User Reviews

Allan Moyle, the director of "New Waterford Girl" captures the right atmosphere of a small town in Nova Scotia. He shows us how the people live in this isolated area. The life of the small village, with all its local characters, is presented by Mr. Moyle in a way that affects us into feeling for these people in that barren place.

The best thing going for this movie is the brilliant performance by Liane Balaban. She plays Moonie Pottie, a girl that wants to break away from the boredom of the town and go away to pursue her ambition. This young actress' face registers a lot of emotions going on inside Moonie's mind. She knows the only chance for her to get out of the mediocrity in which she lives is to become pregnant because invariably, those fallen girls are sent away to have their children.

Luckily for Moonie, she finds a friend in Lou, the rebel American teen ager who arrives from the Bronx to hide away with her mother and young brother. This is the only part that doesn't make much sense, but it's a diversion to the story that otherwise would be too confined to just the locals. Lou gives Moonie a confidence that the latter one didn't know she had. Moonie grows up helped by her friendship with the tomboyish Lou, who is too wise for her young age. Tara Spencer-Nairn does a wonderful job in recreating Lou Benzoa.

The film takes a while to click with the viewer, but it will stay in his mind for days after having seen it. The Pottie family is presided by Francis and Cookie. As played by Nicholas Campbell and the always excellent Mary Walsh, this family shows an inner strength, even at times of great crisis.

Andrew McCarthy is also seen briefly as the teacher that wants a better life for Moonie, who inspires her to break away from this small town. Cathy Moriarty plays, yet another, boxer's wife. She has nothing to do in the film.

This small movie will charm those willing to take a trip guided by the sure direction of Allan Moyle.

I truly enjoyed this film. I'm usually not the type to like the girl coming to age films. But I loved this one probably because its not completely focused on the usual girl growing breast and realizing she's now a woman, story plot. Instead its about a girl that will do almost anything to get out of her small mining town. Including pretending to be a floozy and getting pregnant. I think the two lead actress (Liane Balaban and Tara Spencer Nairn)are great and I'm sure they will go far. If you like a good not so coming of age film check out this one I'm sure you will like it.

This movie inspired my trip to Cape Breton Island last year, because the scenery is so beautiful. I went to New Waterford and, suffice it to say, it is an even stranger town than the movie would make it appear. The movie was cute and melancholy, and Balban was pretty brilliant in the starring role. And movie with girls boxing ranks pretty high with me anyway.

This film has rich humour that stays with the viewer even more so than the ending does. It is a gritty, reality-based humour that anyone who ever lived in any small town can relate to, and former residents of small Catholic towns can have an extra chuckle or two about. I am intimately familiar with the town of New Waterford and walked away from the movie with new insights about the true nature of small towns.

The characters are very likeable ... Andrew McCarthy is good, in fact, I had teachers "from away" as they say there, who looked and acted like he did.

This movie really deserves some media attention.

i thought the woman who played moonie was great as was nicholas campbell as her father. it was good to see andrew mccarthy up and about as well.. i thought there were a few great moments in the film, but that overall it was a bit lacking. it could have been tighter and wittier, less cartoonish.. some really beautiful cinematography..

I missed the first 30 minutes of this film when it was shown on Showcase Extra this afternoon. I ended up renting it at Blockbuster five hours later.

Yeah, so the characters might seem "over the top," but guess what? It's Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. Canada's Hicksville where there really is nothing to do.

I loved this movie. There was something about it by just throwing the characters in from the side -- and Sweeney? He was just there and the audience is just put right in the middle of Mooney's chaotic life, wondering if she's ever going to get the heck out of there and fulfill her ambitions and dreams.

Okay, so it's no Spielberg. There's no Kiera Knightly or Brad Pitt in it. It's a bunch of no-name actors and a no-name director. But guess what? That's where its charm comes from. It's special and quirky and you sympathize with Mooney and Lou and everyone else. A lot is explained if you listen to what is being said, and the quips are pretty cute -- not great like "Snatch" or "Lock, Stock..." great, but cute. Memorable.

I'd suggest people see this. This is a great piece of Canadian film that I wish more knew about. It's a real hidden gem. And if you don't like it, you'll at least appreciate the life you live.

