Jersey Girl (2004)

After his career is sidelined by an unexpected tragedy and a personal blow-up, a single man must take care of his precocious daughter.

Director:

Kevin Smith

Writer:

Kevin Smith

Stars:

Ben Affleck, Liv Tyler, Raquel Castro

2 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Betty Aberlin	...	Teacher
Matt McFarland	...	Boy #1
Sarah Stafford	...	Girl #1
Paulie Litt	...	Bryan (as Paulie Litowsky)
Christian Fan	...	Boy #3
Victor Chavez	...	Boy #4
William Mace	...	Boy #5
Raquel Castro	...	Gertie Trinke
Ben Affleck	...	Ollie Trinke
Jennifer Schwalbach Smith	...	Susan (as Jennifer Schwalbach)
Jennifer Lopez	...	Gertrude Steiney
George Carlin	...	Bart Trinke
Stephen Root	...	Greenie
Mike Starr	...	Block
S. Epatha Merkerson	...	Doctor #1

Storyline

Ollie Trinkie is a publicist, who has a great girlfriend, Gertrude, whom he marries and they are expecting a baby but while he is looking forward to being a father, he doesn't lighten his workload. Gertrude gives birth but dies in the process. Ollie doesn't live up to his responsibilities as a father. Eventually the strain and pressure of losing his wife and being a father gets to him and he has breakdown, which leads to his termination. So with nothing much to do he tries to be good father to his daughter, Gertie. He also meets a young woman name Maya, who likes him but he is still not over his wife.

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Plot Keywords:

karma | hare krishna | baby | publicist | childbirth | 

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Taglines:

He wanted it all...but he got more than he bargained for.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 on appeal for language and sexual content including frank dialogue

Details

Official Sites:

Miramax [United States] Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 March 2004 (USA)

Also Known As:

Fatherhood Project

Filming Locations:

New Jersey, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$35,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$8,319,171, 28 March 2004, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$25,266,129, 27 June 2004

Company Credits

Production Co:

Miramax, View Askew Productions, Beverly Detroit

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Matt Damon has a cameo on the film.

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Goofs

The neck on Will Smith's turtle neck when Ollie is talking to him at the office.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Teacher: Everyone, please take your seats. You heard the bell. You know what it means. Last week, the assignment was to write an essay about your family. Who they...
Teacher: [class: "Are!"] And what they...
Teacher: [class: "Mean to us!"] Excellent droning.

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Crazy Credits

Jay says "Nooch." during the View Askew logo that plays at the end of the credits.

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Connections

References Sex (1992)

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Soundtracks

Worlds They Rise and Fall
Written by Mike Heron
Performed by The Incredible String Band
Courtesy of Elektra Entertainment Group
By Arrangement with Warner Strategic Marketing

User Reviews

Disappointingly average and unambitious

I've been a Kevin Smith fan for years, but my disappointment with Jersey Girl doesn't come from the lack of Jay and Silent Bob, or the fact that it isn't a typical View Askew film. I knew it wouldn't be that, and I went into the theatre just hoping to see a good film.

Jersey Girl has some nice moments, and some moments of genuine, skillful humor (especially for a musical theatre fan). However, the film as a whole is an enormous letdown for one reason: it's typical. Rather than making another typically Kevin Smith movie, Smith managed to make a typical Hollywood flick. Instead of insight, we get cloying sentimentality; instead of maturity, we get a series of cliche moments with a good-looking cast that just doesn't dazzle for whatever emotional whallop Smith thought the film would pack.

The situation and choices facing Ben Affleck's character are nothing new, and Affleck goes dutifully through the exercises, emoting when he needs to, but never really getting much out. You wind up rooting for him more or less out of the same sense of duty. George Carlin's father is depressingly tame compared to his brilliant standup routine; Jennifer Lopez is sweet but her perfunctory character never really makes any impact on the audience. Raquel Castro plays the absolute cliche end of a film child that she's written with the appropriate sweetness. Liv Tyler's character goes wildly from a toned-down character from one of Smith's earlier films in her first scenes (building up a bit of false hope that there will be something new to this blah exercise) to another cliche character in the later portions of the film. Not much of it can be blamed on anyone except the writer/director, though.

On principle, I have nothing against Smith branching out into other genres of film than those he touched on in his first five; that's an artist's choice, and should be his and no one else's. But Jersey Girl is simply settling for the typical and unambitious in film. If this is an indication of where Kevin Smith's career is heading, then I think he has lost it as a director who bears watching.