In mid-1970s New Waterford on Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, an 18-year-old girl without a child is rather unusual--and 15-year-old Mooney Pottie (Liane Balaban, in an auspicious debut) is feeling suppressed by the small-mindedness that surrounds her. Seen as freakish by her family for her incessant reading and a desire to move to New York, Mooney refuses to temper her thirst for knowledge and attend the booze-fueled makeout parties her classmates live for. Enter Lou (Tara Spencer-Naim), a tough boxer's daughter from the Bronx who moves into town with her dance teacher mother (Cathy Moriarty). Before long, Lou is helping Moonie see the town through new eyes, improving Moonie's social life in the process. But when her sympathetic teacher, Cecil Sweeney (Andrew McCarthy), informs Mooney that he has gotten her accepted at an Arts High School in New York, she is prepared to do whatever it takes to escape her oppressive origins. Director Moyle (PUMP UP THE VOLUME, EMPIRE RECORDS) has crafted a sweet, funny slice-of-life/ coming-of-age film, from the debut screenplay by Fish, who wrote the film after attending her high school reunion in New Waterford. Beautiful Canadian locations are used to dramatic effect.
Moonie Pottie (Liane Balaban) is a 15-year-old girl who wants nothing more than to break away from the small, sheltered, Catholic community where she lives with her family in New Waterford, Cape Breton. When another girl her age, Lou (Tara Spencer-Nairn) moves into town from the Bronx, Moonie finds a fast friend and a new approach to tackling boredom and adolescence: boys, risk-taking, and possibly, a way to skip town.
Theatrical Release: July 26, 2000 (NY)
First-time screenwriter Tricia Fish, who wrote the script from her own experiences, was once the assistant to Canadian comedy troupe Kids In the Hall.
The script took Fish five years to complete.
Liana Balaban auditioned for the role of Moonie seven times before winning it.
Krista and Cassie MacDonald, real-life sisters who portray fictional sisters Bettie-Anne and Darlene Pottie, actually hail from the town of New Waterford.
Paul Tatara of cnn.com named NEW WATERFORD GIRL one of the 10 best films of 2000.
DVD Features:
Region 0
Keep Case
Letterboxed - 1.85:1
Audio:
Dolby Digital 5.1 - English
Interactive Features:
Scene Access
Interactive Menus
Text/Photo Galleries:
Filmographies
DVD-ROM Features:
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Review 1:
"...[A] charming, quirky movie..."
Source: New York Times
pp.E1-3 07/26/2000
Review 2:
"...There are moments of charm, mostly provided by Balaban's refreshingly unaffected performance in the central role..."
Source: Hollywood Reporter
p.25-77 08/01/2000
Review 3:
"...A gentle ode to girlhood....[Balaban] perfectly captures Mooney's stifled intelligence, which emerges in weird and wacky bursts..."
Source: Box Office
p.230-1 04/01/2000
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