The movie takes place during the 1970's in a small town in Nova Scotia with 16 year old Moonie (Liane Balaban) wanting to move out of her small town life yearning for something better as her imagination increases. Besides not having her own room crammed into house living with 2 older sisters with her parents, she eventually builds a rapport with the girl Lou (Tara Spencer-Nairn) next door along with her mother. And that her dad was a boxer and appears to be much more spontaneous and outgoing than the rest.

While her dad makes attempts to keep her inside, Moone devises a plan to have her leave beginning with a rumor.

Film doesn't get much better than Alan Moyle's very original "New Waterford Girl". That said, prospective viewers should understand that "New Waterford Girl" withholds much of its pleasure from the first viewing, be prepared to watch it at least three times which is not difficult because it is one of those films with unexpected depth that gets better with each viewing. Even your reaction to the cinematography will change with each viewing as the unremittingly grim visuals (subjects are often framed against gray skies and windswept beaches) which initially make you shiver become increasing beautiful.

The main character, 15 year old Moonie (Liane Balaban), is one of those freaks of genetics who occasionally spring up in unexpected places, whose comparative intelligence and ambition set them apart from family and peers. She loves her family but has simply outgrown the small Nova Scotia town of New Waterford and dreams of getting out. Once engaged and observant, she now drifts around town with her face in a book, having written off and distanced herself from everyone around her. Boys are attracted to Mooney (plausible since Balaban looks like a cross between Natalie Portman and Winona Rider) but she is focused on getting out rather than on boys. It is a dream part, as Balaban through behavior and voice-over must somehow balance Moonie's generally unpleasant demeanor and too soon maturity with the fragility and vulnerability of a young girl.

Enter new next door neighbor Lou Benzoa (Tara Spencer-Nairn) who has just moved to New Waterford from the Bronx with her mother (Cathy Moriarty). In homage to Moriarty's "Raging Bull" character, Lou's father is a jailed boxer who has taught Lou how to throw a punch. Lou is as extroverted and impulsive as Mooney is defensive and introspective. It is in the Moonie-Lou friendship that Moyle's film transcends the traditional female bonding story. Rather that fall into the trap of having the two girls immediately hit it off, Moonie is resistant. But Lou keeps trying and eventually Moonie comes around.

Lou immediately embraces the small town experience and her fresh perspective on the things that Mooney has stopped noticing begins to subtly change Mooney's feeling about her hometown. An especially beautiful scene involves Mooney joining in as her two sisters (if they look like sisters it is because they are played by actresses who are sisters-nice casting) sing a traditional song around a campfire. Mooney's internal conflict (and increasingly difficult decision) between staying or going is what the film is about but Moyle artfully soft-pedals this dynamic by packaging it around a humorous parallel story about Mooney's scheme to escape from New Waterford.

In this small Irish Catholic town the very mention of the blessed Virgin is enough to make potential sinners stop dead in their tracks. Much of the humor comes from Lou's ability to knock out boys with a sucker punch. The local girls enlist her as an agent of the blessed Virgin who can punish their two-timing boyfriends. In "Times Square" Moyne used a similar contrivance, having the two girls drop television sets from the Times Square rooftops. While both are mildly ridiculous, beneath the surface of each there is considerable food for thought as metaphors for issues raised by the films; in "New Waterford Girl" these include infidelity, sexual awakening, forbidden love, and small-minded parochialism.

"New Waterford Girl" is transcendent because of the pairing of Balaban and Spencer-Nairm. The two actresses not only hold their own with each other, they are perfect complements and Moyle skillfully uses reaction shots that allow them to enhance each other's performances.

WARNING: Although most of the technical production elements (cinematography, production design, editing) are excellent, the audio (at least on the DVD) is second rate (more accurately second to all). Many lines are a challenge to make out and several are simply unintelligible. While this does not ruin the film it definitely weakens it. The audio deficiency is compounded by the puzzling failure to provide a captioning option; someone should roast in hell for that omission. If ever a DVD needed subtitles this is the one. At least Showtime has provided subtitles in the version they are currently running. If you feel inspired you can find the script at (www.geocities.com/nwgmovie/index.html). The DVD lacks any useful special features; it has one trailer and a short (rather lame) featurette. Since there are no commentaries and the VHS version (also in widescreen) and cheaper, VHS might be the way to go.

