Movie Review: Mystic Pizza
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What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that this film deals with adult subject
matter -- sexuality, economic class issues, and infidelity.
There are strong messages here about the importance of
friendship and family -- and of staying true to one's self.
The film might encourage interesting discussions about family. Ask your teen: what kind of things make you feel embarrassed about your family -- and what do you love about it? Why are roots important? What role does social class play in society? How does it determine your friendships and other relationships?
Common Sense Media Review
Julia Roberts, Annabeth Gish, and Lili Taylor star in this
funny, coming-of-age film. Set in the pizza shop in the port
town of Mystic Connecticut, Daisy, Kat, and Jojo (played
respectively by Roberts, Gish and Taylor) sling pizza with a
secret sauce that seems to delight everyone -- even dour
restaurant critics. It's summertime, and high school is behind
them, but the future seems frightening. Will they end up doling
out slices in the hardscrabble, Portuguese fishing town for the
rest of their lives?
Jojo has bailed out on her boyfriend, Bill, a hardworking fisherman who hauls lobster off the shores of Mystic. After fainting at the altar, Jojo decides she wants to remain free of the restraints of marriage. But she still loves her fiancé. Unfortunately, Bill gives her an ultimatum. And this drives Jojo into a tailspin. Daisy, the town beauty, attracts a handsome, law school dropout from an old-moneyed, Connecticut family. His world forces her to take a look at her own family and she begins to rebel against their old-world ethics. Daisy wreaks havoc at home, rallying against both her mother (a hardworking woman who works on the lobster docks) and her sister, Kat. Kat spends days slinging slices at the pizza shop and babysitting for a wealthy family summering in Mystic, to pay for her tuition for Yale. The father, a Yale graduate twice Kat's age, takes an interest in her future. Despite herself, she falls in love.
By summer's end, the three friends learn new things about themselves and those they love. Decisions are made, their lives are changed, but their friendship and sisterhood remains intact. A funny, sweet movie with a charming cast -- terrific performances by Roberts, Gish and Taylor.
MYSTIC PIZZA's dated clothing, hairstyles, and music should make fine fodder for 21st century teen ridicule. Audience members who enjoy MYSTIC PIZZA might want to check out another film in Julia Roberts' early oeuvre, Satisfaction -- so bad it's good.
Common Sense Media is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing information to help parents make media and entertainment choices for their families.
