User reviews

I remember back in the day when Jersey Girl came out and it was right around the time the "Bennifer" days were coming to an end and we just suffered the mass bomb that was "Gigli". Many were calling this movie "Gigli 2", I just couldn't believe they would put Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck together in a film again after all the innocent bystanders had to put up with, but they did. But I don't know why, maybe because it's already 4 years later after all that craziness, I decided to go ahead and rent Jersey Girl and just see what it was about. I watched it last night and I couldn't believe my eyes, I actually liked this movie. It wasn't your typical romantic comedy, it was something different and really enjoyable. Kevin Smith, who is more famous for Clerks, made a funny and genuinely good film that anyone can enjoy.

Gertie Trinke is a little girl who is telling her story about her family and how they came to be. Her father, Ollie, was once a successful man in New York who was the publicity for famous musicians. But when his wife Gertrude dies in childbirth with their daughter, Ollie has to learn to grow up, but he looses his job after calling Will Smith a no body who won't get another movie. So Ollie and his dad raise Gertie, who teaches Ollie that there's more to life than just the riches.

Jersey Girl is a good film, I don't know why anyone would say that this is a bad film, I understand people not liking it, but the story was very decent and the acting was I'd say above average. One of the things I loved was that the story was very human, the little girl who played Gertie, Raquel Castro, was perfect for the role and didn't over do anything or made her character annoying. Ben Affleck, who I normally cannot watch in a movie was very good in Jersey Girl, his little talk with his infant girl about loosing his wife was touching. Maybe because I'm a girl or something, maybe that's why I loved the film, but I just thought it was good and I do recommend it.

7/10

Jersey Girl I think is an average movie. Definitely not one of my favorites, but at the same time not the worst movie I've ever seen. The plot of the movie is well thought out and is a good idea for a movie. Ben Affleck who plays Ollie Trinke is a Manhattan music publicist. He later meets the girl of his dreams and she becomes pregnant. However, his life completely changes when she dies while giving birth. He moves back in with his father in New Jersey to raise his daughter, Gertie, by himself. This movie has emotion and drama, but also comedy at the same time. This film is heartwarming because of the way Ollie Trinke steps up to be the best dad he can be. He really ends up caring for his daughter after getting thrown a curve ball of becoming a single dad. This would be a great family movie.

Oliver Trinke (Ben Affleck) is an up & coming music promoter. Its his job to whip up a frenzy for concerts and interviews. Although he is from "Joysey" , he works and lives in Manhattan with his beautiful wife, Gertrude (Jennifer Lopez), also a professional. They are expecting a baby and everyone is excited, including Ollie's Dad, Bart (George Carlin) , who runs the street sweeper in their NJ town. Sorrow suddenly descends, as Gertrude dies of an aneurysm giving birth to a daughter. Grieving greatly, Ollie parks his newborn daughter, also Gertie, with his Dad for the first month while he focuses on work. Naturally, this approach is a disaster and Ollie has a meltdown which gets him fired. Now, he must get to know his little girl and go limping back home to work in the same department as his Dad in Jersey. Flash forwarding seven years, Gertie is a spirited gal who charms even as she pushes buttons. Especially on her mind is a musical revue her class is doing for the parents; Gert insists they do a song from Sweeney Todd! Her dad will help her do it, with Gpa and his two closest friends also playing second fiddles. Meanwhile, Ollie has two new events in his life. One is the attractive sales clerk, Maya (Liv Tyler) at the video store who makes a pass at him. But, surprisingly, he also gets a job interview with a company similar to the one that fired him. Here is his chance to get back into a "classier", more exciting, more lucrative place in life. Or is it so? This movie, written and directed by Kevin Smith of Clerks and Chasing Amy, has its charms and humor. Especially wonderful is Affleck, Lopez, Carlin, Tyler, and little Raquel Castro as the younger Gert. Also nice is the Jersey scenery and the edgy talk and themes. Since all of us romcom fans have to "look back in time" to find new delights, I heartily recommend searching for this one.

12 April 2004. Ben and Jennifer - it was a storyline in the first part of the movie that was hard to ignore real life headlines and what if...what if they had married, what must have they gone through making this movie? Ben Affleck does a great job of acting with a solid script. This comedy-drama continues the evolution of comedy and drama into a blended fusion of genres reflecting real life. There is death, there is humor, there is serious emotional rantings and just play fun comedy. The movie suffers a little bit in consistency of tone as the movie drifts more towards seriousness, hardening its edge in the last third, losing the nice balance of comedy and drama that it had going. But this movie is a treat for entertainment with a good dose of growing up pains, taking responsibility, of making choices. At times there is stark sadness and other times there is tenderness and understanding. Seven out of Ten Stars.