The music is excellent, too bad no CD is available.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

I had heard good things about this movie so was looking forward to it. Oh dear. It took so long to get started I nearly turned it off in boredom. Everything seemed a little surreal, I got the impression it just could not make up its mind as to what kind of movie it was. The music was good, the scenery stole the show, some of the lines were really funny, Mary Walsh is always a joy and so was Nicholas Campbell and the girl who played Lou, what a stunning beauty she is and a great actress, but all these bits do not a good movie make. I found I was mentally shrugging at the end, the characters just did not grab me at all, even though everybody worked so very hard. A 5 out of 10.

Many, many, times. And I have to say, it gets better each time you watch it. The nuances of a Cape Breton accent (I was pleased that the writer and several of the actors came from Cape Breton, and even from New Waterford itself), the expressions on the faces (Liane Balaban's face is VERY expressive, so make sure you remember that other people are in the movie, too), and the various little relationships. For instance, take the character of Joey, who obviously follows Mooney around as much as he can (near her at the wedding; standing outside the church when she comes out, following her to a party... They don't show it in the film, but I imagine he probably stood outside her house sometimes, hoping she'd come out).

This movie is very much worth watching if you're the type who watches a movie three times over one weekend. Or if your like me, trying to transcribe less-popular movies so people who love the movie can read the transcript and remember what the dialog sounded like, and enjoy the experience of the movie again and again, even if we don't have the DVD (or the tape, if you like it like that).

Unless you already love independent films of one variety or another, this movie may not be for you. It IS a bit quirky (I've read complaints about that), but the quirkiness isn't overbearing. It's just an accurate portrayal of the freaks and psychoses that people in a small town develop over time, with lack of contact to "people from away." (Father Madden, for example, and Dr. Hogan) If you like this movie, try Lawn Dogs, or The Quiet Room, which are still more independent than Hollywood, but will get you into the Independent genre without making it too difficult.

What else is there to say? This movie was one big mess. That's the first word that swam to mind upon seeing it. There was such an emphasis on "quirkiness" and odd Canadian characters and such that plot, drama, character development went out the window. I didn't care about the characters, found them unbelievable, despicable... And all of these ridiculous, cutesie, quirky, "offbeat" things that would transpire or that would be said just annoying and frustrating and self-consciously "offbeat". Their motivations seemed to come from nowhere. All the characters are just so erratic and their actions make no sense.

And what's with the priest? "Hey, let's try to be funny and put a priest character in who says totally ridiculous things for no apparent reason... maybe that'll make the audience forget the fact that the movie is devoid of entertainment value"

Just like the protagonist's life, the movie goes nowhere, and the claustrophobic nature of the town and the Mooney's life is akin to the nature of the film. Frustration that almost boils over, as you're aching for the characters to do something, anything that would seem remotely interesting or believable or real or anything. It just didn't add up. It felt half-baked and empty.

Being Canadian, I really do have high hopes for Canadian cinema, but films like this only add to the problem. Because as fluffy and empty as some Hollywood films tend to be, at least (with some, anyway) there is a sense of drama and movement and character archs and character transformations or growing self-awareness. Not that "drama" is all that important; i mean, look at Stranger Than Paradise for example; films that succeed with an almost anti-narrative approach, or working (in a Godard-type fashion) outside of the "limits" of narrative. However, there needs to be some kind of movement, something to sustain the audience's interest. This film just felt like a 90 minute dead end, just like the small town in the flick.

And what's with the "magic punch" of the American girl? Suddenly, 20 minutes from the end, it's revealed that when this girl punches people, the guilty are hurt and fall and the innocent just laugh it off. Seems like deux ex machina or something. Totally magical element that sprouts out of the blue, sort of like in "Hanging Garden" (another painful Canadian "indie") with the fat teen hanging from the tree, who's supposed to be a symbol for the protagonist. O....K....

"New Waterford Girl," from director Allan Moyle, is just about as close as one is going to come to perfection in film this year, a harrowing journey of two different girls who band together in a never-changing town of Cape Breton, off the coast of Nova Scotia. Never mind that this film is Canadian released (as well as traveling the festival circuits) and for the moment that you can't find it anywhere else. You will be hearing about it.

