Are You There God? It's Me Margaret: Review

Judy Blume's seminal coming-of-age novel receives an earnest reimagining

This isn't director Kelly Fremon Craig's first rodeo, making waves with her candid though seemingly underrated The Edge of Seventeen, Craig winds the clock back to 1970 a time of no-fail pot roast and Norman Greenbaum. 

​It works that certain kind of magic that only the coming-of-age genre has to offer. Craig's approach gives the film this distinctly timeless feel, despite the retro landscape, there's a real sense of universality in themes. Visually it's admittedly bland and safe in its presentation but for the most part it’s a solid script that gifts its supporting characters with some wonderfully compelling moments. Rachel McAdams is just such a beauty to behold, a real guardian angel who not only steals every scene but completely runs away with the entire film. Meanwhile, newcomer Abby Ryder Fortson makes the performance her own with a decided awkwardness in every tiny moment. 
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The scripts calls for a lot more levity that just unfortunately isn’t there but if one things for certain is that Fremon Craig has such an affectionate and empathetic understanding of her target audience. an often whimsical and at times moving tale of pre-teen awkwardness and the tumultuous transition into womanhood, Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret is exactly the comfort that young girls deserve.