aneurysm she carried ruptures during labor.
Ollie cannot deal with the situation and asks his father, Bart, to take care of the baby. But Bart is not willing to keep it up for long, and Ollie finds himself with a baby under his care and out of a job. That is when he decides to be the best father in the world, and seven years later he is working sweeping the streets of Jersey with his father and trying to get back in the world of publicity.
Besides Raquel Castro, I found the performances of George Carlin (I love this guy's humor) and Liv Tyler to be particularly good. I consider myself lucky by the fact that Tyler got the role of Maya, a graduate student who works in a video store and meets Ollie and Gertie during one of their trips for movies. This allowed Tyler to get much more screen time than Lopez gets, which I think helps the movie overall.
I'm a big fan of Kevin Smith's first five movies, but I was well aware before entering the theater for Jersey Girl that this was not View Askew's classic blend of dick and fart jokes. If I hadn't known that, I might have wondered what the hell was going on, as this is actually a touching movie.Jersey Girl has less similarities to Mallrats and more to Chasing Amy; it's about how love doesn't always go the way you think it should, but that doesn't mean it sucks completely. One thing that really took me by surprise was that the movie was less about Ollie Trinke and the video store clerk falling in love, but more about Ollie connecting with his daughter, and discovering what he really wants out of life, with a little help from Will Smith (ANOTHER big surprise there! Sorry if I ruined it for ya).The movie may not be as slapstick and vulgar as Smith's previous works, but that doesn't mean it's squeaky clean and straight-laced; plenty of laughs in this flick. I liked the fact that Gertie, rather than perform something childlike and cute at the pageant, chooses a scene from Sweeny Todd, of all things. The acting here is as top-notch as the cast that delivers it; Jason Biggs and George Carlin were great, and Liv Tyler is cute as a button. Also, the soundtrack deserves a nod, especially for throwing in that Cure song at the end, which fit in perfectly.The quabbles I had with the movie are few. The biggest one was the scene in which Trinke is talking to his infant daughter about her mother; it's a little too melodramatic. Afflek's acting just wasn't his best there, but it's still a good scene. The choice to include "Landslide" in the soundtrack was poor; not because it's a bad song, mind you (as it's not), but because I'm sure it's been used in plenty of soundtracks before, and it was a "safe" choice. Also, the scene with the diaper-changing was disgusting... though it was supposed to be. Actually, I just don't like watching the scene, heh.So I give this movie 4/5 stars. I don't think it's his best work ever, and it's dangerously close to chick flick status, but it's a really good movie that will warm your soul. View Askew has by no means lost their touch, and I hope whatever movies they produce in the future are this good or better. - Ben Affleck - George Carlin - Romantic Comedy - Liv Tyler'
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