This film, set in the 70's, is about teenage angst in a changing world, this case being the demise of small towns, where the world never changes. It takes place in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia and makes the two protagonists very different but with a same goal. One is a sullen, angry 15 year old girl who wants out of her tepid existence in Breton, the other is a tough girl with a sharp attitude and fears no one, a girl who has just moved to the town, and they change each other's lives forever.

The former girl is Mooney Pottie (Liane Balaban), who has her nose in a book when not in school, ignoring everyone around her, even her family, which does not understand, let alone appreciate her. She wants to study art in New York, but her family objects to that idea, instead they want her to stay home and take a nursing job, for example. Things start to change when the girl across the way, Lou Benzoa (Tara Spencer-Nairn) moves in, who left from the Bronx in hiding from her father going to jail; her life can't go on from there. Her mother (Cathy Moriarty) detests it immediately. The scene where Mooney and Lou meet is funny, where all Mooney has to do is point her fingers around and mention "Bar, hospital, main drag, fish warehouse, street. That's the tour." Indeed it is, it only takes a few minutes to drive the entire stretch of the town.

Mooney and Lou eventually do come together and their flaws, dreams, ideas and passions come out and they try to make the best of it. They both want out. Mooney wants to study in New York, Lou wants to go back. The seaside town certainly isn't good enough for the both of them, and they make as much change as they can, in the hopes of it doing something. The boxing of Lou's father has rubbed off on her, as she becomes a tough girl unlike any of the others in town, and uses it to her advantage.

There's more to "New Waterford Girl" than this, more spirit, ideas and "life" than expected, that makes this a wonderful experience. That a film dares to be different and unique, and is so emotionally wrenching yet funny, touching and free, surprising and realistic that it becomes more than a movie, it's a great addition to the teen "coming of age" movies of our generation.

Liane Balaban and Tara Spencer-Nairn are two actresses to watch this year. Balaban, who looks strikingly like Natalie Portman and with realism, edge and amazing beauty, plays Mooney perfectly, as a girl on the end of her emotional rope, wanting release, something more, something better. Spencer-Nairn is a firecracker of amazing talent and power, in one of the most unique and honest performances I've seen, as a girl who can't adjust to her surroundings and makes attention known to the town.

The supporting cast is also excellent; Mark McKinney plays a confused doctor who thinks he is treating Mooney but really isn't changing anything about her. Mooney's parents are played by Nicholas Campbell and Mary Walsh, who are absolutely convincing as worried, crazed parents from that decade. Cathy Moriarty is great as Lou's mom, she has nothing to add to the town and despises the hiding. And Andrew McCarthy plays Mooney's teacher, who tries to counsel Mooney on her future yet is interested in other things.

I went into this film with no expectations. I had seen no clips or reviews going in, just the poster and some newspaper advertisements. I had only heard of director Moyle through some of his other films ("Empire Records," "Pump Up The Volume," among others, unseen by me) How refreshing it is to come out of a movie this satisfied, knowing this will speak to many people, and inspire and possibly even change a few lives in the process, giving hope to not only Canadian independent filmmaking but to our own desires and dreams that we choose or choose not to live out. Even if Lou Benzoa carries your picture.

Rating: **** out of ****

Director: Allan Moyle Length: 98 minutes Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1

Clever, smart, modern coming-of-age pic made in Canada (surprise! a movie *this* cool made in Canada?)

What would it be like to grow up in the Canadian maritime provinces *and be different*?

Well the heroine Moonie (this a movie about girls! so it has some cute -- but not too cute -- guys too) *is* different. But so is everyone else. In fact, they're all too different, you don't really see the creeps, burnouts, basket cases that small-town life invariably throws up.

On the other hand, this *is* a movie. Moonie's family is loaded with characters and they're all cool ... sorta. Even the 'rents, in their own way.

Many characters are hilarious without losing their humanity. The whole town's Catholic and mostly Irish at that. Most situations are like real-life teenhood ... so sex is a predominant element. The setting is *very* real -- it's every backwater set-by-the-water hole-in-one that every teen longs to escape (sorry Rockford IL, but close enuf for IFMN).