First off, let me say that Jersey Girl is a great film. Kevin Smith has done a great job of blending the romantic comedy genre with his trademark humor to create a fresh and original movie. This is an obvious sign that Smith is maturing both as a director and a person, and should be great news for those fans who enjoy his movies for more than the fart jokes. The crowd at the theater tonight might have been the oddest mix of people I have ever seen at an opening night. Stoners looking for more silent bob, teen girls giggling over Ben, young couples on dates, and older people looking for something lighthearted and fun. The stoners were the most disappointed, as the closest thing they got to Silent Bob was the new View Askew graphic at the begining of the movie.

This was definately Ben Afflecks best performance to date. He was amazingly good as Ollie. He gave the character a ton of depth, and Smith should be commended for this choice. The rest of the cast is also excellent. In fact, they are the best part of the movie.

My complaints are few, but I do have a couple. Firstly, the movie takes so long to setup, and it has a few spots throughout that tend to drag. Liv Tylers character is also a problem. Although she does a great job with what she is given, her character lacks depth and is thusly difficult to connect with as the new love interest.

All in all, this is charming and light hearted enough to take a date to, but has enough depth to keep it from being a cookie cutter affair. 8/10

In New York, the young executive Oliver "Ollie" Trinke (Ben Affleck) is a successful PR of the music industry. He meets and falls in love for Gertrude Steiney (Jennifer Lopez), who soon gets pregnant. However, she dies in the childbirth and Ollie decides to return to his father's home in New Jersey. Pressed by the situation of lonely father, the workaholic Ollie blows-up in an important press conference and makes a fatal statement, losing his job and becoming blacklisted in his publicist career. He promises to be the "best father in the world" to the young Gertie, and stays single, grieving his beloved wife, without dating any woman for seven years and trying to retrieve a position of public relation. One day, he meets the rental clerk Maya (Liv Tyler), they become friends and she helps him to supersede his past life.

"Jersey Girl" is a very sweet movie about family, and honestly I could never expect such sensitive story from Kevin Smith. I like his work a lot, and I have all his movies in my collection. "Clerks" and "Chasing Amy" are amazing, and I must confess that I was tired of "Jay and Silent Bob". The shift in his career could not be better. The story is great and very well balanced with drama, comedy and romance. Liv Tyler is fantastic, showing a great chemistry with Ben Affleck. George Carlin is great, without being corny, in the role of Bart Trinke. But the girl Raquel Castro is stunning: very bright and smart, she steals all the scenes and seems to be a future star. I really loved this movie. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Menina dos Olhos" ("Apple of the Eyes" – meaning something very dear")

I saw this movie on the TV schedules last week and my first reaction was "God no, that got terrible reviews". Then I thought I would give it a try, mainly because it was on the TV, and also because I don't always trust critics or box office results.

I thought it was actually quite a good movie. Not a masterpiece, but then it never pretends to be. There were some genuinely funny moments, the scenes involving the child were not allowed to be oversentimental, and there were a few scenes that were quite affecting.

The real surprise though was Ben Affleck. I must admit that although I liked him in "Armageddon" and "Shakespeare in love" ("you're not going to do it like THAT are you?!") I never really considered him a good actor. I thought he was very good in "Jersey Girl". He handled the grief scenes very well and was very convincing as a loving father whose daughter is the most important thing in the world to him.

I presume the reason that this movie did so badly at the time of its release was a reaction to the so called "Bennifer" phenomenon. I hate when audiences let their views on what is going on in an actor's real life affect what they think of that actor's work. Maybe actors like John Cusack and Kevin Spacey have the right idea in that they do not tell the media too much about their private lives.

The lesson I have learned from watching this movie is to go and see the movies that I think look or sound good even if they failed at the box office or were panned by critics. Go and see it and make up your own mind.

My vote: 7 out of 10

So after reading many a disconsolate review from Kevin Smith fans I decided to purchase the DVD anyway. Yet all the negative comments had left their toll on me and the DVD stayed on the shelf in its shrink wrapper for FAR TOO LONG. You motor heads! Yes this movie is sweet and yes it's sometimes even sickly but it's endearing and moving. Ben Athleck switches in and out of competence a few too many times to make his performance IMO a completely solid one but frankly he does a good job of holding all the disparate threads of the movie together.

