Seriously what is with that? They have several of these movies that end with "At 17" can't they think of another title? This movie, Accused at 17, Stalked at 17 are just a couple
"That was the sickest thing I've seen on TV, and I watch Dance Moms"
I know the Actor Rob Stewart who played the Teacher Gilbert Adkins and he told me it's the same Producer and Director that does all the Lifetime Movies that end in 17 and agree he should come up with new titles.
shareI can probably weigh in on this since I'm the writer on the majority of the "at 17" movies. The choice in movie titles actually comes from the network, not the producer or the writer or the director.
The "at 17" franchise ( "franchise" meaning a collection of movies created for the same target audience) is actually one of Lifetime's most popular as they tend to draw a younger audience. The stories all feature a 17 year old who makes a mistake that spins out of control and drama ensues. If you like one "at 17" movie, chances are, you're going to like the next one as well because they are similar in terms of characters and general premise. So those titles are chosen by design. It helps audience members that liked one, know that they'll probably enjoy the others as well. This improves ratings, which in turn, creates more advertising dollars for the network. It's not much different than, for example, the Final Destination series. If you like one, you'll probably like them all. They all have the same basic premise (cheating death) and are shot in a similar style. It wouldn't make much sense to title them differently because then people who like the first one wouldn't necessarily know that the second one is the same type of film.
This is sometimes a difficult thing for folks who aren't in the "industry" to understand. Television and filmmaking is a business first. While there are certainly creative elements to it, there are many decisions made that have more to do with business than creativity. Hope that helps.
But Christine, will the franchise end with seventeen movies?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMUz2TNMvL0
Thank you Christine for explaining the reason for the titles and I have watched all of those movies and enjoyed them.
shareThanks for the explanation. I liked all of them and I am not even close to 17 anymore ;)
We live by the Sun, we feel by the Moon
Will we have "Walking down the street at 17" next or perhaps "Going to the bathroom at 17" or what about "Eating an ice cream cone at 17" ?
"That was the sickest thing I've seen on TV, and I watch Dance Moms"
I was looking through the listings on my dvr guide the other day and noticed some of the "at 17" movies listed back to back. My reaction was this feels incredibly gimmicky and could they be any more generic? A 17 year old is experiencing guilt or any number of other things common to all other humans? No way! Normally I would just keep scrolling, but this was too funny and the audacity had to be appreciated. Do you ever wish you could come up with a cool sounding title instead of having to go back to the generic well for ratings purposes?
shareWhy do you folks hide the fact that these films are shot in beautiful Ottawa, Ontario, Canada? It drives me insane that you set these films in U.S. cities, often Philadelphia, which bear little resemblance to beautiful Ottawa. Surely, Americans will watch a movie that is set in Canada. Won't they? They can't be that shallow?
shareNever underestimate the xenophobic capacity or jingoistic pride in Americans. Even Canada which is practically identical in most respects is still much too foreign for the audience.
"what is your major malfunction numbnuts?!!
Maybe move on to something more original? At 18 ? Honestly it takes ZERO TALENT to write this crap !!!
share"The "at 17" franchise ( "franchise" meaning a collection of movies created for the same target audience) is actually one of Lifetime's most popular as they tend to draw a younger audience."
^Well said and I agree. They also have a line of films in the "Perfect" series: 'The Perfect Roommate', 'The Perfect Bride', 'The Perfect Teacher', etc.
When theres no more room in Hollywood, remakes shall walk the Earth.
I was wondering the same thing. Its like the the prefect movies such as the prefect wife and the prefect nanny or the nightmare movies like a daughter's nightmare or a mother's nightmare. I just got done watching one called a wife's nightmare.
shareThis is the first 'At 17' movie I've seen. I hope I enjoy the others as much as I did this one.
I have seen several 'Met Online' TV movies that they've done. Another Lifetime title obsession it seems.
True the titles aren't creative but I like being able to know in an instant whether it's something I'll probably enjoy or not.
In fact, there's a whole bunch of stuff recently I skip because they're good enough to franchise it: The Walking Dead (well done, however not my thing). Most series keep one name yet title each episode. Movies do something similar (the Bourne movies, for example).
I'm an older person-I'm just happy they stopped calling movies whatever their name is and then add numbers ha ha even though it was cool pre-Internet to know at a glance what order to watch.
Every simple thing has a useful purpose.
Now. There's gotta be a more consistent way to know if something is a/based on/inspired by true events, since not all movie blurbs or description on guides include that. I tend to care more when I know there's some truth.