Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. (2023) Dir: Kelly Fremon Craig
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I was in need of some light relief one evening, and considering I had heard some great things about this Kelly Fremon Craig directed comedy drama, I felt like I should give it a go. I'm very glad I did, because the film was a real pleasure to watch.
As coming of age films go, this was a pretty enjoyable one. It was an interesting portrayal of growing up in America, growing up as a girl and growing up with split ideas of religion. The film pretty well encapsulates that complicated and challenging time in a young person's life where everything feels like its going sideways.
I found the religious aspect particularly intriguing. The way it is built up around Margaret, and how it affects her is pretty powerful. It was fascinating, how the weight of all of it lay on such young shoulders. I think the film shone a light on a lesser-spoken about aspect of growing up, in that sense.
I enjoyed that the story was slightly nonconventional in its structure. The slice of life feel of it felt very appropriate. There was a whole lot of story, with plenty of subplots, subtle character developments and little moments that feel like a lot - as they would in real life.
The music selections were pretty good, although there were no particularly unique choices, which was a very slight disappointment. I more appreciated the light, colourful cinematography, which was very warm and befitting the time period.
Abby Ryder Fortson was marvellous and, quite frankly, absolutely adorable. I was so impressed by her performance. She was able to express hugely varied emotions in such a sincere and believable manner. It would've been so easy to over-act, but she was fabulously composed.
Rachel McAdams was an absolute treasure. Her acting was truly wonderful from start to finish. She was such an endearing presence, and had some genuinely lovely scenes with Fortson. I think this was one of my favourite performances from McAdams, without a doubt.
In the supporting cast, I thought the trio of Kathy Bates, Elle Graham and Benny Safdie all stood out. Bates was as wonderfully entertaining and memorable as ever, Graham was a surprising delight and Safdie proved himself to be as expressive as always.
Other cast members who deserved at least a mention were Amari Alexis Price, Echo Kellum, Aidan Wojtak-Hisso, Katherine Mallen, Kate MacCluggag, Simms May and Isol Young.
Overall, I really enjoyed this lighthearted take on the early formulative years of a young girl's life. It was emotional, funny and surprisingly complex. I found myself really rooting for the protagonist, and I thought the conflict of the story was well-written.
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