American Girl

I cannot put my finger on what was wrong with this movie. The story was good. I am not sure where it went wrong. It could have been Mila's performance, the perfect rich unicorn boyfriend, the one dimensional characters or the editing. First of all, the movie could have been much shorter. Second of all, it failed to make me care much about Mila's character. I don't know why. She had a good story and I understood what she went through. I think it's how she acted, it was a bit off, one dimensional. Actually all the characters were one dimensional. It was annoying in a sense, same stereotypes and say exactly what you expect them to say. And the boyfriend was just so patient and perfect it makes one nauseous. It felt unrealistic. It's one of those movies, that I am not sure if I am happy I watched or not.

The luckiest girl alive, had to dig deep to survive, to establish a career, to crack down on all her fear, give the scars their time to heal, reconnect the nerves that feel, gain the courage to fight back, after multiple attacks.

Sadly, a not unfamiliar story of abuse against a young woman in a culture that even to this day wants to bury its head in the sand and pretend these far from isolated incidents don't take place (the world over unfortunately). Two spectacular performances from Chiara Aurelia and Mila Kunis, with brilliant dialogue (both spoken and narrated, especially the narrated), make this an excellent companion piece to Promising Young Woman.

I have to say, I had my fair share of the doubt during the first 30 minutes or so, because it started off as a typical rom com with a quirky protagonist.

But I'm glad I gave it a chance, because once it picks up, it's done masterfully. I was afraid at some point it would slide to "who done it" kind of a thriller, but fortunately that never happened.

That is not to say there isn't mystery. It's just properly balanced, so it never feels over the top. Characters are believable and much more nuanced than you typically get in this type of dramas.

We all heard a stories like this, but they are rarely explored respectfully and without going over the top. However, this movie manages to do it.

I'm glad the writers didn't go for twists and turns, but stayed true to the message they wanted to deliver. And it is a message we all need to hear.

The movie starts slowly as we get to know Ani, through her actions, inner monologue, and a series of flashbacks.

We get hints that she has suffered a terrible trauma while at an expensive high school, but has done her best to push all of the trauma down.

Her resulting life is hollow, obsessed with status, and her writing focused on sexualizing every topic.

That Ani is finally forced to confront her trauma, to let it ooze out of the dark corners where she's repressed it, is predictable. The story, however, is not nor is her reaction.

Not to give anything away, but the movie confronts a serious, important subject and gets better as it moves along.

Acting and editing are highlights. Visuals, however, are rather dull.

(This, however, may be on point as well given how the character lives life at a distance every day since high school.)

I'm glad I didn't go to see this in a theater, but it's a solid enough movie to screen on Netflix, with a follow up conversation in your friend-group almost mandatory.

The book was a million times more (not better; apples and oranges) than the movie. I don't think it's fair to expect 1.5 hours to do it justice. I can't give an unbiased review if the movie after reading the book so the movie was decent but the depth and development in the book deserves a mini series. Without the buildup, background, and character development some of the story seems incomplete and really paints a better picture of surviving/victimhood. I worry that it became more of a message than a quality story. That being said, the casting for Ani and Luke (especially) was great! I think it's a movie worth watching if you haven't read the book.