Girl in Progress (2012)

As single mom Grace juggles work, bills, and her affair with a married doctor, her daughter, Ansiedad, plots a shortcut to adulthood after finding inspiration in the coming-of-age stories she's reading for school.

Director:

Patricia Riggen

Writer:

Hiram Martinez (screenplay)

Stars:

Eva Mendes, Cierra Ramirez, Patricia Arquette

6 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Eva Mendes	...	Grace
Matthew Modine	...	Dr. Harford
Cierra Ramirez	...	Ansiedad
Patricia Arquette	...	Ms. Armstrong
Eugenio Derbez	...	Mission Impossible
Raini Rodriguez	...	Tavita
Russell Peters	...	Emile
Landon Liboiron	...	Trevor
Brenna O'Brien	...	Valerie
Ana Maria Estrada	...	Tavita's Mom
Kendall Cross	...	Alice Harford
Dana Michael Woods	...	Gilliam
Robin Douglas	...	Olga
Jocelyne Loewen	...	Becky
Blu Mankuma	...	Principal

Storyline

Ansiedad has always hated the fact that her mom Grace was never mature or responsible. After getting used to taking care of her mom instead of the other way around Ansiedad decides to become an adult in every way possible. With that in mind she creates an outrageous list of all the things she needs to accomplish in order to become an adult. This coming of age story shows that growing up is never as easy as it seems and that the best thing to do is stay put.

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Plot Keywords:

title directed by female | woman | coming of age | restaurant | waitress | 

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Taglines:

Lessons in motherhood. Taught by a Kid.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements, sexual content including crude references, and drinking - all involving teens

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

10 August 2012 (Bulgaria)

Also Known As:

Ansiedad

Filming Locations:

Maple Ridge, British Columbia, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$1,384,078, 13 May 2012, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$2,594,878, 17 June 2012

Company Credits

Production Co:

Anxiety Productions, Latitude Entertainment, Pantelion Films

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Datasat

Color:

Color Black and White (fantasy sequences)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

At the party Grace is drinking a beer, but her bottle is empty.

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Quotes

Ansiedad: By the way, I'll need to borrow your sister's bike to establish my plucky innocence.

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Connections

References Mission: Impossible (1966)

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Soundtracks

Oh Child
Written by Jessy Moss & Gregg Pagani
Performed by Jessy Moss

User Reviews

1000 reasons why it should not work .. BUT IT DOES!

Yes, I am aware that some members gave this film a low rating. They were wrong. No disrespect. Wrong happens.

1000 reasons why this "coming of age" vehicle should not have worked. Including the fact that it has been done before, hundreds of times, and this was yet another "Canadian" production (supported by the Canadian tax system) meant for the small screen and not really intended for an A-List rollout.

But sometimes everything comes together and you end up with an exceptional result:

* the script is superb. It is not enough that the daughter wants to accelerate her "coming of age" to rebel against her mother, she actually researches the topic and deconstructs it, creating a roadmap to maturity which of course is a roadmap to disaster. Clever! And innovative.

* the acting is to die for. Eva Mendes may give the best performance of her life here. Cierra Ramirez steals every scene not otherwise nailed down and several that are. Arquette as the sympathetic school teacher sells it bigtime and makes us all wish we had a teacher like that in school.

Really a great film, one that succeeds way beyond its aspirations. It is ironic that, for example, this reviewer took flak from members for ripping apart THE DUFF (a horrific A-List movie) but little gems like this often get lost in the shuffle.

Highly recommended.