Espírito Jovem

Not a bad movie... somewhere between 6-7/10. Plot is pretty straight forward. Elle Fanning gives it a boost with her aura (she kind of radiates). To be honest it might not be a good movie without her. At the same time her performances are kind of humdrum, even in the end she seems amateurish. Also it never really explains why her personality is so dreary all the time, but I think this is mostly just Elle's acting (appealing in a way because it sets her apart from other actors). Zlatko gives the best performance though in a supporting role. Worth a watch if you're a fan of Elle or just a fan of offbeat movies.

Teen Spirit is a very well made musical drama. Elle Fanning delivers an excellent lead performance. She shines throughout this film. The supporting cast also does a good job in this film. The film is very well directed by first timer Max Minghella. The film is very stylish, and makes good use of its pop soundtrack. You are never bored during its runtime, even when you know where this film is going. Easily the film's main weaknesses is its storyline. You know where the film is going right from the start. But it's so well done that you can forgive it. Overall, this isn't anything really new, but it's well made enough to keep you entertained.

I'm writing this to say why all the hate for this film? If you saw the trailer you knew exactly what you were going to get!! A young Polish girl dreams of becoming a pop star and so she enters a X factor type singing contest in the UK called Teen spirit. She befriends an old opera singer at a club she was singing at one night,he offers to become her manager he sees the potential talent she has, and after meeting with her mother and warned off about any shady business obviously worried about how old he is !! They begin their journey together. She tries out for her dream. It's not going to win any Oscars but it basically does what the package said delivers a good soundtrack, and Elle Fanning surprises me with her singing voice it showcases her rather good voice she has. You know where it's going but the film kept me entertained for duration of the film. So just watch it and make your own mind up.

Prior to watching I was leaning toward one star based on the cheap cover, moronic title, and a theme done many times before, i.e. young singer with big dreams comes out of nowhere w/some obstacles along the way of course. What turned me into a strong supporter? Great acting by Elle, Agnieszka (played the tough mom to humorous perfection), and Zlatko. Great blending of music w/changing scenes. Great camera work & editing. Good choice of songs, many by well known artists. Finally, and no way the least, Elle did the singing. I first thought it was professional voice dubbing based on range, emotive presence, pitch quality, but nope just her. Bonus: Elle watches "The Voice".

The first two thirds of the film put me on life support. There was a glimmer of hope near the end, but then the film was over and I realized we never got anywhere. Not satisfying at all and really a waste of time unless you're just a massive Elle Fanning fan.

What makes a good film can be subjective, but a critical concept is that you need proper pacing and contrast between different types of scenes. Nobody wants 60 minutes of the camera pointed at a tree... They tried to put a couple things in, like the scene involving a horse and then some drinking later on, but it was seriously still a bore.

I got a few "Smash" (TV series from 2012) flashbacks while watching this but that was probably just my brain trying to stay awake...