What a Girl Wants (2003)

An American teenager learns that her father is a wealthy British politician running for office. Although she is eager to find him, she realizes it could cause a scandal and cost him the election.

Director:

Dennie Gordon

Writers:

William Douglas-Home (play), William Douglas-Home,

Stars:

Amanda Bynes, Colin Firth, Kelly Preston

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Amanda Bynes	...	Daphne Reynolds
Colin Firth	...	Henry Dashwood
Kelly Preston	...	Libby Reynolds
Eileen Atkins	...	Jocelyn Dashwood
Anna Chancellor	...	Glynnis Payne
Jonathan Pryce	...	Alistair Payne
Oliver James	...	Ian Wallace
Christina Cole	...	Clarissa Payne
Sylvia Syms	...	Princess Charlotte
Soleil McGhee	...	Young Daphne
Peter Reeves	...	Sir John Dashwood
James Greene	...	Percy
Steven Osborne	...	Staff Member
Mike Toller	...	Libby's Band Member
Tom Penn	...	Libby's Band Member

Storyline

Daphne, a seventeen-year-old girl from New York goes to England in search of her father, who does not know he had a child with an American girlfriend he met while working in Morocco, and whose aristocratic family did not approve of the woman.

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Plot Keywords:

american | england | scandal | morocco | british | 

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Taglines:

Trying to fit in. Born to stand out.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for mild language

Details

Official Sites:

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. [uk]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 April 2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

American Girl

Filming Locations:

Battersea Park, Battersea, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$182,428 (Brazil) (19 September 2003)

Gross:

$401,212 (Brazil) (3 October 2003)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros, Gaylord Films, DiNovi Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Anna Chancellor and Christina Cole who play mother and daughter in this movie both played Caroline Bingley. Anna in Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth (who is also in this movie) and Christina in Lost in Austen.

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Goofs

When Glynnis is on the phone at breakfast she takes out her earring while on the phone. When she hangs up the phone the missing earring jumps from the left ear to the right ear.

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Quotes

Glynnis Payne: Oh, put a cork in it, Clarissa.
Clarissa: Maybe someone should've put a cork in it seventeen years ago.

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Connections

Referenced in Film Geek (2005)

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Soundtracks

"I Wanna Be Bad"
Written by Brian Kierulf, Joshua Schwartz, and Amanda Williford
Performed by Willa Ford
Courtesy of Lava Records LLC
By Arrangement with Warner Strategic Marketing

User Reviews

Trailers stank, Movie shines

I went into the theater today expecting a good movie. I was wrong. Why was I wrong? Because this was a GREAT movie!!!

The trailers made this film look INSANELY cheesy. Since I know from experience that trailers are highly inaccurate, I was expecting a PARTIALLY cheesy flick. But what I saw had almost no cheese to it at all. What A Girl Wants, despite its unfortunate title, is what a LOT of people want, combining drama, comedy, romance, and self-discovery in an hour and 45 minutes of enjoyment.

I didn't say insight, mind you, I said self-discovery. This is purely a narrative, not a deep thought movie, and it wouldn't have worked any other way. Kudos to Dennie Gordon for not trying to accent a theme that we're already familiar with, rather, she just throws it into the story, almost casually, so that we see the message of individuality but aren't repulsed by an overly blatant moral.

Many of this film's detractors say that it's a rip of The Princess Diaries. Not true. Yes, it's an adaptation, but it's based on "The Reluctant Debutante", which was around for DECADES before Diaries was even conceived. Besides, while it is a little formulaic, there are a few twists.

Many say it portrays inaccurate American/British stereotypes. Not true. Daphne and her mother are CLEARLY presented to be NOTHING like the average American, and Lord Dashwood only behaves so properly because of his political position.

Amanda Bynes as Daphne Reynolds finally gets a chance to show of her incredible dramatic skills. (Moody's Point had too much of a satirical tone to properly show this.) Bynes has her glory moments of comedy alongside her touching moments as the girl who wants to understand who she is.

Colin Firth as Henry Dashwood. Come on, who didn't already know Firth kicks butt? He is the center of every scene Bynes isn't in, and he carries that weight well.

Eileen Atkins as Lady Dashwood does a tremendous job with her supporting role, who is far more crucial to the plot than anyone expected.

Oliver James handles his theatrical debut well, showing much more emotion than the previews indicated. Libby Reynolds isn't a fully round character, but that's the script's fault, not Kelly Preston's. Both are capable singers, and considering that Bynes's one major performance flaw is lack of musical ability, I'm glad these two sang instead of her.

In fact, basically the entire cast here was superb.

See it, you'll be glad you did. Fine entertainment for almost everybody.