MovieChat Forums > Beautiful Girls (1996) Discussion > 13-year-old girls don't talk that way

13-year-old girls don't talk that way

posted 11 years ago by lanis_cupus
55 replies | jump to latest

"So now I'm Marty. Just Marty. A girl named Marty. It is the bane of my existence."

Yeah, no.

The writer must have been very proud of this bit. If only he/she'd found an appropriate character for it. To have this come out of the mouth of a 13-yr old is to insult the intelligence of pretty much anyone over 13.

I would have appreciated the story more if Marty had turned out to be a construct of Willy's imagination. If the brother had said, "Nobody's moved in next door that I know of." This would have meshed with the fact that Marty has no parents and seems to just show up on the scene at every opportune moment. Yeah, it would have been a little hokey, but at least it would have worked.

Either way, she's not real. And I say this having liked the movie.

Note: Marty's even less real than Portman's Mathilda in The Professional. Mathilda, while equally precocious, was credible because she'd gone through severe trauma at a young age which caused her to take on certain adult characteristics. At the same time, she was revealed to be still a child in significant ways. Marty is straight up Tinker Bell.

That's the most you'll ever get out of me Wordman. Ever. -Eddie Wilson

[–] TheresOnlyOneFalco 9 years ago

I don't know. At age 9 I began learning my second language and by age 13 I spoke 3, of which I completely taught myself.
There's nothing unrealistic about some people exceeding their peers intellectually at any age. It happens.

[–] bowilly-88704 9 years ago

Marty is a fictional character,as were the rest of the cast in this movie. This fact makes Marty's character more than credible. Most movies are based on entertainment. Entertainment comes in many different forms, fictional characters in movies being one of them. You said that 13 year old girls don't talk that way. I totally agree. Now ask yourself how many adults do you know that talk that way, probably very few if any. Besides do we really need Reality TV following us to the theater. Who wants reality shoved in their face 24 hours a day. There is enough of that garbage on the local networks. Can't we the enjoy the performances given by the actors without everything being 100 percent accurate? There are countless ways this story could be told. The writers and directors chose to tell it this way. When we share our opinions on these public forums not everyone is going to agree with our posts. No one is going to change my opinion about the movie and it is obvious no one is going to change yours!! So now I'm Marty, Just Marty, A girl named Marty. IS THAT LINE THE BANE OF YOUR EXISTANCE?????

[–] phantomF-12 9 years ago

I grew up in the 90s, was brought up bilingual and learned my third language by 14.

Back in my middle-school years I knew quite a few kids who did talk like Marty, were trying to be philosophical, and most importantly who wanted to be considered as equals by the grown-ups and not as dumb kids.

I don't think that Marty's character is out of the realm of the possible, for the time period she's in. Maybe now in the 2010s things and kids are different.

[–] jbsptfn 9 years ago

I do love the skating scene where she quotes Lou Reed's Walk on The Wild Side. At first I thought it was a bit much that a thirteen year old girl in the nineties knew it, then I realized I knew that song before I was thirteen.

Also, five years before this movie came out, Marky Mark had his own version of Wildside. So, maybe she learned of it when she was eight.

I am back with a new username (formerly ajcdjb).

[–] lanis_cupus 9 years ago

When I was that age I was smart and often "tried" to be philosophical (your words). However, to anyone paying attention, there were ample hints and signs that I was in fact still a child. We never get those hints with Marty.

All things considered, she should have turned out to be a figment of Willie's imagination.

Is this to be an empathy test?

[–] nihatb48 9 years ago

Well, there may not be too many of them floating around, but they exist...And Marty is written as a precocious young girl who is fond of literature...So I'm guessing she is using quotes and words from literary works in her speech to impress Willie, the adult. She probably wouldn't talk like that when she is with her peers...

[–] lanis_cupus 9 years ago

And that's the whole problem. If it were obvious that she was putting on airs and trying to impress Willie, that would be one thing. But the writers submit the impression that Marty and Willie could in fact be peers, an idea equally as dangerous as them being potential lovers. Even if there could be such a girl in the real world, I don't think it's responsible to portray her on film. Many people only need the slightest justification or validation to commit a crime against a child.

Is this to be an empathy test?

[–] GirlwonderReturns 8 years ago

Frankly, while I did see much of Marty's character as unrealistic, one of the most unrealistic bits for me was when Willie said something sarcastic and she said "that's right, tease the little kid." Having once been a 13-year-old girl myself, I can tell you that there probably isn't a one on earth - or at least in the U.S. - who would EVER refer to herself as a "little kid", even in jest. 13 is the age at which girls are generally the most desperate to grow up, when they start wanting to wear makeup and more adult clothing, go shopping and to the movies by themselves (with friends), balk at being placed at the "kids' table". So while the Shakespeare and Lou Reed quotes may have been unrealistic, that line bothered me more. And I love the movie.

