Alex in Wonder

This film is an homage to Judi Blume, who wrote books specifically for teen-age girls, battling with the issues of losing their virginity, what it was supposed to mean to them, finding their own passions in life and dealing with family issues. Judi's books were extremely comforting and refreshing to me, in comparison to all the myths I had been raised on in terms of first time sex, love and passion. Judi taught me that nothing is clean and simple and there are always choices to make. In the end the message is to "follow your heart", let others make their own mistakes, and see where this will lead you. Life will throw you a lot of curve balls and disappointments, but if you follow your passions you can stay the course.

I only saw the second half of the movie, and that should be a statement for itself. I never, really never watch a movie if it's not from the VERY beginning, except if special reasons are involved. This one was special. And her name is Angela Gots. She has just made my day. At first I was amused by her beauty, but in a matter of minutes discovered that there's definitely more to her. Her subtle facial expressions were truly impressive and the fact that she had no fear is even more. All in all this movie was a mass of above-standard acting and it made it highly entertaining. A small jewel perhaps, but then the lead actress is definitely a diamond in the ruff.

In the 70's, Alex Markov (Angela Gots) is raised by her mother Clarice Markov (Ellen Greene) to be a successful ballerina, and in their home there are no mysteries or taboo related to sex, since her father, Dr. Dan Markov (Robert Hays), openly discusses this subject with his family. When Alex reaches sixteen years old, her parents split while her boyfriend presses her to have sex blurring her dreams and making her confused. With the support of her family and friends, Alex supersedes her problems.

"Alex in Wonder" is an enjoyable coming-to-age movie, and the main reason is the débutant Angela Gots. This gorgeous young actress has a magnificent and charismatic performance, giving credibility to her character and making the film work. I believe that most of the viewers will find some level of personal identification with this common story and will certainly appreciate this little gem that deserves to be discovered. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Sexo e a Garota" ("Sex and the Girl")

Angela Gots does a real nice job as do Robert Hays and the other actors, but other than that it's obvious that The director Drew Rosenberg either was: A( not alive or B) was completely out of it: or C:) Just was hoping to get laid sometime in the early 70's. One of the biggest issues I have with so called period pieces like this is that: If you cannot license the music than don't attempt to have some lame wannabe imitate it and no one and I mean NO ONE said "far out after 1971. I really wanted to like this movie but whoever was the person on charge of continuity pretty much stole money. Later episodes of Happy Days or M*A*S*H were truer to their respective eras.

Watched this tonight. An hour and a half I will never get back in life. This film is slow, has a weak plot, and terrible acting. The film is headed by the far too mature looking lead actress Angela Gots ,a teenager with ballerina ambitions whom I found personally unattractive and confusing. Unfortunately for the viewer Angela Gots is a terrible actress and her supporting cast does not fair much better to save this film and lift her up. I personally watched for Alison Lohman who simply did not have enough screen time. Over all I found this film messy, unbelievable, and melodramatic. I could not find interest in this film or its cast but maybe you will have better luck.