Moonie's girlfriend, from New York (where Moonie yearns to go ... or any other place she's memorized the street map for), is a sweet and heavy-duty friend -- right outta Dazed and Confused -- who's the daughter of a jailed boxer and drives a rez car. In fact, substitute Indians in this movie and it'd work the same.

I won't go on and on, you get the driftwood. Fans of Linklater, Trainspotters, Depp and the ilk (like me) will enjoy NWG.

I absolutely loved this movie. Delightfully entertaining, this movie takes you on a truly wonderful adventure. Based in a small Christian town, the story reveals heroine, Moonie Pottie (Liane Balaban) and her plot to escape the drudgery of her small town to pursue an arts scholarship in new york.

Moonie is a loner and an outcast who is very easy for many teenagers to relate to. She recieves a NY scholarship and discovers a best friend in the unwanted newcomer next door, an infamous boxer's daughter named Lou (Tara Spencer-Nairn). Upon discovering that her parents won't let her go to NY, Moonie comes up with a plan. The only way out of town is to Antigonish to have an abortion. So, Eventually, Moonie fabricates a rumor that she's become a 'slut' and fakes a pregnancy in order to be sent away. In between, we see a little Andrew McCarty as her teacher, Mr. Sweeny. All in all, I'd say it's the best movie I've ever seen.

I sat down to watch this film last night on CBC and for some reason was expecting a good movie, what I got was a ho-hum one. The acting was good and it portrayed what life was like in a small hick town in Maritime Canada in the seventies to a tee. The problem, the plot and story line stank. Besides the idea of Moodie wanting to get the "heck out of Dodge" and doing whatever she could to fulfill that dream, the rest of the movie went no where. I guess I was expecting another "Bay Boy", a movie shot quite a few years back with Keiffer Sutherland, which also dealt with growing up in rural Cape Breton. Take my advice and watch "Bay Boy", it's one that you will make you forget "New Waterford Girl" in a hurry.

There's an indescribable nostalgia about this film which I can't shake. I believe anyone who grew up in a small town (particularly a northern, coastal town) will feel it, too. Also, I believe Canadians will get an extra kick out of the crazy Canadian eccentricities which are shamelessly ridiculed. I'm not Canadian, though I did visit New Waterford once, and I was tickled to see that my perception of that surreal small town was not unjustified.

One thing that I loved about this film, which others may not find as compelling, was the extreme subtlety. In other words, you won't get many punchline-zingers that'll make you fall off your seat, but instead (and much better imo), the low-key absurdity of the situations will keep you smiling throughout the whole picture. Don't get me wrong; there are indeed a few fantastic zingers which made me bust a gut, but it was the overall "humouresque ambiance" that appealed to me. It reminded me of an oldschool Johnny Depp comedy ("Benny & Joon", "Ed Wood", "Arizona Dream"), or if you're into Japanese cinema, it's reminiscent of the Kitano masterpiece "Kikujiro" which I highly recommend.

If you've ever lived in a small town (or even visited), I think you'll really get a kick out of this wonderful little film. And btw, it's totally "family friendly" which means you can watch it with your kids, or more importantly, you can watch it with your PARENTS without getting the evil eye!

...there's just something missing. It looks good and sounds good but it's really just another 'coming of age in a small town' film. Admittedly it's quirkyness raises it from the masses in this genre, but not by much. it's predictable, the quirkyness is often taken to the point where it's irritating and at times it's saved only by Andrew Mcarthy's performance I'm not from canada so may be a lot of it was lost on me but a good film should be international

Funny, hip, and full of fresh faces. Crisp direction, and a quirky script that never lets you down. Some of the jokes may baffle you non-Canucks, but be brave and try a taste of our true national culture.

Proves once again that there's more to Atlantic Canadian film than "Anne of Green Gables".

I saw the whole town in about 15 minutes! I had the opportunity to go to Sydney on business three days after having seen the movie. I drove down Plummer Avenue, which is "the strip" in the movie. There is not much there; I recognized a couple of store fronts as well as the hangout where the kids sang "Out on the Mira" in the movie. I couldn't find Moonie's house. Does anyone know where that is located?

Anyway, the movie is a fun story, full of Maritimer in-jokes, including a teenager's visit to the bootlegger as well as Moonie's father baking a cake while smoking and drinking. Best line of the movie was when the son is pouring his father a large drink of rum and the father exclaims, "Whoa whoa! What do you think, we're at the Legion ?!"

