After watching this film, I was very much reminded of that other intense, coming-of-age girlhood drama, Thirteen. Both films feature a young protagonist who, in the midst of trying to navigate adolescence amidst loving but oblivious parents, get sucked into the depravities of underage drinking, substance abuse, promiscuity, self-harm and the like. The scenes of Mia trying to find an in with the cool crowd is immediately familiar to Thirteen's Tracy trying to cozy up to the wild Evie. If the film had a mood board, I could also see the similarly named Fish Tank (maybe even Pixar's latest, Turning Red, could be the Disney-fied version of this story), or the French film Water Lilies, as inspirations.
As a metaphor for the turbulence of the teen years, shape-shifting stories, and mermaids in particular, are a very interesting idea. But not enough is done with it in Blue My Mind. I wanted to know if Mia had prior suspicions about her origins, or if she just started having inklings that she is not like others. We also don't get much insight into some of Mia's decisions other than her being driven by hormones. Some of the plot mechanics were also improbable, notably Mia's parents leaving her at home alone despite worrying changes in her behavior.
I did like how the film avoided falling into some cliches, particularly with the Gianna character who is at first introduced as the sexually precocious "bad influence"-type. Also the cinematography is pretty striking with its palette of blues. Overall, this is definitely a film that leaves an impression on you with its vividly startling imagery. I would have liked it even more had it spent more time developing Mia's thinly sketched parents, or her relationship with Gianna, and gave Mia more of a complex, defiant send-off.
