Many kids feel that their home life is unusual. In the case of Vada Sultenfuss, an 11-year-old girl who lives in a funeral home and is obsessed with death, she can actually say that her life is a little unusual.
Set in the early 1970s, Vada (Anna Chlumsky) and her loyal best friend Thomas J. (Macaulay Culkin) are enjoying summer vacation in their Pennsylvanian hometown. Vada often pretends she's dying as a cry for attention from her father Harry (Dan Aykroyd), who is an undertaker at the funeral parlor they live in. Harry is constantly busy with work, and although he loves Vada, he's still saddened by the loss of his wife, who died when Vada was born. Therefore, Harry is distant from Vada and hides behind his job. When Vada isn't pretending to be sick, she enjoys riding bikes with Thomas J., reading, writing and admiring her handsome English teacher. One day, a woman named Shelly (Jamie Lee Curtis) comes to the Sultenfuss funeral parlor hoping for a job as a makeup artist. What Shelly doesn't know is that the home is a funeral parlor, not a beauty parlor like she was expecting. Although nervous about working with the deceased, she sees potential in this broken family and takes the job. At first Vada really likes Shelly, but becomes nervous when she sees her becoming closer and closer to her father. Determined to be as obnoxious as possible, she tries to pull her dad and Shelly apart, despite Thomas J's reservations. Throughout the summer, many difficult changes happen for Vada, but she realizes that life can be happy and fun despite death and hardship.
This film is a gift to every oddball girl out there in this world. Being a bit different and very dramatic, Vada doesn't have many friends other than Thomas J, but at the same time, he is the definition of what a best friend should be. Vada spends her free time going to adult creative writing classes and is constantly visiting the doctor, waiting for a diagnosis. She isn't the typical eleven-year-old, but Thomas J. sticks right by her side. Many girls, including me when I was young, can relate to that feeling of being different from the other kids, but being grateful that you still have your best friend behind you.
The settings in the film are like a time-capsule back to the early 1970s. The adult settings, such as the homes and cars, are very classic, but the children's settings, such as the bicycles, toys and posters, are very "1970s modern," and are disco- and hippie-inspired. Funky 1970s hits are also played throughout the film, including songs by The Temptations, The Rascals and The Flamingos. This film is a great opportunity for my generation to get a peek in to the past, and it gives an opportunity for the Baby Boomer generation to look back and remember life in the 70s.
This film will likely bring tears to your eyes, but at the same time it will warm your heart with hilarious pre-teen drama and 1970s bliss.
Rebecca Hiatt
My Girl
Many kids feel that their home life is unusual. In the case of Vada Sultenfuss, an 11-year-old girl who lives in a funeral home and is obsessed with death, she can actually say that her life is a little unusual.
Set in the early 1970s, Vada (Anna Chlumsky) and her loyal best friend Thomas J. (Macaulay Culkin) are enjoying summer vacation in their Pennsylvanian hometown. Vada often pretends she's dying as a cry for attention from her father Harry (Dan Aykroyd), who is an undertaker at the funeral parlor they live in. Harry is constantly busy with work, and although he loves Vada, he's still saddened by the loss of his wife, who died when Vada was born. Therefore, Harry is distant from Vada and hides behind his job. When Vada isn't pretending to be sick, she enjoys riding bikes with Thomas J., reading, writing and admiring her handsome English teacher. One day, a woman named Shelly (Jamie Lee Curtis) comes to the Sultenfuss funeral parlor hoping for a job as a makeup artist. What Shelly doesn't know is that the home is a funeral parlor, not a beauty parlor like she was expecting. Although nervous about working with the deceased, she sees potential in this broken family and takes the job. At first Vada really likes Shelly, but becomes nervous when she sees her becoming closer and closer to her father. Determined to be as obnoxious as possible, she tries to pull her dad and Shelly apart, despite Thomas J's reservations. Throughout the summer, many difficult changes happen for Vada, but she realizes that life can be happy and fun despite death and hardship.
This film is a gift to every oddball girl out there in this world. Being a bit different and very dramatic, Vada doesn't have many friends other than Thomas J, but at the same time, he is the definition of what a best friend should be. Vada spends her free time going to adult creative writing classes and is constantly visiting the doctor, waiting for a diagnosis. She isn't the typical eleven-year-old, but Thomas J. sticks right by her side. Many girls, including me when I was young, can relate to that feeling of being different from the other kids, but being grateful that you still have your best friend behind you.
The settings in the film are like a time-capsule back to the early 1970s. The adult settings, such as the homes and cars, are very classic, but the children's settings, such as the bicycles, toys and posters, are very "1970s modern," and are disco- and hippie-inspired. Funky 1970s hits are also played throughout the film, including songs by The Temptations, The Rascals and The Flamingos. This film is a great opportunity for my generation to get a peek in to the past, and it gives an opportunity for the Baby Boomer generation to look back and remember life in the 70s.
This film will likely bring tears to your eyes, but at the same time it will warm your heart with hilarious pre-teen drama and 1970s bliss.
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