3 Helpful Lessons from Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret

Lessons from Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret written by the Unicorn and the Elf. This post contains affiliate links, you can find out more on our policies page or in the disclaimer at the bottom of the blog.

Know Before You Watch

Movie: Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret
Rating: PG-13
Age Suggestion: 10 and up
Running Time: 1 hour and 51 minutes
Release Date: April 28th, 2023
Warnings: The whole movie is about learning about and experiencing puberty, growing up, and religious family friction.

Quick Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret Movie Summary

After returning from summer camp, Margaret Simon is surprised by her parents with a move from New York City to the suburbs of New Jersey. As Margaret tries to fit in at her new school with new friends, she starts to question her faith. This leads to a school project on religion to figure out where she belongs. As if the surprising move wasn’t enough, middle school has also changed and everyone’s talking about periods and kissing. Where does Margaret fit in?!

Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret the Movie Parent Review

Contains Mild Spoilers 

-Is Are You There God the Movie Appropriate for Younger Kids?–

The book this movie is based on has been overwhelmed by controversy since it first came out in 1970. Between having honest discussion about periods, bras, religion, and the general struggles of growing up, many people felt it was too mature for the intended demographic (9-11 year-old girls). The movie does not shy away from these topics either, so if you are uninterested in a truthful story about growing up, then this is not the movie for you.

So what age can watch Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret? That depends on the maturity of the child. But any kiddo that you are talking about puberty, periods, etc… with could see the movie without worrying that too much new material will be introduced. It’s a pretty tame introduction to puberty coming from the perspective of a naïve middle schooler in the seventies.

These topics are handled with care and compassion, thoughtful, and sometimes funny way that leaves you reflecting on your own experience growing up. There is no nudity shown, though there are medical diagrams of human anatomy and a scene where Margaret and her friends look at her dad’s Playboy magazine (nothing is shown).

-Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret Characters & Acting-

The acting is top notch! Abby Ryder Fortson is amazing as Margaret and portrays the awkward moments of growing up with sincerity. Her parents, played by Benny Safdie and Rachel McAdams of Mean Girls and The Notebook fame are fantastic. McAdams is especially fantastic as Margaret’s mom, Barbara.

Their mother-daughter bond is believable, and Barbara’s struggle as she tries to be the best mom possible to her daughter is very sweet. Kathy Bates plays Margaret’s grandmother and provides the perfect amount of comedic relief. Margaret’s friends are wonderful and perfectly encapsulate what it is like to be an obnoxious 11 or 12-year-old girl.

Check out 7 lessons from coming of age movies

-Are You There God? Script & Story-

The script is fairly close to what I remember the book being like. They add a couple of scenes at the beginning and throughout the story that flesh out the other secondary characters, since the book is fully from Margaret’s perspective, unlike the movie. I love the way that they add to the scenes with Margaret’s parents so that when she walks in, we are only watching her understand what’s going on, unlike in the book where the reader discovers what is going on alongside her.

The only major criticism of the script I have is related to Margaret’s conflict with Nancy. I feel as though there is more resolution in the book than there is in the movie, but otherwise, I felt it was a faithful adaptation, while making the necessary changes to be a really solid movie.

-Film Quality-

The movie is set in 1970, much like the book, and everything from the set design, to costumes, to the hair, to the music, perfectly reflects the time. I especially loved the costumes and will be stealing some of both Barbara and Margaret’s looks for inspiration. One other creative choice that I liked was the way they framed some of the shots. It felt like we were looking from Margaret’s eye level, as opposed to an adult, and it was a cool way to ground the audience in Margaret’s perspective.

–Favorite Moments–

There are so many iconic moments in the book and they were able to keep so many of them and translated them to screen flawlessly. From scenes like “I must increase my bust”, to even small scenes like the first day of school. I so enjoyed seeing moments that I remembered from reading the book at age 10 that deeply affected me as I went through puberty.

Continue reading for our 3 Lessons from Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret the Movie

Check out discussion questions for My Best Friend Anne Frank

Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret Movie Discussion Questions

1) Margaret has a hard time fitting in with her friends, often giving to peer pressure. Have you ever felt uncomfortable around your friends because of their behavior? What did you do?

2) How might Margaret’s life look different if her parents had raised her in a religion?

3) Margaret’s mom Barbara also struggles to fit in her new community in New Jersey, largely because she tries to fit in rather than be herself. How important is it to be yourself when meeting new people?

4) Margaret’s parents try to support her, but don’t always do the best job. Whether you are a parent or a child, how do you think her parents did in supporting her through this transition? What would you have done?

5) Growing up can be difficult. What was your experience growing up like? Is there something you wish had gone differently?

Continue reading for our 3 Lessons from Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret

3 Lessons from Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret the Movie

1) Don’t judge people by what others’ think of them

Margaret initially judges Laura Danker harshly based on what Nancy says about her. Because of this, Margaret contributes to the bullying that Laura experiences and hurts Laura’s feelings. After Margaret begins to realize that Nancy does and says things that are not nice, Margaret is able to become friends with Laura, reminding us that it’s important to not judge others only based on what others say about them before getting a chance to know them ourselves.

2) Growing up will come in its own time

When you’re young, it can be hard to watch others reach milestones before you do, especially during puberty. Margaret struggles as she watches Gretchen and Nancy get their periods before she gets hers. It’s important to remember that your experience growing up will be nothing like and on a different timeline that anyone else, and that’s ok!

3) It’s ok to not meet other people’s expectations

One of the biggest struggles Margaret deals with throughout the movie is not being what others expect of her. When she first meets Nancy, Nancy tells her that she thought Margaret would be a lot more grown up since she’s coming from the city. Margaret then feels a lot of pressure to be more grown up, even though she’s not.

Margaret also doesn’t meet the expectations of her grandparents. Her dad’s mom wants her to be Jewish, but her mom’s parents want her to be Christian, and even though her parents want her to make her own decision, the pressure of everyone’s expectations on her are too much. It’s ok to be yourself, and not conform to be what others expect you to be.

Parent Resources for Discussion Puberty and Online Safety After Watching Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret Together:

The National Children’s Advocacy Center has a great list of resources for parents right here.

Kids Health article of talking to your kids about puberty right here.

-Internet Safety 101 has a lot of resources available to help you keep your kids safer online.

American Girls has a book series on The Care and Keeping of You Body Book. Find book 1 here. And there’s a boys version of the book that you can find here. *We have not personally read either book*

Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret Parent Review Conclusion

It was a fun watch. I left feeling a little sad that we are parenting in 2023 and not 1973 because smart phones change this whole conversation so much, and make it happen at a younger age. But I imagine that watching it with my kids will bring up some really great discussions. Judy Blume wrote honestly at an age appropriate level, and the movie did the same. While I would love to say that the movie is appropriate for 12 plus, we really need to be having these conversations with our 10 year olds, and maybe even younger depending on the situation. And watching a fun, awkward but appropriate, movie is a great way to do that.

Thanks for reading our Lessons from Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. Here’s what to check out next:

–Catherine Called Birdy
–Hunger Games
–Disenchanted
–Enola Holmes and its sequel

Down The Hobbit Hole Blog and this Lessons from Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret use affiliate links. We only link products we think you’ll like and you are never charged extra for them. As Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you. All images used in this post were either original designs from Canva or used from media kits We also use cookies to gather analytics and present advertisements. Find our other reviews with discussion questions here. And our posts about family stuff here.