Director: Emily Ting
Cast: Ava Michelle, Griffin Gluck, Sabrina Carpenter, Anjelika Washington, Luke Eisner, Jan Luis Castellanos, Steve Zahn, Angela Kinsey, Genre: Teen comedy
Language/Country: English / USA
Duration: 1 hr 37 min
Release date: February 11, 2022
The sequel to 2019’s Netflix teen film, ‘Tall Girl’, is here. Simply titled ‘Tall Girl 2’, the coming-of-age comedy follows residential tall girl Jodie (Ava Michelle) as she falls out with her boyfriend around the same time as dealing with the pressure of being the lead in her annual school musical.
Directed by Emily Ting (‘Go Back To China’ and ‘Already Tomorrow in Hong Kong’), we see Jodie walk confidently on stage for her audition, and the judges ask her about that climatic speech she made at the prom in the previous movie. Jodie had given a speech about getting bullied by her peers and declared her pride in being 6 feet tall, and how “the weather up here is great, actually”. The judge then asks Jodie if her speech about getting bullied for being tall was indeed an overreaction on her part, since other people have it so much worse: poverty, homelessness, starvation, disease. “I’m not saying that being tall is worse than any of these things”, Jodie replies, taken aback by the question. “It just doesn’t make any of the bad things that happened to me everyday of my entire life any less real”.
And so, the movie brushes off the mockery which the previous film’s storyline received online, and goes on its merry way.
So Jodie gets the main role in this high school play and while initially elated, she realizes the gigantic responsibility she now has on her shoulders and begins developimg anxiety. She also meets her cute co-actor named Tommy (Jan Luis Castellanos), who was charmed by her ever since she made the big prom speech, which makes her relationship with Dunkleman (Griffin Gluck) wobbly. To make it worse, Jodie’s elder sister and lifelong emotional anchor, Harper (Sabrina Carpenter), is going to be moving away for her job, thus leaving Jodie unthethered and spinning in what looks like a scary new world to Jodie.
‘Tall Girl 2’ is actually not that bad. It’s usually entertaining and funny, especially the supporting cast who are magnificently humorous and seem like folks you’d want to be friends with. Angela Kinsey and Steve Zahn as Jodie’s parents are a riot. Every scene involving them is filled with one-liners and zingers which will make you crackle. Sabrina Carpenter is reliably great as Jodie’s sister Harper. Carpenter was the shining star, and someone would even argue the redeeming factor, in the preceeding movie. And she brings that same level of humour, confidence and attitude to this one.
But the real breakthrough is Luke Eisner, as Jodie’s ex boyfriend-turned-supportive buddy, Stig Mohlin. We see a new side to the handsome but morally dubious Stig as he settles into his new role in Jodie’s friend group as the lovable and optimistic himbo. Stig is a romantic hopeful and has a playful chemistry with his newly arrived sister from Sweden, the spunky Stella (Joanna Liauw). Stig also shares some cute moments with Fareeda (Anjelika Washington) which will make you smile, although their getting together is as predictable as anything you see on teen shows.
Dunkleman’s friendship with Stella is also endearing and healthy, like a ‘role model’ co-ed friendship that everyone should aspire to.
While ‘Tall Girl 2’ is undeniably funny and positive, it also plays it safe and is extremely predictable. We know that Jodie will overcome her anxieties and ace her performance. We know that she will eventually get back with Dunkers. We know that Fareeda and Stig will get together inspite of Jodie’s not-so-pleasant history with him. We also know that highschool queen bee, Kimmy (Clara Wilsey) will soften up and stop being so mean to Jodie for whatever reason. It’s still nice, however, to watch it all unfold. And the cast really seems to be having fun, especially the younger and new actors, who enthusiastically let their inner ‘theatre kid’ out in many of the rehearsal scenes.
I just wish that the film was more daring and went into places we didn’t expect. There are also moments where we see the characters behave in a way that is so expected of them that we begin to zone out or even doze off. And Kimmy’s character could certainly have done with more in-depth writing.
All in all, ‘Tall Girl 2’ is a harmless and predictable little movie, which will entertain everyone who loves binge-watching Netflix teen content. But when it comes to standing tall in Netflix’s pantheon of the ‘best movies’, ‘Tall Girl 2’ falls short.
‘Tall Girl 2’ is now streaming on Netflix. It recentlyranked at #5 on Movies Today.
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