Welcome to the Movie Club! This week’s movie is Kelly Fremon Craig’s adaptation of Jude Blume’s iconic novel Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret!
Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret stars Abby Ryder Forsten as the titular character, an eleven year old girl in 1970 whose life as she knows it is upended when her family moves from New York City to a suburb in New Jersey. Being upset with this dramatic change causes her to start talking to God, and her inner monologue to him becomes a throughline as she deals with the struggles of puberty, making new friends, religion, and many of the other struggles one has to deal with while growing up.
Despite the novel’s enduring popularity, Jude Blume consistently rejected offers to adapt it until she sold the film rights to Kelly Fremon Craig and the film’s producer, James L. Brooks. It was shot during 2021 but didn’t receive a wide release until April 28, 2023. It only made back $21.5 million against a budget of $30 million, making it a bit of a bomb, unfortunately1. The film was very warmly received by critics and audiences though, and currently has both a 99% with critics on Rotten Tomatoes, and a 94% from audiences2.
- The filmmakers decided to give the film a look that was clearly indebted to the 70s, but also included a few wardrobe and set design options that were meant to feel a bit more classical or modern (depending on the character), as a way to give the film a more timeless quality.
- Judy Blume has a blink and you’ll miss it cameo as a woman walking her dog with her real life husband during one of the establishing shots of the neighborhood.
- According to IMDB trivia, this movie shared some of the same crew and period-appropriate vehicles as The Black Phone as they were shot in the same location, and that you can see the “Grabber van” from The Black Phone in the background of the graduation scene. I went to look for it and while there is what appears to be the same van in the background, it doesn’t have the decal from the one in The Black Phone.
What did you think? Share your thoughts below!
Up Next: Our next movie is a change of pace, as we’ll be watching Edgar G. Ulmer’s classic noir flick Detour. We’ll meet in two weeks to discuss it on March 21 at noon EST. Check out the trailer and where it’s playing below (and holy shit is it playing on a lot of site, this is the most extensive selection of streaming options I’ve ever seen!):
USA
- Stream: Prime Video, Criterion Channel, Cineverse, Cultpix, Flixfling, Hoopla, JustWatch TV, Tubi, Darkroom, Distro TV, Freevee, Fubo, Hoopla, Kanopy, MGM+, Plex, Pluto TV, Shout TV, Vudu, Public Domain Movies (this is a real site)
- Rent or Buy: Apple TV, Amazon, Fandango at Home, Flix Fling
Canada
- Stream: Prime Video, Criterion Channel, Cineverse, Cult Pix, Flixfling, Hoopla, JustWatch TV, Tubi
- Rent or Buy: Apple TV, Flix Fling
UK
- Stream: Prime Video, Cultpix, Freevee, Just Watch TV, Pluto TV, Tubi
- Rent or Buy: Amazon
- https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Are-You-There-God-Its-Me-Margaret#tab=box-office ↩︎
- https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/are_you_there_god_its_me_margaret
↩︎ - https://www.indiewire.com/features/craft/are-you-there-god-its-me-margaret-movie-cinematography-70s-1234833430/ ↩︎
- https://screenrant.com/its-me-margaret-judy-blume-hidden-cameo-explained/ ↩︎