Diary Of A Teenage Girl follows the story of Minnie, played by fresh-outta-the-box actress Bel Powley (she's gonna be big), who's writing her own self-discovered narrative of sexuality and what it means to be a teenage girl, in the seventies, in San Fran.
The plot is really as simple as that, but that's the magic of this film. Teenage-hood isn't a simplistic rendezvous of awkward pre-adolescents all making out at a party - it's much more.
It's quite common in coming of age films that the actors who play the teenagers in said films are utterly romanticised to the point that you realise you're watching extremely overly-attractive twenty-something year olds trying to pass as fifteen year olds.
I know that my teen years were pretty damn shit, and when I watch movies like Project X, or The Breakfast Club, it makes my adolescence feel completely inadequate. I didn't get to go to an enormous house-party, with a piñata filled with drugs, and model-like beings all doing body-shots off of each-others chiseled abs. Nor did I get to get high and dance in the library with Judd Nelson.
I dare to say that Diary Of A Teenage Girl (keeping in mind that I am not a female, although I was a teenager) is one of the most relatable and relevant things I've watched in years - I really felt like Minnie was just like any of us, whilst exploring our sexuality. The confusion, the heart-break. And while you're watching her go through all of this, you just want to reach in and whisper some kind words of wisdom, because you know exactly how it's going to end up, because it's happened to you.
Pulling away from plot, and focusing on performances, I just want to give an internal round of applause to Kristen Wiig for her role in this film. It's been one of her more serious roles as of late, and I'm so glad she's venturing into this territory, because she is really showing her range as an esteemed actress. The same goes for Alex Skarsgard (#mancrusheveryday), who also killed his role as Minnie's mother's boyfriend.
If you're looking for a film that you'll see a little bit of yourself in, then watch this film. If you're looking for a film that you'll be embarrassed to admit that you've have the same thoughts as Minnie, then watch this film. If you're looking for a film about forty year-olds who pretend to be teenagers for the sake of the hollywood star-system, then don't watch this film.
I give Diary Of A Teenage Girl four and a half sexualised cartoons out of five.
