Just Another Girl

This project was done away from Hollywood. In "Just Another Girl..." it focuses on an aspiring college bound student. Who has to cope with her plans being detoured.

The characters were a little materialistic. Question: is someone that drives a Benz, Bimmer or an SUV more man than someone who rides the subway? Go figure! Though this story had an urban theme; it did not have a plot that revolved around violence, guns and drugs. Because Leslie Harris didn't go the Hollywood route; the big screen depiction of her story was told how SHE wanted it to be told. She did not compromise her craft; which justifies why the film made a killing in the after market!

While this is a very good debut for the writer/director, the end falls apart. The story revolves around a seventeen year old girl living with her parents and brothers in the Brooklyn projects. She is a good student, and spends the majority of her time working and hanging out with her friends. She meets a guy at her school, and soon becomes pregnant. Her decision to hide her pregnancy and the lengths she goes to while doing so take up the second half of the film. As good of a film as this was, I feel it really fell apart at the end. It wrapped everything up nicely, and denied the viewer the emotional payoff that the film promised. In the end, she did become 'Just another girl on the I.R.T.

I think people are being so0o close-minded about this movie, that its pretty sad. The director did a great job at showing urban life and how it is growing up as a teenager, because I know thats just how I am and that how it really is where I'm from. I feel like I can relate a lot to the character since I have more going for myself and I am trying to get out the hood, which I think the director was trying to show. Just because you come from poverty doesn't mean you have to stay and that Doesn't MEAN YOU CANT DRESS NICE!!! Also in a movie, nobody says you have to like the main character, so why are so many people writing that?? You don't have to agree with the things the main character does, the director is just trying to get a story across. And just because someone is BOOK SMART, it doesn't mean they don't like flashy things such as cars, because their just not used to it. And whoever wrote the comment about making $500 in a little grocery store- you are so wrong!! And Lastly, just because you live in an urban area it does not mean that you surround yourself around VIOLENCE, GUNS, AND DRUGS!! People can be so ignorant about lifestyles they never experienced and then they want to be comment negatively about it. I think the director did a great job!!

If there was one truly great thing about "Just Another Girl On The I.R.T.", it's the incredibly realistic dialogue. This fact is especially remarkable when considering that most of the film's cast haven't acted in a film previously, including Ariyan A. Johnson, who plays the protagonist, Chantel Mitchell. Not only is the dialogue funny at times and poignant at others, but it's almost as if you're in New York City listening in on real people's conversations. Any other movie with as low a budget or as unknown and as amateur a cast would have had dialogue that was wooden or may have sounded forced.

No one can critique this film without mentioning the character who represents "Just Another Girl", namely Chantel. Chantel is certainly not "just another girl", as she makes perfectly clear when she breaks the fourth wall. The best thing about Chantel, and what some critics (especially on this site) don't seem to understand about her, is that she is a complicated, round character. At her best, she's ambitious, hard-working, clearly very smart, and incredibly charismatic. However, she clearly makes some wrong choices in this movie which most viewers probably look at in dumbfounded awe. The reactions that Johnson reflects upon realizing those wrong choices are very familiar and genuine.

There is unfortunately very little written about Johnson's life and background anywhere on the Internet, which may account for her strong, believable debut performance in this movie. However, Johnson plays this complicated character so convincingly that it's hard to believe this is her feature film debut. She has since had noticeable supporting roles in two critically acclaimed features ("Bulworth" in 1998, and "The General's Daughter" in 1999), but hasn't acted in a movie or TV show since 2004. To say she is an underrated actress is indeed an understatement, and I would love to see her appear in another film sometime soon.

Of course, the plot is something which other reviewers on this site have been critical about. Although it is true that the plot is somewhat unusual, it's not exactly a bad thing when the plot of a movie can't be explained in one sentence. If anything, plot complication can be a valuable asset to a film, and "Just Another Girl on the I.R.T." is certainly no exception.

But then again, a number of Spike Lee's films had similar non-linear plots. This film reminded me of something Spike Lee would have directed not just because it had a majority African-American cast. This film drew parallels to "She's Gotta Have It" with a strong, independent female protagonist, the constant breaking the fourth wall and addressing the audience, and the frank discussions about sex. It also reminded me of "Crooklyn" and "Do The Right Thing", along with a number of character-driven films by Jonathan Singleton.

I'm not so sure if this was a film "Hollywood didn't dare to make", as stated in the closing credits. After all, Spike Lee revolutionized black cinema, and is still no stranger to controversy with the messages in his films. Plus, the issue of teen pregnancy has been dealt with in cinema before (e.g., 1989's "For Keeps") and since (2007's "Juno"). So what Leslie Harris meant by that statement is unclear to me, and did actually come off as a bit cocky.

Still, this film deserves a lot of credit for its dialogue, characterization, and uniqueness in its own right. Ariyan Johnson brought a lot to this film which other actresses with her experience may not have been able to handle. It's too bad director Leslie Harris didn't make a follow-up feature, or even a sequel. But still, to make a mark on Hollywood with a film like this, even if it's only one time, is quite the accomplishment. I just wish more people could see this film.

I was fortunate to find a used DVD of this film in a local music store. I only paid about $7 for it, and it remains a priceless addition to my DVD collection.

The actress playing the main character had some charisma, but otherwise the acting is really terrible, even for an indy. The actors themselves are clearly inexperienced, but the director apparently didn't know how to work with them to pick up the pace, and probably didn't have the budget to do more than one or two takes. The cliche dialogue didn't help much either.