Reviews & Quotes | 17 And Life Doesn't Wait
School Library Journal
"Reassuring the high school seniors, who may wonder if everyone else has it more figured out, and a useful prompt for preservice teachers to remind them that under an 'I've got this' attitude, teens still benefit from sensitive adult support."
POV Magazine
"The topic–three vibrant teenage girls facing family and societal expectations and challenges on the threshold of finishing secondary school–allows Judge to describe what it is truly like to be an adolescent female in the twenty-first century. The usual subjects emerge, but often in unexpected ways. The girls are confident and vulnerable, innocent and sophisticated, all at the same time. They adore and depend on their parents, and reject and mock them at the same time. As always, Judge and her team have located remarkable people to be characters in the film, and built trusting relationships with them, and their families. We are aware of the director’s and the camera’s presence in this film in a way that is refreshingly honest. The girls live their lives on screen so this is just one more lens in their face."
Globe and Mail
"17 AND LIFE DOESN'T WAIT by director Maureen Judge is a vivid, often wrenching look at life through the eyes of three teen girls. The three are in their final year of high school, and getting ready for the world outside. Of the three, some are happy and optimistic while others have dread lurking in them. The doc is wonderfully nuanced and at times heartbreaking. The matter of the suicides of teens they know comes up. Shot over nine months, 17 AND LIFE DOESN'T WAIT is no snapshot. It delves deep into its subjects as they deal with daily life, rejection and family tensions. All three emerge as unforgettable figures."