The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those that speak it.

[–] lanis_cupus 8 years ago

Actually, I do remember that line coming off oddly. But I think we're meant to believe that she's clever and crafty so she knows when to play the "kid" card. idk

My only issue is that Marty IS a kid yet the writers never do anything to clearly affirm such in the mind of the audience. Of course, I don't believe in the "old soul" nonsense. I've never met a kid who didn't have the standard set of insecurities and obstacles to surmount on their path to maturity.

On a related note, my (first hand) experience is that the further *ahead of oneself* a child gets, the longer and more difficult their path to maturity will be.

[–] cgc668 8 years ago

I have absolutely known 12/13 year olds who speak similar to Marty (extensive vocabulary past their years, knowledgeable - my daughter was a wiz at jeapordy at that age - she was better than some adults). Every individual is different - including children. It has nothing to do with growing up too soon and/or not enjoying their childhood. It has to do with the way they learn, their environment, the way their parents speak with them, whether they read books or not (my niece is an avid reader - books for her age level, but she gets immersed in stories and she likes to quote things), and their unique intellectual growth. That's all. And this is a movie for adults not children - somebody brought up how other children might feel watching this (what??) which makes no sense - especially considering all the other movies out there that are inappropriate for kids. Either way - it's fictional. It's a character. She's unique. She fits. And I personally liked her role.

[–] dexx-26415 8 years ago

Well her acting in this was really good , what happened in attack of the clones?

[–] psydecar 8 years ago

Isn't it sort of the point that her character is unusually bright for her age? Maybe her way of speaking combined with her confidence is a bit exaggerated, but, hey, it's a film. We don't watch films to see people act exactly like people we know.

And I'm not really seeing anything too unbelievable with the quote you used as an example. I wouldn't be surprised to hear a ten year old say that, yet alone a thirteen year old. A lot of kids parrot phrases they hear in films or read in books.

[–] lanis_cupus 8 years ago

But the point is that the story never exposes the character for what she is--a LITTLE GIRL. Basically, we need some evidence that Willie's been fooled by Marty. Otherwise, there's not enough there to support the decision he makes.

Is this to be an empathy test?

[–] khil28 8 years ago

We don't need evidence that he's been fooled to justify his decision not to pursue Marty romantically, he states why not explicitly in the movie; precisely BECAUSE she's a little girl: "I'm formed and you're not, you still have changes to go through, you'll change...you don't realize it now but you'll be doing some changing..." If you need evidence of her "immaturity" this is the scene in the film that "outs" her as the inexperienced kid she really is: her suggestion that he wait for her is plainly preposterous (and perhaps somewhere in her mind she knows this), but she clearly sees this as a viable possibility, however distant, whereas Willy knows it's impossible. For all her precocity and wit when she expresses her feelings for Willy she exposes her inexperienced heart and is shown clearly to be the thirteen year old that she is.

[–] lanis_cupus 8 years ago

I think you've got the movie completely backwards. If anything, Marty comes across as being more mature and grounded than Willy (et al). And "changes to go through", you say??? Who's going through more changes than Willy? His whole life is a crossroads!

Willy's clearly infatuated with the girl and speaks of how "amazing" she's going to be. I'm surprised he didn't entertain the idea of waiting for her. Why go back to crazy, scarred, neurotic "adult" women when you have a chance with someone who's baggage-free?!

Willy is as much an "unformed" child as Marty and I found his awakening in the 3rd act to be unconvincing.

[–] psydecar 8 years ago

Being bright and witty is not the same as being fully mentally and emotionally developed, and that's saying nothing about life experience. Knowing that she's still in high school is all the evidence we need that he shouldn't be pursuing her.

[–] lanis_cupus 8 years ago

I DO associate communication level and maturity and felt that she came across very emotionally developed based on her verbal interactions. As did Willie from his apparent affinity toward the girl. There are also young people who have significant life experiences and millions of people date someone with a disparity in that category.

I don't see anything solid in your arguments.

Is this to be an empathy test?

[–] ABBAcat 8 years ago

I think it does fit that a highly intelligent 13 yo would talk like that. They are usually called gifted and make the rest of us feel like slackers and idiots. I thought Marty was probably an only child who read a lot of great books, had well educated parents, and was used to chatting with adults on their level.

I did think she was a figment of his imagination, especially since he was going through some crisis which involved moving home and hanging out with his childhood friends.

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