Quatro Amigas e um Jeans Viajante

Saw this movie with wife and two grand daughters. I was the only male in the audience--but, hey, there were only four people in the theater. And I think this is too bad. While I suppose this is a teenage chick flick, I thought it transcended most of that genre in that the main characters were intelligent, genuine human beings and not MTV stereotypes. The four actresses were up to the material and were able to convey their characters' strengths and weaknesses effectively. I also appreciated (as a male) that the young men in the film were shown as caring and decent--not just "dreamboats", funny sidekicks, or sex-crazed drunken frat boys--the other male stereotypes in so many films aimed at teens. This is a movie I think most females can relate to and that most mature viewers could enjoy except, maybe, for the guys who are still in arrested development and think that the only good movie is one where people and things get blown up or otherwise destroyed. And, hey, I like those movies too when they have a good script and good direction.

My 10 year old daughter and I went to see this yesterday. I haven't read the books, but she has. We had mixed reviews...I enjoyed the movie but Elizabeth was terribly disappointed. She kept whispering "Mom, that's not in the book"..."that didn't happen that way"...and apparently some pretty major discrepancies exist.

Because I didn't have any plot expectations. I thought the movie was well done. The characters were believable, the acting was great, the topics were handled in a manner that was suitable for my pre-teen to watch. The comments I overheard from the other audience members (99% teenage girls at this Friday matinée!) were positive.

My rating is a combination of my score (8 or 9) and her score (4 or 5). So just a word of caution...if you expect the move to follow the book, you may be disappointed.

We often have expectations that a movie will follow a book to the letter. Due to time limitations, creative ideas, etc. the film makers often need to adjust the story from the book to fit the film. As a lover of both books and film I ask that those who turn a book into a film follow the spirit and the feeling of the book. I believe the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants director and screenwriters did just that.

Basically the book tells the story of 4 teenage girls who are experiencing their first summer apart ever, since they have known each other since birth. Unbelievably, they find a pair of jeans which fits each girl amazingly well, although they have very different body shapes. They take this to mean the pants hold some sort of magic, so promise to send the pants to each other throughout the summer and use it as a way of keeping in touch with each other (thus - the traveling pants). The pants are sent from Tibby (staying at home) to Bridget (in Baja California, Mexico at Soccer camp) to Carmen (with her father in North Carolina) to Lena (visiting her grandparents in Greece).

Three of the story lines are very true to the book, although with slight variations. Tibby's storyline is almost a perfect match to the book, Bridget's is close, and Carmen's is slightly varied showing her in a less mature light than in the book. Lena's story, on the other hand, is told completely in reverse of the book. However, I can understand the need to make this change, as the twists and turns of Lena's story in the book would have been difficult to project onto film. The end result: the girls experience the same issues in the movie as they did in the book, and they change in the way the book indicated. The "feel" of the movie is the same as that in the book.

This film is truly a coming of age story about young high school girls. It is beautifully filmed with lovely scenery from both Greece and Mexico. The actors portraying the young girls are very well cast and match the descriptions from the book. As a librarian, I can tell you that no movie can ever equal the movie you make in your head while you are reading a book. But, this movie is beautiful in its own right, and a lovely story of growing up female and experiencing love, passion, death, and disappointment. The girls learn that the love and friendship they share will help them to get through all the issues of growing up.

This weekend, for my sisters 16th birthday, I ventured out with my father, mother and of course sister to see a movie. When we arrived at the theater I was briefed on which movie we were going to see, without a doubt thinking it would be some new action packed thriller that my dad, always forced my mom and sister to. I had no clue that we were going to see the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.

The worst part of the movie was forcing myself into a theater where I was one of about 6 guys. The rest of the seats were packed with girls of all ages, older women, teens, mothers, college grads, you name it. One would have thought Brad Pitt was making announcement before the show began. In case you didn't know all girls are obsessed with him, especially the ones who deny it.

Anyways the movie began and before I knew it my eyes were glued to the screen. Next thing I knew I was crying, my mom was crying, my sister was crying, and even my dad was crying. I looked around the room and noticed that every girl was sobbing, and of course you know when your watching an amazing movie when it causes such emotion. When it changes the way you feel and enlightens you in unbelievable ways.

So the moral of the story: All the women out there grab your girlfriends, or better yet your husbands, boyfriends, or whomever and drag them to this film, they will say they'll hate it, but they will love it!

Besides the fascinating documentary "Mad Hot Ballroom," another worthy attraction that probably got 'buried' by the Hollywood summer blockbusters is director Ken Kwapis film, "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants," based on the novel by Ann Brashares.

It is a cleverly edited, heart-warming travelogue/diary of four good friends during their first summer apart after graduation. America Ferrera (fantastic in "Real Women Have Curves" 2002) as Carmen, Alexis Bledel as Lena, Blake Lively as Bridget, Amber Tamblyn as Tibby, who ran into young Bailey - portrayed by Jenna Boyd (brilliant in director Ron Howard's "The Missing" 2003 opposite Cate Blanchett, Evan Rachel Wood and Tommy Lee Jones). There are life lessons from watching the different experiences each of them goes through - new places, new faces, new emotions that each of them encounters/discovers in their segments. The link between each of their summer adventures/activities is a pair of jeans they 'sworn' to share.

What a novel idea to present the various aspects of growing young women: Lena's Greek adventure spending with distant relatives and meeting Kostos, turned into a mini-version of Romeo and Juliet with family feud (verbal/non-verbal arguments vs. physical conflicts). Blake's energetic sporting camp environment with new companions eventually forces her to break out of her 'façade' of bravado behavior and the truth of parental longing surfaces. Carmen's journey raises emotional havoc as she struggles with the unexpected event of her father re-marrying, having to deal with new family members vs. her wish of spending quality time alone with Dad. Tibby may be doing nothing exotic or literal travels, but staying in hometown, working at the Mart, with the surprised 'intrusion' by Bailey the precocious 12 year old becoming her self-invited video assistant, somehow provided enriched life lessons. Unanticipated, the four friends bonded deeper and helped each other through stumbling hurdles, maturing expansively this one memorable summer.

I enjoyed this film better than the 1995 "Now and Then," a movie also about four girlfriends, with two sets of known actresses: Christina Ricci, Thora Birch, Gaby Hoffmann and Ashleigh Aston Moore as the young Rosie O'Donnell, Melanie Griffith, Demi Moore and Rita Wilson. "Traveling Pants," even though with budding young actresses, provided more in-depth emotional journeys, life wisdom, and picturesque romantic Greece for added value. This may be more of a 'girly' film, but certainly a family entertainment (likened to Disney quality productions like "The Parent Trap").

Also highly recommend a similar theme of five girlfriends (actually three plus a pair of twin sisters) film in Korean, written-directed by Jae-Eun Jeong, "Take Care of My Cat" 2001. It has a more gritty approach, included tough scenarios/facts of life to each girl's family background influences, the trials and tribulations of keeping up friendships fresh out of school. Heart-wrenching at times yet the youthful energy retained, the hopes and dreams, little romances and arguments, along with their (pager/email) cell phones constantly ringing/reaching for 'connections.'