All I Want AKA Try Seventeen is a charming and quirky romantic comedy from 2002, despite its strong cast in the UK it bypassed the cinema and head straight to video/DVD, despite the fact that across the world the movie faired incredibly well at the box office, interestingly in Russia the movie was a massive hit.
All I want messes its stories context by giving its hero Jones (Elijah Wood) two lives, one is real the second a fantasy world that is lived out through his writing, this element allows you to second guess every important scene. While some are easy to spot others are a little more subtle, this is the strong defining force that keeps you watching this movie, and without this element there would be nothing to separate the movie from 100 other romantic comedies.
As odd new guy in town Elijah Wood as Jones delivers his most interesting performance in my opinion, starting the movie on
the losing side all the time; this is a guy you might not want to encounter in real life, the benefit of his friendship causing you more trouble than it's worth. Jones spends much of the movie as the downtrodden underdog, although it's obvious from the offset he is going to be on top.
It's the dysfunctional relationships that keep this movie interesting above all other things, as Jones chooses to leave the University dorms behind he finds himself in a house conversion with a series of strange inhabitants. Jane (Franka Potente) is an odd photographer he tries to keep herself away from normal convention. Lisa (Mandy Moore) seems like the ideal female room-mate but trips off into tangents of the weird you might not expect. Brad (Aaron Pearl) is the all wise all knowing gay guy downstairs, with a penchant for firearms. While out of the house Ma Mabley (Deborah Harry) offers some quirky if not uniquely sexual tips Jones, and Blanche (Elizabeth Perkins) Jones' mother wrestles with the fact that she may or may not be the bad person in Jones' quirky life.
Jones finds himself with a dilemma of women, having spent 17 years innocent of women; two fight to some degree for him, although neither woman is particularly forthcoming with their interest for this unusual leading man.
The oddest fact about All I want is that it's one of those movies that asks more questions that it gives answers too, and at the same time being essentially about nothing other the transformation of a 17 year old boy. The biggest level of confusion for me is whether or not Jones attends university or not, it certainly starts there but features very little during the movie, Jones seems to have more free time than anybody ever in cinema history. Neither is a crucial fact explained, a question that is asked through the movies duration.
All I want is I guess also a little deceptive offering from the start a weird image that the movie fails to add up too. It offers Jones's as a weird kid who is lacking life's big experiences, and right at the start he has all these strange encounters, abuse by a Ska fan, an cigarette flicking thug, a savage macing, two rather mother obsessed thugs; and you kind of assume this is the way the stories passage will continue, what actually happens is the movie after 30 minutes becomes a far more serious and mature piece. This fact being excepted, I'd like to make it clear that All I want is still enjoyable viewing, though I'm not promising that you'll walk away believing its one of the best movies you ever saw. It does what it meant to do, tells a story, makes you smile, passes the time of day, and leaves you with a rather predictable glow in the pit of your stomach.
It's quite interesting to see Elijah as we all knew him, having spent the last two years looking rather a lot like Catweasle, and in desperate need of a bath. You kind of forget about the actor in an army of other actors, and All I want is a reminder of how good an actor he is, but also asks why he has spent his time since the movie Bobby doing voice over's and little else.
All I Want is available on DVD for about £5 the DVD has the original US trailer as a special feature.
Spencer Hawken 03/08
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Production Year: 2003 - Comedy - Director: John Crowley - Original Language: English - Classification: 18 years and over - Starring: Colin Farrell, Shirley Henderson, Cillian Murphy, Colm Meaney, Rory Keenan, Laurence Kinlan
Comedy - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: Tessa Peake-Jones, Buster Merryfield, David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst
(+) Because of the new series the box set isn't complete, which means it will be cheaper! (-) It isnt the complete box set so you'll have to buy the new dvds seperatly or wait for the new set!
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