Rewind, Be Kind: Uptown Girls
July 27, 2024
Uptown Girls is a poignant and charming movie starring Brittany Murphy as Molly, a free-spirited socialite stuck in a state of arrested development. Out of financial desperation, she becomes a nanny for Ray, the obsessive daughter of a wealthy and absent businesswoman. Molly and Ray could not be more different in their tendencies but come to realize they need each other more than anything.
Series Pass: $84 | $64 Members (All in price, includes $4 service fee)
Pass provides access to all in-person Rewind, Be Kind screenings, July 26-28 at SIFF Cinema Egyptian.
SIFF year-round passes are not valid for this screening. Vouchers are valid.
The late Brittany Murphy plays the role of Molly with such nuance. Roger Ebert, one of the only critics at the time of release who praised the film, compared Brittany Murphy to Lucille Ball in her talents in physical comedy and ability to “[capture] the attention of every person in [a] distracted and chattering crowd”. Dakota Fanning is a true stand out as well– although considered one of the best child actors of the time, this role is often overlooked as the genuinely great dramatic performance it is. Many criticisms of the film, which were unfortunately common at the time, cited “annoying” or “unlikable” performances and female protagonists, when they were simply multi-faceted and imperfect characters who…didn’t need to be likable all the time!
Uptown Girls is a coming-of-age movie not only for the eight-year-old Ray (Dakota Fanning), but for the twenty-two-year-old Molly. Despite the initial negative reviews, Uptown Girls stands the test of time, especially for a generation of young women who would catch it on cable or rent it from the video store.
—Kyra from Super Yaki
- Director: Boaz Yakin
- Principal Cast: Brittany Murphy, Dakota Fanning
- Country: USA
- Year: 2003
- Running Time: 92 min.
- Producer: Allison Jacobs, John Penotti, Fisher Stevens
- Screenplay: Julie Margaret Hogben, Mo Ogrodnik, Lisa Davidowitz
- Cinematographers: Michael Ballhaus
- Editors: David Ray
- Music: Joel McNeely
- Filmography: Remember the Titans, Fresh
- Language: English