Try Seventeen (2002)

This movie is, at its heart, a great movie. The only problems that I could see with the movie were that its 2 big names, Mandy Moore and Elijah wood, gave less than stellar performances. The star here is Franka Potente. Her performance is what carries this film forward.Everything else about this film is quite solid. It was properly produced, the script and dialog was very well realized. The camera-work was very well done.If you've already seen this movie and blasted it in the forums, give it another shot by focusing more on how the camera moves and the words that are actually spoken, not *how* they are spoken(which is where the actor's shortcomings come in to play). You might find a different(and better) film if you can just look past Elijah and Mandy.

Simply put, this was a good movie. It wasn't over the top, it wasn't over stated, there wasn't anything major motion picture about this movie. It was an independent film for crying out loud. Basically it was a wonderfully simplistic movie.When I first went to buy it, the store I was at told me they didn't have it in stock, but to rent it before buying it anyway because they heard it was bad. So I rented it, and to my amazement, I found myself giggling at the characters and feeling for them at the same time. I'm 28 years old, yet I could still picture how I felt at 17. I was able to connect with the movie, and it was able to keep my attention. (unlike certain "Blockbuster MUST SEE thrillers" that I pay $9.00 to fall asleep at)this film had a lot of flaws, yes. But none of them really underscored the enjoyment I got from watching the movie. Elijah Wood did a wonderful job in his role as the doe eyed young adult wannabe. Mandy Moore did a great job as the seductive woman, although she didn't LOOK old enough to fit the part in my opinion. Franka Potente was OK as Jane, although I felt she lacked a bit of emotion and chemistry with Elijah. I think she and Mandy Moore would have been better suited to switching roles. I think Mandy would have been a better Jane and Franka a better Lisa. Just my opinion.One actor who I think will be a great star one day is Aaron Pearl (cowboy Brad) The only actor who shined in the scifi movie "Bloodsuckers", and is known to Stargate SG-1 fans as young General Hammond. That guy has some good talent. He just needs some bigger parts. (No I'm not a relative. I honestly think he's got some great talent. And he's pretty cute. Minus the handle bar mustache.) So Simple, sweet, not perfect, but not as bad as some people have been reviewing it. Definitely up there as one of my favorite movies.

OK, lets get something straight, first of all. I totally LOVE Elijah Wood. But this film was totally disappointing. The acting was not at all convincing, and the plot, well.....what plot? The storyline (though I very strongly doubt there was one,) was barely recognisable and the whole movie seemed like a very, very long commercial. "All I Want," (aka "Try Seventeen") had no real climax, and the ending SUCKED. You know how some movies leave you with a "feeling"?Maybe it's a happy feeling, or a depressed feeling, but the only feeling "All I Want" left me with was 'I cannot believe I just wasted an hour and a half watching this movie'. Elijah, I love ya, honey- but I think you should consider roles like these a bit more carefully before you take them!

Because of his superb work as Frodo, I have become a fan of E. Wood. Recently, I began viewing his previous films, having seen very few before LotR. A few nights ago I watched "The War", a pretty good film in which Wood does an amazing, truly convincing job at portraying the intense, very complex boy, Stu. But viewing "All I Want", I hardly can believe it is the same actor! The film has many good ideas but doesn't develop them. It's like a sketch for another film that never was made. The acting is like that, too. Some good ideas, isolated convincing moments, but mostly the scenes seem more like early rehearsals than finished performances. I can only think to blame the director for both the wispyness of the film as a whole and for the portrayals, most of which only hint at what might make their characters tick. Only Franka Potente is able to scrounge up something that feels like a real person. A waste of a lot of acting talent all round, in my opinion.