May 15, 2023 · Watch the trailer
Successfully adapting a novel into a feature length film is an increasingly rare quality for modern cinema in the 2020s; however, it’s especially complex and difficult to get right when it comes to novels for children and young adults.
These aren’t necessarily big box office draws rather books from their youth that filmmakers feel compelled to adapt.
Classic children’s author Judy Blume never really imagined that her life would become the subject of a documentary let alone her most famous novel turned into a piece of cinema. And yet in 2023, a film about her life debuted at the Sundance Film Festival in January and her treasured novel “Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret” hit the big screen this month.
Closely following the book, “Margaret” captures the year in the life of a precocious, sixth grade girl forced to move out of the big city to rural New Jersey while struggling with puberty and questions about her religious choices.
Writer/director Kelly Fremon Craig adapts the novel firmly in its 1970 timeline from the book’s original release and it’s a visual transportation five decades into the past as audiences revel in the film’s notable and illustrious production design along with faded cinematography that gives “Margaret” an authentic, yet vintage, cinematic flare.
At the center of the film, Abby Ryder Fortson delivers the perfect blend of quirky and adorable in an immensely relatable way for both children and kids at heart.
Her ability to emote without feeling forced or overdoing it makes Margaret an exceptional character for young girls to learn from and it’s clear in Fortson’s performance that Margaret is a young woman who thinks deeply about every decision in her life and cares even more about those around her.
What truly sets her performance apart is the remarkable chemistry she shares with Rachel McAdams, who plays her mother, and Academy Award winner Kathy Bates as her paternal grandmother. The trio each lead their performances by showcasing their characters’ large heart, and even though the relationships between the characters may become strained throughout the course of the film it’s clear from the outset that their hearts are in the right place.
McAdams is especially endearing as a mom, who’s struggling to figure out her new role as a stay at home, mom, sacrificing for her family while trying to maintain her own identity. It’s a parallel that audiences could quite easily see Margaret going through herself in the future and McAdams does a terrific job of embracing the character’s internal pain while maintaining a relentlessly cheerful exterior for her daughter’s sake.
The talented young performers who portray Margaret’s classmates help further develop the world of the film with relatable quirks that make up a common sixth grade classroom, and yet viewers will find themselves somewhere within the class.
Craig – the filmmaker behind the exceptional 2016 coming-of-age movie “The Edge of Seventeen” – delves into a younger mindset with “Margaret” and her excellent adaptation of Blume’s novel perfectly blends the routine of Margaret’s everyday life with the internal struggles of her inner monologue, played out in narration as prayers to a god she isn’t sure exists.
The film is perhaps one of the biggest surprises of the year and it’s in large part due to how much of an instant coming-of-age classic it turned out to be for younger audiences who will relate to Margaret and older women who will identify with McAdams and Bates.
A perfect family film for the summer doldrums to counterbalance the loud action blockbusters, “Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret,” is an exceptional adaptation of a classic children’s novel and well worth seeking out in theaters or later this year for an at home viewing.
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