What Girls Learn

The showtime original movie ,"What girls Learn," is a difficult movie to understand. Especially when you're a man trying to relate to characters which are mostly female. This movie has a melancoly, feminist tone to it but that doesn't make it bad. It also has a CBS movie of the week feel to it, but that doesn't make it unwatchable. The bottomline is this movie is about pain, love, loss and ultimately acceptance. Tamara Hope, and Alison Pill put on noteworty showcases. As a guy I can understand why most reviewers haven't liked it. But as a film lover, I did.

What Girls Learn has an extremely strong storyline which centres around the two youngest members of the cast,Alison Pill and Tamara Hope. Elizabeth Perkins gives a brilliant performance as the suffering 'Mama' and the troubled stepfather is played magnificently by Scott Bakula.

Considering this is a true story the film has been created extremely well and hopefully Karin Cook believes it does justice to her novel.

The bottom line is if you want a night in with a good film with no gory violence and needless swearing you will definitely enjoy this emotive and sensitive film. Which even though sounds like a real bore to some people could be appreciated by all. Enjoy

I got out this movie because it has Scott Bakula, a talented actor, who for some reason ends up in terrible and cheesy roles. If you're looking for Scott Bakula eye candy, then this is not the best you can do - he has a terribly fake moustache and the only scenes he is remotely attractive in, is when he has a singlet on and you can only see his back. If you do watch this - keep an eye on his moustache, it changes size halfway in the movie, he must have lost his fake one and gotten a new one about twice the size. Very funny. Also take heed of his accent, it's constantly changing - bad Bakula, bad! If you are looking for Bakula candy, I suggest "Quantum Leap".

I suppose if you are a young teenager you may enjoy this. It has issues to do with growing up and "becoming a woman", and I found the sibling rivalry reasonably believable. The child actors did a pretty good job. I felt that the mothers relationship with her daughters lacked any chemistry, it was forced and didn't quite strike home.

A couple of scenes are halfway cute and some are tear jerker's, though the part of the movie I liked the best was when it ended. Although this movie was extrodinarily predictable, if against reason you watch it, do not read the blurb on the back of the case, it gives away the entire story. Casting could have been better - Scott Bakula was not meant for this movie. Frankly I don't know how it even made it to DVD. The only thing mildly entertaining about it is the changing moustache and accent.

As a woman, I felt very touched by the two girls struggling through their beginning adolescent years. The hopes (and race) for your period, the love/hate relationship with siblings and/or friends, and most importantly, trying to make sense of everything that's happening to you all at once. These girls in particular had an extra amount on their plate because of an ill mother. That is the very real part of all this. Life is full of these changes, and we have no control over these events and just have to learn to accept and live through them.

I did think the drama towards the end was a little drawn out, even though it made me come to tears regardless. However, I am still glad to see such a beautiful relationship between a mother and her daughters, as well as the genuine love between the mother and her new husband. I have yet to see a man portrayed in this light when dealing with illness. I have also yet to see (in a movie or in my real life) someone so positive when faced with the possibility of death as this. As fabricated as it may seem, it gave me hope and something to strive for if I ever become a mother some day.

I recommend this movie to men and women alike, especially for anyone who remembers what it's like to be a teenager, or is one themselves.

The comments about this movie seems to focus on the fact that it's based on a true story. What has that got to do with the quality of the movie? Nothing.

The acting is actually good, at least the children are great, but the directing and the script is awful. Everything moves at a near-sleep-pace, and the dialogue is throughout without interesting language and lines.

And what about the psychology between the mother and the children. She forces them to move in with a man they've never met, to a house neither she or the children has seen? Further on, when she gets sick, she claims that she all the time are forced to lie to the children, for their own good. OK it's the 80's but still.

All and all, a very unsatisfactory movie.