Thirteen

Director: Catherine Hardwicke

2003 / 100min / 35mm

Hardwicke’s keen insight into teenage angst helped make the first Twilight film a pop phenomenon, and it’s almost certain that her ragged, rambunctious directorial debut—co-written with its 14-year-old star Nikki Reed—landed her the gig. Evan Rachel Wood plays Tracy, a Los Angeles honor student who strays from the straight-and-narrow path under the influence of new juvenile delinquent bestie Evie (Reed), much to the dismay of her recently divorced recovering alcoholic mother Holly Hunter. A blunt-scented plunge into the lower depths of the Valley, a time capsule of early aughts youth culture, and a showcase for second-skin natural performances by Wood, Reed, and Hunter.