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:
Kelly Preston	...	Libby Reynolds
Soleil McGhee	...	Young Daphne
Colin Firth	...	Henry Dashwood
Eileen Atkins	...	Jocelyn Dashwood
Jonathan Pryce	...	Alistair Payne
Peter Reeves	...	Sir John Dashwood
James Greene	...	Percy
Amanda Bynes	...	Daphne Reynolds
Steven Osborne	...	Staff Member
Mike Toller	...	Libby's Band Member
Tom Penn	...	Libby's Band Member
Tom Goodfellow	...	Libby's Band Member
James Bell	...	Libby's Band Member
Mindy Lee Raskin	...	Bride
Stanley Townsend	...	Bride's Father

Storyline

Loosely based on The Reluctant Debutante (1958) starring Sandra Dee, this family-friendly comedy features popular Nickelodeon teen star Amanda Bynes in her first feature-starring performance after her debut in Big Fat Liar (2002). She plays teenager Daphne Reynolds, who lives in New York City with her musician mother, Libby Reynolds (Kelly Preston). After she turns seventeen, Daphne is undecided about her future, so she takes off by herself to London in search of her father. She immediately meets cute musician Ian Wallace (Oliver James) before sneaking in to her father's estate to surprise him. He turns out to be Lord Henry Dashwood (Colin Firth), a fabulously wealthy aristocrat who doesn't even know that she exists. He had met her mother in Morocco and the two were married in a tribal ceremony. Upon their return to England, she left him and went back to the U.S. without ever revealing that she was pregnant. The uptight Henry is already flustered by his campaign for election, advised ...

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Plot Keywords:

queen elizabeth ii character | gender in title | girl in jeans | american | england | 

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Taglines:

Trying to fit in. Born to stand out.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Family | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for mild language

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film's cast includes one Oscar winner, Colin Firth, and one Oscar nominee, Jonathan Pryce.

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Goofs

The registration number of the taxi the young Libby leaves in is, at first, CYP 44V - when her bags are thrown in. This is recycled footage from shots of the same vehicle (CYP 44V) which we see the older Libby and daughter Daphne leave in towards the end of the film. Additionally, as the younger Libby leaves, after her bags are thrown in, the registration number changes to MMX 902L (a vehicle seven or eight years older).

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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

References Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)

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Soundtracks

What's Your Flava?
Written by Craig David, Trevor Henry, and Anthony Marshall
Performed by Craig David
Courtesy of Atlantic Recording Corp. / Wildstar Records Ltd.
By Arrangement with Warner Strategic Marketing

User Reviews

Wow, like lighten up

The folks banging this movie have to get real. It's about an average girl (Bynes) who gets to meet her dad, who's in the process of running for major political office in England. It's not about Yankee superiority over the Brits (sheesh!), it's a simple fantasy about the effect a teenage girl has on her once-stuffy dad in stuffy society. If you're politically offended by this movie, imagine Amanda as a carefree Portugese girl visiting her long-lost dad, a member of U.S. Congress from Massachusetts, and chill out. That being said, Amanda Bynes is a cool and attractive leading lady/girl and plays very well with the other characters in this film. It's all been done millions of times before, and it's not Oscar material, but it was a pleasant diversion for me.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Warner Bros.

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 April 2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

American Girl

Filming Locations:

Globe Tavern, 8 Bedale Street, The Borough, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$11,434,964, 6 April 2003

Gross USA:

$36,105,433

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$50,732,139

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:

2.39 : 1