DVD: 13 Going on 30

Desperate to fit in and longing to be 30 and flirty like the women in Poise magazine, Jenna Rink (Jennifer Garner) makes a wish on her 13th birthday. When she wakes up the next day she’s skipped forward to her life as a 30-year old magazine editor...


There’s nothing new about the body swap story, but this tale of a girl who shoots forward in time to her future life is good fun. The plot is pretty flimsy and in the wrong hands it could all have gone badly wrong, but the two main leads carry it through with gusto. Garner is excellent as the 13-year-old suddenly adjusting to the life and body of a 30-year-old. Mark Ruffalo (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) also shines as her old school friend Matt Flamhaff.

There are shades of Disney’s The Kid, as Rink takes a look at the life she’s made for herself and wonders how she became so selfish and manipulative. Its biggest influence, though, is Big, as Garner’s youthful exuberance carries her forward like a breath of fresh air in a stale corporate world. However, its heart and soul belongs to the 1980s (where Rink was a teenager), with a dance sequence to Michael Jackson’s Thriller that could be straight out of The Kids From Fame. The movie is overly sentimental at times, with a message that no matter what glossy magazines may say we are all beautiful in our own way.

The DVD is bursting with extras for fans to dig through, including two 'The Making of a Teen Dream' featurettes with interviews from director, producers and cast. The Deleted Scenes section shows different takes on existing scenes and some that were removed altogether (it’s a shame the tattoo joke was cut out). Separate commentaries by the director and the producers; a still photo section; the theatrical trailer; a blooper reel; I was a Teenage Geek featurette; and pop videos for Pat Benatar’s Love is a Battlefield and Rick Springfield’s Jessie’s Girl complete the package.

Overall, this is bubbly and charming - a guilty pleasure no matter what your age.

Buy 13 Going on 30 on DVD at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com