If you want to live in 1994 dick & fart jokes then simply put Clerks in the DVD player and play it again! However each of Kevin's films go someway in their own right into the exploration of inter-personal relationships and the impact of consequence in our daily lives. Jersey Girl is no different in this respect than Clerks.

Since it's been 7 years since the film came out, I thought I would give Jersey Girl a chance because I'd never actually seen it. I was pleasantly surprised.

By far, it's not an original plot, a father struggles with parenthood and his life completely changing over night. That being said, however, the characters are likable and it's full of warmth.

Ben Affleck brings a good performance and some very emotional scenes, Liv Tyler's character could have been fleshed out a little more, George Carlin is wonderfully grumpy, wise and loving throughout.

I think the film suffered greatly at it's time of release due to the whole Ben Affleck/Jennifer Lopez break up and the executive meddling which caused Gigi to be such a huge flop.

At it's heart, Jersey Girl, is a heart warming, comedy-drama, with a good cast, it falls into clichés at times, but it's very enjoyable. If you haven't seen it and the genre is something you might typically enjoy, then give it a try.

I've been a Kevin Smith fan for years, but my disappointment with Jersey Girl doesn't come from the lack of Jay and Silent Bob, or the fact that it isn't a typical View Askew film. I knew it wouldn't be that, and I went into the theatre just hoping to see a good film.

Jersey Girl has some nice moments, and some moments of genuine, skillful humor (especially for a musical theatre fan). However, the film as a whole is an enormous letdown for one reason: it's typical. Rather than making another typically Kevin Smith movie, Smith managed to make a typical Hollywood flick. Instead of insight, we get cloying sentimentality; instead of maturity, we get a series of cliche moments with a good-looking cast that just doesn't dazzle for whatever emotional whallop Smith thought the film would pack.

The situation and choices facing Ben Affleck's character are nothing new, and Affleck goes dutifully through the exercises, emoting when he needs to, but never really getting much out. You wind up rooting for him more or less out of the same sense of duty. George Carlin's father is depressingly tame compared to his brilliant standup routine; Jennifer Lopez is sweet but her perfunctory character never really makes any impact on the audience. Raquel Castro plays the absolute cliche end of a film child that she's written with the appropriate sweetness. Liv Tyler's character goes wildly from a toned-down character from one of Smith's earlier films in her first scenes (building up a bit of false hope that there will be something new to this blah exercise) to another cliche character in the later portions of the film. Not much of it can be blamed on anyone except the writer/director, though.

On principle, I have nothing against Smith branching out into other genres of film than those he touched on in his first five; that's an artist's choice, and should be his and no one else's. But Jersey Girl is simply settling for the typical and unambitious in film. If this is an indication of where Kevin Smith's career is heading, then I think he has lost it as a director who bears watching.

Such a beautiful story between father and daughter. And a chance to see Ben's softer side. He played the role well and melted my heart.

Yes it's cheesy. But the little girl had an amazing performance that lets you know why dads love their little girls so much.

J Lo ... bad actor Ben ... some good moments and many wooden moments Liz ... decent Gramps ... great performance Gramps friends ... great performance Little girl ... absolutely the anchor for the show she really delivered.

This movie was very different from what i was expecting from Smith. have seen all of his films and this one i must say is not as blatantly funny as his other works. He wanted to go after the affect he got with Chasing Amy and that is exactly what we see here. I thought though that it was very well done. This is definitely a chick flick so if you are looking for a subtle way of getting you significant other into Kevin Smith have them check this movie out. Other fans too should see this movie because it is pretty funny but there are moments in it that are serious. On the DVD we get to see the Roadside Attractions from the Tonight Show and there is a featurette also. So if you don't like the movie there are other things on the DVD that are worth checking out. Over all i gave this bad boy a seven out of ten because it is a little serious for Smith but i still thought it was good so if you liked Chasing Amy you will like this.

I find ironic that people who enjoyed Kevin Smith's other movies hated this one. That right there pretty much explains most of the haters (i.e. those recommending Mallrats and JSB over this). I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and I was laughing my ass during most of it. I am obviously not an actor, but I didn't find any problems with the acting or the dialogue. It sounded real and believable. Sure, there may moments that are corny or make you want to wince, but every movie has moments like that. Raquel Castro and Liv Tyler really stole the show, George Carlin had just the right pizzaz as a crusty old Pop, and some of us can relate to Ben Affleck's character.

Typically Kevin Smith's cast in a movie completely atypical for him. Although this probably is the weakest link in a chain of his awesome flicks, it is still very lovable. This story was told countless times before on big screen and even more often in TV movies, but even such outworn plot in hands of Smith and his crew simply must glow.

