Aquamarine (film)

Aquamarine

Theatrical release poster
Directed by Elizabeth Allen
Produced by Susan Cartsonis
Written by Jessica Bendinger
John Quaintance
Based on Aquamarine 
by Alice Hoffman
Starring Sara Paxton
Joanna Levesque
Emma Roberts
Music by David Hirschfelder
Cinematography Brian Breheny
Edited by Jane Moran
Production
company
Storefront Pictures
Distributed by 20th Century Fox
Release dates
  • March 3, 2006 (2006-03-03) (United States)
Running time
 110 minutes
Country United States
Language English
Budget $12 million[1]
Box office $23,006,849[1]

Aquamarine is a 2006 Australian-American teen fantasy comedy film starring Sara Paxton, Emma Roberts, and Joanna "JoJo" Levesque (in her film debut). The film, which was made in both the United States and Australia, was released in North America on March 3, 2006. The film, loosely based on a children's book of the same name by Alice Hoffman, and directed by American director Elizabeth Allen was filmed in Queensland, Australia.

Plot

Best friends Hailey Rogers (JoJo) and Claire Brown (Emma Roberts) are upset to know that they will be separated in five days as Hailey has to move to Australia because of her mother's (Claudia Karvan) job. Claire, sensible and slightly naive, looks up to Hailey as a mother figure in some ways, since her parents drowned in a boat accident years before. She now lives with her grandparents by the beach near Hailey, who is more daring and adventurous, in a small Florida town.

One night while the girls have a slumber party, Hailey wishes for a miracle that will make her mother change her mind about moving. Minutes later, a violent storm occurs. The following morning, Claire accidentally slips into the local beach club swimming pool and notices something strange under the water with blue hair and a tail. She tries to tell herself it was only a figment of her imagination since she's been afraid of water ever since her parents died, but Hailey convinces Claire to come back and explore it later that night. When they do, they find a mermaid named Aquamarine (Sara Paxton). They instantly become friends and Aquamarine tells the girls that she needs to prove to her father that true love exists or she'll be made to get married to a man she doesn't know when she returns home. She also explains that if you help a mermaid, you get a wish.

Aquamarine immediately sets her eyes on Raymond (Jake McDorman), a handsome lifeguard who Hailey and Claire have had a crush on for years. They are reluctant at first but know it is their last hope, so they agree to help her. However, because Aquamarine isn't human, she doesn't understand that people don't just love one another instantly, and is rejected by Raymond when they first meet. Still, the girls promise to make Raymond fall in love with Aquamarine over the next three days. They use strategies found in teenage magazines, and proceed to stalk Raymond around town so he can notice Aquamarine more and more.

At a street fair, Raymond spends the day with Aquamarine. While enjoying a paddleboat ride, he mentions that he wants to see her at a party, The Last Splash, the following night, but she flees before she can give him an answer knowing a sunset can cause her legs to transform back into a tail. Claire and Hailey show Aquamarine a water tower for her to spend the night in, and promise to visit her the next day. In the morning, the three take a bus to Tampa to buy new outfits for the party.

For years, Hailey and Claire have had disagreements with a more popular group of girls, especially Cecilia Banks (Arielle Kebbel) who also has a crush on Raymond. Cecilia lies and tells him that the reason Aquamarine left so soon is to be with her boyfriend, so Raymond invites Cecilia to the party instead. Later that day, Claire goes to find Raymond to tell him that Cecilia made the whole thing up, and he and Aquamarine reconcile. At the party, Aquamarine and Raymond bond more, and before she flees again because of another sunset, she kisses him and asks him to meet her on the pier in the morning. When the three girls leave the party, Cecilia follows them to the water tower and discovers Aquamarine's secret. She unhooks the ladder so Aquamarine is unable to get down and calls the news so they can expose her on national television. However, in the night, the town's mysterious handyman Leonard (Bruce Spence) helps her out and promises to tell nobody what he knows. Aquamarine grants him a wish for helping her out.

After three days are up, although he cares for her a lot, Raymond still has not fallen in love with Aquamarine. They meet on the pier where Cecilia interrupts and pushes Aquamarine into the ocean. Aquamarine's father calls her back home in a giant storm, but Hailey and Claire swim after her after she tries to defy her father again. They discover the meaning of platonic love and Aquamarine's father is satisfied knowing love is real, and the girls receive their wish. They decide to not use it to keep Hailey from moving away, and instead they part ways with Aquamarine, with promises that they will remain friends despite their distance from each other.

Cast

Reception

Aquamarine received mixed reviews; as of February 2015, it holds a 51% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with the consensus "A lighthearted, gum-smacking, boy-crazy film with a hopeful message for young girls."[2] On Metacritic, which uses an average of critics' reviews, the film holds 51/100, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[3]

Box office

In its opening weekend the film grossed $7,482,669 in 2,512 theaters, ranking #5 at the box office. By the end of its run, Aquamarine grossed $18,597,342 domestically and $4,409,507 internationally for a worldwide total of $23,006,849.[1]

Awards and accolades

Year Result Award Category Recipients
2006 Nominated Teen Choice Awards Choice Movie: Chick Flick
Nominated Choice Movie Breakout Star - Female JoJo
2007 Nominated Nickelodeon Australian Kids' Choice Awards Fave Movie Star Emma Roberts
Won Young Artist Awards Best Performance in a Feature Film - Supporting Young Actress Emma Roberts
Nominated JoJo
Nominated Best Performance in a Feature Film - Leading Young Actress Sara Paxton

Soundtrack

Aquamarine
Soundtrack album by various artists
Released February 21, 2006
Genre Pop, Rock
Label Universal Motown Republic Group/La La Land
  1. "One Original Thing" – Cheyenne Kimball
  2. "Strike" – Nikki Flores
  3. "Connected" – Sara Paxton
  4. "One and Only" – Teitur
  5. "Right Now 2004" – Atomic Kitten
  6. "Island in the Sun" – Emma Roberts
  7. "Time for Me to Fly" – Nick Jonas
  8. "Can't Behave" – Courtney Jaye
  9. "Summertime Guys" – Nikki Cleary
  10. "One Way or Another" – Mandy Moore
  11. "Sweet Troubled Soul" – Stellastarr
  12. "I Like the Way You Move" – Bodyrockers

Two of the film's main stars, Emma and Sara, were also featured on the soundtrack however JoJo, an accomplished singer with one album out did not take part. In 2008, La La Land Records released a limited edition CD (1000 pressings) of David Hirschfelder's score (incorporating the voice of Sara Paxton) for the film.

  1. "Main Titles"
  2. "The Storm"
  3. "Washed Ashore"
  4. "Claire Falls In"
  5. "Meeting Aqua"
  6. "The Next Morning/Shell Phone Call"
  7. "Making the Deal"
  8. "Ray & Aqua/Magazines"
  9. "Paddleboat Date"
  10. "The Water Tower"
  11. "Hailey Rides the Dolphins"
  12. "Aqua's Decision"
  13. "First Kiss"
  14. "Cecilia Climbs the Tower"
  15. "Hailey and Claire Argue"
  16. "The Pier/Storm/The Buoy"
  17. "The Tear/Goodbyes"
  18. "Finale"
Other songs featured in the film[4]

Home media

The film was released June 13, 2006, on Region 1 DVD, and Blu-Ray on March 6, 2012.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Aquamarine (2006)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2015-05-09.
  2. ↑ Aquamarine at Rotten Tomatoes
  3. ↑ Aquamarine at Metacritic
  4. ↑ Aquamarine (2006) – Soundtrack (IMDb)

External links

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