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| Director Kelly Fremon Craig |
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| Director on the set with Rachel McAdams |
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| Ensemble with novelist Judy Blume |
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| Novelist Judy Blume |
ARE YOU THERE GOD? IT’S ME, MARGARET. B USA (106 mi) 2023 d: Kelly Fremon Craig
There have been plenty of recent coming-of-age films, Richard Linklater’s Apollo 10 1/2: a Space Age Childhood (2022), Colm Bairéad’s The Quiet Girl (An Cailín Ciúin) (2022), James Gray’s Armageddon Time (2022), Paul Thomas Anderson’s Licorice Pizza (2021), or Paolo Sorrentino’s The Hand of God (È stata la mano di Dio) (2021), this one is set in the 1970’s, adapted from what is perhaps the most famous work of American children’s novelist Judy Blume, selected in 1970 as the outstanding book of the year by the New York Times, with Blume making a brief cameo appearance walking her dog in the neighborhood. The star of the show is young Abby Ryder Fortson as 11-year old Margaret Simon, seen returning from the fun and games of summer camp when she is suddenly thrust into a sea of change as her family is moving from Manhattan in the city to the suburbs of New Jersey, which her parents are thrilled about, her mother Barbara (a very sunny Rachel McAdams) and father Herb (Benny Safdie), whose promotion precipitated the move, but Margaret is dumbfounded at the thought of losing her friends and stability, also the joy of living with her adoring, acid-tongued grandmother Sylvia (Kathy Bates, a wacky delight in every single scene), who will remain in the city. It’s all a bit much, but she’s just a kid, so what can she do about it? Out of sheer desperation, she starts praying to God, having little to do with organized religion, yet asking for immediate intervention, which becomes a regular occurrence, hoping she can salvage some bit of happiness in her budding life that appears to be a disaster in the making. The film has a comic edge that’s smart and funny, but most of all we get to heart of what Margaret is going through, suddenly thrust into a life she never asked for, feeling abandoned and desperately alone. Like an answer to her prayers, she meets a new friend on the day they arrive in their new home, an empty house filled with nothing but boxes, as a brazenly confident neighbor, Nancy Wheeler (Elle Graham), a girl her same age, struts into their living room as the neighborhood welcoming committee, prying her away from the sure disaster that awaits her and invites her over to her own home, the biggest house on the block, where entering her bedroom is like walking into a girl fantasia, with Nancy acting like they’ve been friends for years, where sharing women’s secrets seems to be of primary importance to her, wanting to form an exclusive club, with Margaret suddenly caught up in this rush of girl camaraderie, which is all about not wearing socks, boys, bras and bust sizes, kissing, and having your first period. This is a girly film about bodily changes, delving into humiliations and embarrassments that are unique to women, filled with all the adolescent anxieties of pre-puberty, where at that age just fitting in is all that matters, as it’s a lonely place to feel that you don’t belong.
