Thirteen: Review

 When I first heard about the movie ‘Thirteen’ I thought it was a horror film full of blood, gore and creeping suspense. This was primarily due to this number being regarded as a bad omen, that is rendered ‘unlucky’. Looking at my initial postulations with hindsight, I realise that in a few aspects, I was correct. For, Thirteen is a teenage drama that dives into the raw, appalling world of being a teenager. No filters. No sugarcoating. It shows it as it is, the harsh reality of how the life of a person takes a drastic turn once they hit their teens. It’s a movie that takes viewers on the rocky and grim journey of Tracy, a thirteen year old girl as she navigates life, full of insecurities, rebellions and self sabotaging. 

The central synopsis of this film is that a public school in America is full of typical teenage stereotypes. Evie Zamora being the epitome for this. She’s the most popular girl in seventh grade and is reputed to be the ‘queen bee’ due to her trendy clothing, accessories and confident, alluring personality. However, the darker and dangerous side of her character is ignored by her awe-struck admirers. One such admirer of Evie’s is Tracy, a dedicated and sensible student who keeps company with the ‘unpopular’ crowd of the school. Tracy always tries her hardest to impress Evie. However, at first her attempts are greeted with mere cruelty. For instance, once, Evie tells Tracy to call her, but actually gives her an incorrect phone number in order to hurt her feelings. Yet, Tracy does not give up because her desperation for validation from the well- known crowds fuels her ambitions to fit in. 

Soon, Tracy’s efforts pay off and Evie starts noticing her and eventually includes her in their clique. However, her victory is pyrrhic in nature because Evie’s chaotic and inadvertent lifestyle starts rubbing off onto the once level-headed and focused Tracy. Soon, she finds herself to be encompassed in a life of drugs, stealing and other detrimental crimes that have severe psychological and health consequences at young ages. From being a flawless student and a loving daughter, Tracy morphs into a reckless and moody teenager who only thinks about her selfish and frivolous needs. In the blink of an eye, the innocence that illuminated her vanishes, being replaced by adrenaline driven rebellion. Her new and radical mannerisms stir up trouble for her wherever she goes, creating an unstable thundercloud that looms ominously over her head at all times. 

Digging deeper, and analysing Tracy’s character from a psychological viewpoint, one tends to wonder why she purposefully fell into the trap of acting older than her years. The primary reason that comes to mind is her desire for acceptance. Being teenagers, we often feel like outcasts because we tend to overthink which leads us to feeling judged by our peers because we don’t completely fit into their standards of being ‘cool’. However, we must remember our self worth and realise that our individuality is our most prized characteristic, without which we essentially lose our humanity. After all, diversity and uniqueness are what make us humans differ from all other species, our ability to be different and explore new avenues sets us apart.