6/10 for overall quality 10/10 for cuteness

This movie never deviates from its cliché filled path. Once you know the wife dies, you know exactly what the rest of the film will be about. And don't be fooled, this isn't a comedy but a serious drama: not really a romance movie but it's more about the relationship between a dad and his daughter. The kid was cute, but Ben Affleck is too much of a joke to pull off a serious acting role. Watching him try to cry on screen nearly made me laugh. The only way he will ever be taken seriously as an actor is to pull a John Travolta and go away for many years and then make a come back.

FINAL VERDICT: Nothing new and nothing that would make me recommend it.

What the hell were the critics thinking when they gave this film negative reviews at the time?

Jersey Girl is a charming, heartfelt and very emotional....I won't even call it a comedy as it really feels more like a drama in a lot of parts.

There are loads of incredibly well played scenes which blend 'fish out of water', 'rom-com' and even 'buddy movie' at times. It's well written as you would expect from Smith, but the directing is where the film comes in to its own, and of course it helps when you have talent like the brilliant George Carlin on board and Ben Affleck makes a really good lead as he's shown in Smith's previous films.

There are scenes in this film which just boil so effortlessly from calm and cold to scalding hot and trust me, they hit you right in the feels. Raquel Castro as seven year old Gertie is one of the sweetest screen girls you'll ever see and her personalty and wit will make you fall in love with her after only a few scenes.

This is a great film to watch with a loved one and a glass or five of wine, or even just on your own if you want a very emotional, sweet and feelgood experience.

It's so depressing to know that Smith was really affected by the negative reviews of this film which are TOTALLY undeserved, and just goes to show that you should NEVER listen to critics. EVER!

Fantastic film!

Jersey Girl is kinda a cute film, it's acted well, by Ben Affleck, Liv Tyler and by Jennifer Lopez. Lopez is not in very much of the movie, but she is pretty good in the small part she is In. Liv and Ben have good on screen chemistry together, and you buy their connection. The script is pretty formulaic and run of the mill, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's poorly written or low in quality. Although the script is not cinematic gold, it's doable. There are some comical and humorous lines of dialogue that had me laughing, so the comedy didn't fail. I did like the film's sweet moments of drama, they were good to see. Jason Biggs does not have a very prominent role, but much like Lopez, he does well with his somewhat small portion. This movie does have its flaws, but it's not terrible, 6/10 on my rating scale.

So I walked into the multiplex on a Sunday afternoon and sat down and began to notice, geez, there're a lot of young girls in here. Tweens. Odd, I thought, for a Kevin Smith movie. Maybe they're here for J-Lo, I reasoned. And then the previews, and the first preview was for some fantasy movie with horses and castles, and obviously aimed at the pre-teen girl demographic. Puzzled, I picked up my popcorn and Pepsi and headed out to the hall to check the marquee and make sure I hadn't wandered into Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen by mistake. I hadn't. This was Jersey Girl.

I hadn't read anything about Jersey Girl before going in, and I just assumed it was a typical Kevin Smith movie. It totally is not. Oh, sure, there're a few dick jokes and some poop and Ben Affleck, but Jersey Girl is far, far away from the Kevin Smith I've come to know and sort of moderately like.

For me, the experience of watching this film felt a lot like a time in college when I was at a Halloween party, and my one tubby, bearded, video-game-playing, football-watching stoner friend showed up dressed as Princess Jasmine from the Disney movie Aladdin (1992). And it turned out he was serious. I was sort of touched and horrified at the same time.

This movie confused me as well. At first, I thought maybe Kevin Smith was making fun of all those awful, cynically-calculated tween-targeted movies like Uptown Girls, The Lizzie McGuire Movie, and Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen. And I thought maybe he was packing the movie full of clichés and mawkish sentimentality as a weird sort of joke. But then as the movie wore on, I grew increasingly uncomfortable as I began to realize that he probably meant it, or at least was trying to mean it.

I'm generally all in favor of a filmmaker branching out and trying new and different things, but I'm very much un-in favor of an independent and formerly semi-interesting filmmaker branching out into the worst sort of hackneyed Hollywood filmmaking, without any of the wit, observation, and conversation that formerly made Kevin Smith semi-interesting.

This film felt like a film made by a filmmaker who felt he had to make a film because he's a filmmaker, and filmmakers make films, though he had nothing he felt strongly about making a film about, and so he just made a film about this crap. Is Kevin Smith washed up?

4/10