Originally written August 9, 2009

Jersey Girl is the sixth movie made by director Kevin Smith, and it’s an interesting one purely because of how different it is. Kevin Smith’s movies have always been known for their vulgar humor, and none of that is to be found in Jersey Girl. Rather, Jersey Girl is actually rated PG-13, and surprisingly enough it’s a family film.

Jersey Girl is about a working man named Ollie Trinke (played by Ben Affleck), who is a publicist that falls in love with a woman named Gertrude Steiney (played by Jennifer Lopez). They have a baby girl, Gertie Trinke (played by Raquel Castro), but Gertrude dies giving birth, forcing Ollie to raise the girl by himself. He winds up losing his job, missing his wife, and trying to forget the life he used to have to help be there for his child.

Honestly, I was surprised a lot by Jersey Girl. A lot of people said they didn’t like it, and while it isn’t one of my favorite Kevin Smith’s movies, I do still think it’s a damn good movie. Everything about the movie is pretty solid. The story is fine, and even a little different from the norm. The acting is pretty good too, and aside from the great performances given by the main characters (both Ben Affleck and Raquel Castro did awesome), it also features some nice performances from other actors such as Liv Tyler, Jason Biggs, and even the great George Carlin.

So, all around, not Kevin Smith’s best, but still really good, and it really did show what the guy can do as a director. It showed me that he can not only make a great comedy, but also a family film too. For what it’s worth, Jersey Girl really surprised me, and I actually enjoyed it quite a bit.

3.5/5