NEW WATERFORD GIRL
Released: September 12, 1999
A gifted teenager (played by talented newcomer Liane Balaban), dreaming of life beyond her small town, becomes inspired when a 15-year-old girl from New York (Tara Spencer-Nairn) moves in next door. Balaban's character, Mooney Pottie, is a 15 year old girl living in a small Nova Scotia town with dreams of getting out to the big city. When Spencer-Nairn's character Lou shows up, it gives Moonie a chance to see what she has right in front of her at home. Directed by Allan Moyle, who gave us "Pump Up The Volume" ten years ago along with "Empire Records" in 1995 shows us he is a serious director in it for the right reasons. Moyle, born in Shawinigan, Quebec, returns to Canada in this low budget charmer of a film with enough great characters and style for a dozen Hollywood movies. Balaban shines in her movie debut and Spencer-Nairn nearly steals the show in a number of scenes. Moyle gets additional props for casting excellent unknowns as well as giving us brief but sweet scenes with Cathy Moriarty and former John Hughes brat packer Andrew McCarthy. A smart choice of music, great locations and overall unique scripting demonstrates why this should be an option in a movie landscape of dumb Hollywood blockbusters. Though pacing is erratic at the beginning, this movie is worth it for the fact not many movies are as well written as this.
97 Minutes
Odeon Films/Alliance Atlantis