The Comedy Vault – 13 Going On 30.

13 Going On 30 (2004)

This is yet another American comedy film, and I was attracted to this one mostly because the main character was played by Jennifer Garner. In the early-2000s she was also the star of Alias, one of the few American drama series that I’ve taken an interest in, and along with The Invention Of Lying, I thought that it would be good to see Garner in the lead role in a comedy film.

I wonder if she would be able to adapt to a comedy role, because there definitely wouldn’t be intense big explosions causing people to fly through the air in this like there usually is in Alias, but of course she was, and it was good to see her doing something a little different. In 13 Going On 30, Garner starred as Jenna, a girl who isn’t having a great time at school.

She is in her early-teens and she would like to be more popular. But suddenly, time moves on, and she magically turns into a rather glamorous 30-year-old woman, and of course she is rather surprised by all of this. I know that they say they grow up so fast now, but this is ridiculous. A lot of the humour comes from Jenna trying to adjust to all of this new-found confidence.

You can only imagine that the guys will now be cueing up to date her, but in a way she hasn’t changed and still fears that she won’t ever find the boy of her dreams. Some critics seemed to think that 13 Going On 30 was little more than the female equivalent of Big, but it did work really, Garner showed the rather mixed emotions that Jenna would’ve been going through well.

The DVD also contains plenty of extras, including the usual commentaries, deleted scenes, and a look behind the scenes. And there 80s music videos from Pat Benatar and Rick Springfield, the songs also feature on the soundtrack. I wonder if back in those days they would’ve been the songs that everybody would’ve wanted to do a dance to at the school prom. Wouldn’t that be great.

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