Jersey Girl Movie Review 2004

Big shot music PR man Ollie (Affleck) is widowed when wife Gertrude (Lopez) dies in childbirth and must raise his daughter Gertie (Castro) on his own. But this proves too challenging as he loses his job and is forced to crash with dear old dad (Carlin) in New Jersey. After seven years, he's still struggling with his loss. Celibate, he frequents the video shop for porno flicks where he meets the shoot-from-the-hip clerk, Maya (Tyler). Ah, and there the romance begins, along with the "should I be a good parent or have a great career" dilemma. Writer-director Smith's considerable comedic talents emerge unevenly in his foray into the dramatic-comedy genre. Granted, it's probably not what Smith's fans are used to, but it's still enjoyable. Castro is a fresh, sassy presence in her feature debut.

Distribution

Buena Vista Home Entertainment, 500 S. Buena Vista St., Burbank, CA 91521-1120, Toll-free: 800-723-4763, URL: http://www.bvhe.com

Available on VHS, DVD
Running time 102 minutes.
Originally from United States.

Cast and Crew

Genres

Romantic Comedy, Grandparents, Dads, Parenthood, Single Parents, At the Video Store, Publicists, Screen Teams: Damon & Affleck, Director/Star Teams: Smith & Affleck, New Jersey

Screenplay

Kevin Smith

Cast

Ben Affleck, Jennifer Lopez, George Carlin, Liv Tyler, Raquel Castro, Stephen (Steve) Root, Mike Starr, Jason Biggs, S. Epatha Merkerson, Jennifer Schwalbach Smith, Jason Lee, Matt Damon

Cinematography

Vilmos Zsigmond

Director

Kevin Smith

Music

James L. Venable

Other

Will Smith, Kevin Smith, Scott Mosier, Elise Viola, Juliet Polcsa, Robert Holtzman

Producer

Scott Mosier, View Askew, Miramax Films