SummaryTurtles All the Way Down tackles anxiety through its 17-year-old protagonist, Aza Holmes (Isabela Merced). It's not easy being Aza, but she’s trying… trying to be a good daughter, a good friend, and a good student, all while navigating an endless barrage of invasive, obsessive thoughts she cannot control. When she reconnects with Davis (...
SummaryTurtles All the Way Down tackles anxiety through its 17-year-old protagonist, Aza Holmes (Isabela Merced). It's not easy being Aza, but she’s trying… trying to be a good daughter, a good friend, and a good student, all while navigating an endless barrage of invasive, obsessive thoughts she cannot control. When she reconnects with Davis (...
Turtles has familiar John Green touchpoints — a gimmicky story setup, a teen romance, a quirky best friend — but it turns the story inward and pulls off a fantastic character exploration, one that feels like a gut-punch in its best moments.
Marks’ “Turtles All the Way Down” shines with John Green’s trademark whimsy. It’s a charming, delightful YA romance that doesn’t bind itself to the sole enjoyment of its target market.
IN A NUTSHELL:
John Green, somehow, knows how teenage girls think. This is another insightful, funny movie written by John Green, based on his popular book of the same name. I love that he has a small cameo moment in the movie too. His YouTube channel called "Crash Course" is really great and I've even shown some of the educational videos to my university students over the years. I'm such a fan.
The dramatic romance was directed by Hannah Marks. John Green's screenwriting team included Elizabeth Berger and Isaac Aptaker.
I thought this movie was extremely thoughtful and funny.
THINGS I LIKED:
Isabela Merced is fantastic in this. I think I first noticed her when she played the iconic character Dora the Explorer in the live-action movie.
Cree Cicchino stole the show. The actress from Queens got her start as a dancer, but she truly shines as a wise-cracking teenager. She's also a singer who hopes to launch an album at some point, claiming that Rihanna is her inspiration. Fun fact: She has a twin sister named Jayce.
Other cast members who do a great job are Felix Mallard, Maliq Johnson, J. Smith-Cameron, and Judy Reyes.
At about the 1-hour mark, we learn where the intriguing title comes from. No spoilers!
There is so much wisdom in this film, especially for people who struggle with anything. That pretty much includes everyone.
The ending is really sweet.
I love that the movie doesn't attempt to solve Aza's issues or tie up everything in a perfect bow.
OCD is complex. The movie does a fantastic job helping us understand how someone with OCD thinks and struggles with their own thoughts. I think a lot of people with OCD, especially teens, will feel seen and understood in this movie.
I haven't read the book, but I hear it is a very good representation and stays close to the source material.
I love that the teens talk about going to college. Two of them visit a university to attend a famous professor's lecture. Aza, the main character, lights up with immense joy, which is something I feel when I learn something new! I felt like I finally woke up when I first went to college. For the first time, I truly wanted to learn and understand everything, not just do assignments to get a grade. As a university professor, myself, I truly believe in higher education and, ultimately, lifelong learning.
THINGS I DIDN'T LIKE:
The movie is described as a girl with OCD and how she helps solve a mystery. The mystery is a super small element of the story.
I think the movie poster could have been much more compelling. It's hard to know if the two girls are best friends or lesbian lovers.
Some might not like the ambiguous ending, but I thought it was perfect.
TIPS FOR PARENTS:
Some crude conversations about a male body part.
We have to read a lot of texts that teens write to each other.
We see a teenage couple making out on a couch.
We learn that two of the teens both lost a parent and met at a special camp when they were younger to help them deal with their grief.
The successes are in large part owed to Merced’s sensitive, grounded performance, her open face able to pass amusement, anxiety, self-loathing vitriol, panic attack and relief like quicksand. Her performance alone can absorb the film’s rougher edges, vaguer lines and dramatic whiffs, especially when assisted by a strikingly natural Cree.
Execution isn’t the problem here—the acting, direction, editing, set design and costuming are all done well enough. It’s that these elements add up to something that doesn’t feel subversive at all, just vaguely aware of itself.
For a teen-age angst movie this wasn't bad. Aza had a story to tell and issues to spend the rest of her life addressing. Many of us don't address our issues, which is a shame. So, we'd give this movie: "go ahead and watch because it has a lot of friendship, concern, and love in it."
O excesso de reminiscências deixa claro que literatura é uma coisa, filme é algo completamente diferente, de modo que aqui as imagens são incapazes de traduzir os extensos e aborrecidos monólogos da personagem principal. E olha que gosto do elenco, mesmo com suas limitações, achei que não ficaram bobinhos. A produção de arte deixa a desejar, e os enquadramentos são bem feios, tudo muito mal dirigido. Ainda assim, é um filme com enorme potencial, pois difere mjuito bem da abordagem açucarada de filmes enlatados para adolescentes para falar num tom mais sério sobre questões de saúde mental, e o melhor, sem ser apelativo. John Green merecia um tratamento melhor, assim como fizeram no adorável "A culpa é das estrelas".