Thirteen

Movie review by Nell Minow, Common Sense Media
Thirteen Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 17+

Explicit peer pressure story for older teens.

R 2003 100 minutes
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Parents say

age 14+

Based on 19 reviews

Kids say

age 13+

Based on 80 reviews

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that this movie's R rating comes from frank and explicit -- but thoughtful -- treatment of the subject matter -- how peer pressure can lure kids away from their moorings and their families. Characters constantly use very strong language. Teenagers engage in every possible self-destructive behavior -- they smoke, take drugs, steal, lie, and pierce their tongues and belly buttons. They have sex that is so casual it is almost anonymous. There is also adult substance abuse and every one acts out. There are very tense family confrontations. This is a good example of how the MPAA rating system fails, because there are stupid comedies that deal with the same issues as this movie that are rated PG-13. This movie --if your teen can handle very mature subject matter -- deals more intelligently and forthrightly with the consequences of the behavior it depicts than some PG-13 offerings.

Community Reviews

kittykat19
kittykat19 Adult
September 12, 2022
age 15+

They are not great role models in the movie in the movie there is drug abuse,sexual content,drinking,smoking,swearing,stealing,nudity,violence,eating disorders,self harm etc please don't let them watch this it's so sad to see these young kids get influenced by this movie so please I'm begging you don't let them watch it

Please for the love of God do NOT let your kids watch this until the understand that the behavior in this movie is not good and they should not do any of it I know I sound like a Karen but I'm not your children will start acting like this they are just kids and don't understand that this isn't good behavior they will start coping them because that's just the way they are just please!! Don't let them watch it until they are old enough to understand

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
bugboy1122
bugboy1122 Adult
April 3, 2022
age 11+

Good movie for kids to learn about what you should not do when your a teenager

This movie is very good but deals with heavy topics but your focused on the main story of the movie and the storyline is not really about drugs but you do see some of them doing it. You have to make sure your kids now about substance abuse it's a good movie kids to learn would they should do and not do in high school. So now if you want to get into the bad parts there is one sex scene in tho whole movie lasts about 5 seconds no nudity or roughness. There is one scene where the mom is shirtless in the shower and it shows her full boobs for about 10 seconds. but that is it it has more of a teenage mental breakdown high school storyline than an adult one. It sends great messages though but you have to tell your kids to not do any of the stuff that the teens do in the movie. No party scenes and like 3 to 2 drug senses. But my 11 year old loved this movie and I saw it when it came out its a very entertaining movie.

This title has:

Educational value
Great messages
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
See all 19 parent reviews

What's the Story?

They say that the two worst years of a woman's life are the year she is 13 and the year her daughter is. We get to experience both at once in THIRTEEN, about 7th grader Tracy (Evan Rachel Wood), who's catapulted into self-destructive behavior because she wants so badly to be accepted, to be cool, and to numb some of the pain of growing up. Tracy lives with her brother Mason (Brady Corbet) and their mother, Mel (Holly Hunter), a loving but damaged recovering alcoholic who does her best to support the family. On the first day of 7th grade, there are always a couple of kids who really hit the puberty jackpot over the summer. Just as the rest are at their most clumsy, insecure, and vulnerable, those impossibly sure and golden kids appear to have arrived at the destination while everyone else is still trying to find the map. For Tracy, it is Evie (co-screenwriter Nikki Reed), who seems to have everything she desires. So when Evie introduces her to drugs (taking them and selling them), shoplifting, body-piercing, lying, and sex, it seems a small price to pay for feeling accepted or, to use a word that is only used about teenagers or celebrities, "popular."

Is It Any Good?

This film has great strengths -- particularly its authenticity of detail and its genuine commitment, even tenderness, toward its subject matter. This really shows in the performances. Hunter is fearless in revealing Mel's fragility, her generosity, and the deep, deep love for her children that grounds her. Wood is breathtakingly open; every ounce of the joy and anguish she feels in heart-breaking relief on her face. Wood shows us Evie's wounded child inside the cool manipulator. The script has some particularly subtle and perceptive moments, especially when Tracy's father keeps asking for the problem to be explained to him "in a nutshell."

On the other hand, it would be nice if Tracy didn't have to take on every single one of every parent's worst nightmares; in addition to substance abuse, sexual involvement, lying, stealing, and failing in school, she develops an eating disorder and cuts herself. There are enough teenage problems in this movie to fill a decade's worth of after-school-specials. But the film's weaknesses are the weaknesses of youth and inexperience, and that is actually very appropriate for the subject matter.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how easy it was for Tracy to slip away from everything she had learned. Why was Evie's friendship so important to her? Why was Tracy important to Evie?

  • Why was it so hard for Mel to say "no" to anyone?

  • If you decide to watch this movie with your teen, be prepared for frank discussions afterward.

Movie Details

Our Editors Recommend

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