In the year of Greta Gerwig’s BARBIE (2023), which has generated all the press, this film addresses many of the same issues without all the plastic artificiality, where young girls can channel their lives through Margaret, who expresses all the angst and unknown they are going through, filled with neverending questions, where you just never know what to expect. At its core, this is a story about change and belonging, as childhood can be a cruel and messy landscape to navigate on your own, where cliques, gossip, and feuds only exacerbate that anxiety, with this mainstream film having no lofty ambitions, instead it’s just a simple, character-driven story told in a way that feels very human and honest. As fate would have it, Nancy is in the same 6th grade class as Margaret, who is the last member to be invited into the club, the other members being Gretchen Potter (Katherine Kupferer) and Janie Loomis (Amari Price), the lone black student seen in the school, quickly discovering the other three all have the same secret crush, the dashingly handsome Philip Leroy (Zackary Brooks), but Margaret secretly prefers Moose Freed (Aidan Wojtak-Hissong), convincing her father to hire him for lawn mowing duties after her dad injures himself using a power mower. Blume is a white, middle-class mother who spent her childhood in Elizabeth, New Jersey, so much of this rings true from her perspective, where the suburbs are kind of a perfect world fantasyland with no real conflict, a time of tumultuous political and societal change, yet there is no mention of Vietnam or any other social issues of the times, and no sign of any poor characters, yet one interesting aspect is that Margaret’s mother, Barbara, is in the same state of flux as her daughter, trying to redefine who she is in the changing times of the 70’s, a former art teacher who is suddenly a stay-at-home mom, making herself useful by attending PTA meetings and volunteering for every single committee, forever trying to reconfigure their new home, where she acts as a medium for her inquisitive daughter who is constantly searching for answers. There is an obvious parallel between mother and daughter, but this is Margaret’s story, in an era without a smartphone and an inability to search for biological answers to many of her questions, where girls grew up in a moral panic about what the future brings. One intriguing aspect of this family, Margaret’s father and beloved grandmother are Jewish while her mother was raised Christian, with Margaret having the opportunity to choose her own religion when she grows up. But Margaret grows curious why they never spend any time with her mother’s family, which leads to the discovery that her parents are devoutly religious who disowned their daughter when she married a Jewish husband, despite the fact they loved each other, an appalling revelation that makes no sense to a young, undeveloped mind, so she starts to explore the different religions.
The novel, frequently cited on lists of banned books over the past fifty years due to its frank discussion of puberty, is told in the first person, where every moment is filtered through the eye of its eleven-year old protagonist, and while the tone of the film remains faithful to the book, grounded by its inherent humanity, it also appeals to an adult sensibility, using ironic humor as a warm contrast to the bracing coming-of-age experiences. Adapted by the director, it’s the first time since the book was published that the author has allowed an adaptation, yet this one is filled with a poignant tenderness as we follow Margaret spending a birthday with the entire class, or play spin the bottle, or spend two minutes in a closet with a randomly picked boy, positively thrilled at the idea of a coed party, filled with the anxiousness that brings. Margaret’s closet time is spent with Philip Leroy, the envy of all the girls, who provides her first kiss, where the musical soundtrack humorously cuts in with Dusty Springfield singing Dusty Springfield - Son of a preacher man YouTube (2:25), inventively cutting afterwards to Margaret visiting various church services of her friends, while also attending a temple service with her grandmother, yet none feel right to her, as she was never moved by the presence of God. Among the better scenes are her discovery that Nancy is a control freak that needs to feel superior, like a Mean Girl Queen Bee (ironically played by Rachel McAdams in the 2004 Tina Fey movie), often belittling the actions of others to mask her own insecurities, a reflection of her own parents’ country club mentality, yet the real tour de force is a visit from the long lost parents of her mother who have had second thoughts about their decision, attempting a sense of reconciliation by means of their granddaughter, holding out hope that she’s a Christian, wondering if she’s been baptized, but real adversity arrives in the form of her abrasive grandmother who faces them down, with religion creating a schism between the families, fighting their own Holy Wars right there in the living room, a contentious display of religious intolerance which leaves Margaret even more perplexed and disappointed. Her class research paper on the subject is a stinging rebuke of all religion, questioning whether there’s really a God to pray to, or if we are all alone in the universe. It is easily the most emotionally-charged moment of the film, with passionate ramifications, as it’s the first sign she’s thinking for herself and not just going along with the others, where she even questions whether she wants to be friends any more with Nancy, whose vindictive streak leaves her appalled when she discovers much of her allegations aren’t even true, but are just hurtful remarks subjecting others to ridicule and shame. It’s a remarkable turn of events, yet this is an intentionally non-judgmental film with a deep understanding of the struggles girls go through, where Margaret and her mother literally grow up before our eyes, making positive decisions about the world around them, which starts with making better choices about themselves. Definitely a film to watch for parents with daughters in their formative years, Fortson is naturally charismatic, becoming an endlessly compassionate character, yet it’s her mother’s unwavering love for her child that really stands out.
