13 Going on 30 is a Romantic Comedy that mixes the comedy of a love story with a life lesson of the beauty of living in the moment. Jenna is a teenage girl going through middle school with the common desire to be a popular girl. She has one best friend, Matt, that she does everything with. At her 13th birthday party, the popular girls decided to ditch her, leading her wishing to be turning 30, instead of 13. Her wish comes true thanks to the magical dust of her dollhouse that Matt built, and her life is transformed when she wakes up as a beautiful, successful 30-year old woman with a high-ranking job and an athletic boyfriend. Jenna is naturally confused and tries to make sense of her new surroundings. She tries to meet up her with Matt to figure out what happened to her, but their meeting does not go well. Along the way, Jenna realizes the nasty things that she did in order to get to be the successful person that she is today. She realizes that the 30-year old popular girl is not all that its cracked up to be, and wishes that she would have been content with herself. Matt finally gives Jenna a chance. From that moment on, a love-story is set in motion as the two begin a journey to rekindle their love and friendship that began 20 years ago. Eventually the two get married and complete their love story as Jenna returns to her 13-year old self and changes her attitude about her desire to be popular and instead stays her true self.
A romantic comedy requires two well-matched lovers to overcome the obstacles and eventually be united. 13 Going on 30 Meets that criteria when Jenna reunites with her childhood best friend Matt, and the two develop a romantic connection. Their marriage at the end of the movie gives the story a fantastical happy ending that is typical of Romantic movies. Aristotle´s criteria of a comedy states that there must be a rise in the fortune of a central character. 13 Going on 30 satisfies this criteria and Jenna clearly climbs the societal totem pole as she obtains a fantastic job and popularity.
This movie uses humor to illustrate the irony in the saying ¨I wish I was an adult¨. Jenna learns that her life was just perfect as a teenager and that the adult world is not all that it seems to be. Jenna´s awkwardness as an adult illustrates the theme of the movie while also keeping it lighthearted and laughter filled. Jenna also realizes that being a popular girl ruined her friendship with Matt and how it was not worth it. Through humor, this movie helps the viewer learn that it is important to enjoy your age in life, because there are benefits to each stage in life that will not exist in the next stage of life.
Such a classic. I think this might be the first romantic comedy I ever watched. When I was 7, I related to Jenna! I wanted to grow up too! But I never really thought about the commentary it was making through the comedy. Growing up isn't that great, but it's not bad either. And shouldn't we just be content along the way?
ReplyDeleteI love this movie! 13 Going on 30 is a great example of a comedy and your post highlights all of the reasons why it fits into Aristotle's definition of a comedy.
ReplyDeleteAlso love this movie. I feel like it is a really good example of how an Aristotelian comedy can still have a deep meaning.
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