Go see this movie for a different look at teenage angst. I enjoyed it thoroughly.

This is one of my absolute favourite movies. Perhaps I champion it as much as I do because I know that not many people have seen it, but go out and rent or buy this movie right now! It does have the feeling of Margaret's Museum... to a certain extent, but don't let that lead you astray, this movie is so much better. There's that maritime feeling and the way the camera moves is absolutely seductive. And then there's the soundtrack... although it consists entirely of maritime songs that I would never ordinarily listen to... they draw you in to the world of the movie... This movie, although I convince is great on its own, does draw on the "Canadian Factor", i.e. when you're canadian and you watch this movie, well, you laugh at more of the jokes, you see yourself or people you know... sitting around the tv watching Hockey Night in Canada, etc...

Absolutely Seducing...

New Waterford Girl is a Canadian film, yes, and so it's refreshing to see an un-American, un-Hollywood flick. If you want to see a movie that stands apart from everything else out there right now, this movie is for you. Stunning scenery, second-to-none acting, beautiful dialogue, in essence it's everything a real movie should be. So it won't win an Academy. So it won't win the praise of the critics and movie 'experts'. That's just the point. This is a movie about true Canadian life complete with an illusonary sense of boredom and familiarity. But New Waterford Girl shows that letting go, leaving the familiar, can be so hard. New Waterford Girl is a beautiful Canadian movie which portrays LIFE in all sense of the word

This is one of those movies that stay with you. Andrew McCarthy is the best I've seen him even though his role is small. The main character Mooney seems troubled but she is just not fit for that small town. The girl from the Bronx pulls her out of her shell and makes life bearable. It made me wish I had a friendship like that when I was younger. I need to buy this movie so I can watch it often. Just something about it. And I got it even though I never lived in Canada nor a small town. I still identified with those girls.

I hadn't expected the comedy aspect but some surprising events really made me laugh. If you are like me and like those off beat non commercial Hollywood type movies, then you will love this one.

I first saw this movie in the spring of 2004, one month before a planned month long camping excursion of Nova Scotia. I had never seen such a dark, depressing place as New Waterford - not even realizing until the credits rolled that this film was shot in New Waterford, a mining town on the northeast edge of Cape Breton Island. In every shot, the sky was deeply overcast. The houses looked like cracker-boxes, in funny colors and in bad need of upkeep. The automobiles were all several years old. It was gloomy and depressing!! But, guess what? This was a movie about a 15 year old native of New Waterford who was trying every trick she knew to get out. No wonder, since it was such a terrible-looking place. She would hitchhike holding a sign saying "Mexico" on it. Her dream was to move to New York City to attend school. Liane Balaban played this girl, named Moonie Pottie. She was a cross between a young Winona Ryder and Johnny Depp. She has a great future in film. She meets a Lou Benzoa, an 18 year old blond from New York City who is staying in New Waterford with her mother. Lou is played admirably by Tara Spencer-Nairn, and her best attribute besides her sexy blond looks is the ability to knock out with one blow any man who lies about getting a girl pregnant. Without divulging too much plot,Moonie decides getting "pregnant" will be her ticket out of New Waterford. Every character in this film does their job well, and the overall effect is a dark comedy set in one of the darkest, dingiest, most back-water places you have ever seen. I came close to canceling my trip to Nova Scotia because of this film, but didn't. One day, I detoured up to New Waterford just to check it out. The sun was shining, but the town is on a bluff over the ocean and the houses are for the most part exactly as seen in the film. See this movie and then go to Nova Scotia - one of the friendliest and most beautiful places on this earth!

Great Canadian film. It's all about small town life and how you have to fight to get out if that life doesn't fit you. And it's about teenage catholic issues. Who's preggers, who's gotten an abortion, who's f^(*&ing who, why there's no space in the house for more kids, etc. The leading actress Liane Balaban did a really good job of it all. She reminds me of Natalie Portman. If you're not sentimental or need action then I wouldn't bother. But if you find humor in the daughter of an incarcerated boxer knocking out all the boys in town then you'll dig this fun little movie. And oh yeah, it deals with young women actually have physical desires...which seems to be taboo or something.