Film Review: 'Tall Girl 2'

It's been a few months since Jodi Kreyman (Ava Michelle) decided to "stand tall" at homecoming and stop defining herself by the cruel words of bullies. Now it would seem everything is going perfectly for this Nike-wearing high school student. She's gone from outcast to school icon, enjoys a steady relationship with her best friend turned boyfriend Jack Dunkleman (Griffin Gluck) and has just landed the lead role in her school's production of Bye Bye Birdie. Even with tormentor Kimmy Stitcher (Clara Wilsey) still giving her grief, Jodi couldn't be happier.

But that all comes crashing down when the pressure of her theater debut starts getting to Jodi. Despite having stood up for herself at homecoming, residue from Jodi's past insecurities remains. As opening night comes closer, a voice in Jodi's head keeps telling her she's not cut out for the stage and that she's headed for humiliation. A fight with Jack that leaves them broken up and estranged puts Jodi even further on edge. Will she be able to rediscover her confidence in time to take the stage?

Anyone who read my review on the first Tall Girl movie knows that I seriously despised Jack "Whiny Entitled Jerk" Dunkleman and thought everything else about the film ranged from OK to really good. That assessment also describes my opinion of the sequel, with Dunkleman being just as awful to Jodi as he was in the first movie. The opening recap gets things off to a bad start by giving Jack way too much credit for "inspiring" Jodi to stand up for herself. In reality, the guy treated her like garbage for most of the film and sabotaged her relationship with Stig. It gets worse as we see Jack initially give Stig the cold shoulder, completely ignoring how he was the one who convinced Stig to turn his back on Jodi, thus allowing Jack to swoop in and pretend to be her knight in shining armor. It's incredible that the script has Fareeda blast Stig for "torturing Jodi with sick, twisted mind games" while standing next to Jack, the true manipulator in Jodi's life. At least the Stig hatefest from Jack and Fareeda doesn't last too long.

But things truly take a nosedive when the friction between Jack and Jodi starts. It all begins when the former freaks out on Jodi for wanting to leave their anniversary dinner to prepare for her show--something he offered to let her do--before admitting to feeling intimidated by Jodi's newfound popularity. In short, Jack once again starts treating Jodi badly the second she has something going on in her life that doesn't involve him. It's also pretty hypocritical of Jack to accuse Jodi of having no "work-life balance" when both this film and the first one show that Jack's life (and personality) seems to revolve around Jodi. He also later gives someone advice on respecting their crush's feelings when he shows a complete lack of respect for Jodi's feelings about starring in her first musical. Rather than try to be understanding of how nervous Jodi is, Jack snaps at Jodi as soon as her dreams interfere with what he wants. And thanks to Jack and Jodi's complete inability to talk things out, this conflict gets dragged out for the entire movie, turning a mere annoyance into the anchor that drags Tall Girl 2 below the original.

It's a shame too, because like the first Tall Girl, plot points outside of Jodi and Jack's relationship drama are pretty solid. Despite Jodi's role in that aggravating plotline, Ava Michelle still gives another sympathetic performance. In a grounding moment for Jodi and the movie as a whole, Jodi admits during her Bye Bye Birdie audition that she knows her height isn't as big of a problem compared to the struggles of others. But at the same time, the film accurately asserts that Jodi's insecurities are still valid, even if they can't compare to something like homelessness or terminal illness. As Jodi falls back into her old self-hating habits that are exacerbated by Jack breaking up with her, Michelle makes it easy to feel for Jodi and want to see her conquer the voice in her head and succeed.

WARNING: SPOILERS BELOW

Unfortunately, this film's idea of success for Jodi is to have her take Dunkleman back, despite all the evidence that he's no good for her and the fact that he never really apologizes for being a selfish, possessive creep. Like the first film, Tall Girl 2 had the opportunity to be an empowering story about a young woman learning to love herself and cut ties with a callous boyfriend who believes himself entitled to all her time. Jodi almost gets to this point by telling Jack off on a few occasions and comes close to burning the shoes he gave her at the end of the first movie. Considering those shoes were given to her after Jack successfully destroyed Jodi's relationship with Stig, that could've been a cathartic start to Jodi's "I Deserve Better/Don't Need a Boyfriend to Know My Worth" arc.

We also could've gotten a "Dunkleman Character Development" arc out of this movie. Jack and Jodi's breakup opened up the opportunity to let Jack come to realize how he's let his crush on Jodi dominate his life and work on rediscovering who he is outside of a relationship. Jack's interest in photography and unexpected friendship with Stig could've easily facilitated this and led to Jack finally admitting how toxic he's been, apologizing to Stig for his part in ruining his chances with Jodi, and letting Jodi go so they can both move on to healthier relationships. Sadly, that's all scrapped in favor of a rushed romcom conclusion, complete with a dance party ending.

This also comes at the cost of Jan Luis Castellanos being wasted as Jodi's play co-star Tommy Torres. The trailer makes it look like his appearance leads to a love triangle a-la The Kissing Booth 2. Instead, Jodi quickly puts a stop to any potential romance with Tommy and he's left to serve as nothing more than a conflict-inciting plot device and a replacement "Motivational POC Friend" for Jodi since Fareeda is too busy to be Jodi's personal cheerleader this time around. With Castellanos giving a sweet performance as a lovable teen who relates to Jodi's body image issues, seeing his character get shoved to the sidelines is especially frustrated. Stuck in a similar boat is Clara Wilsey as Kimmy, who initially continues down the Disney Channel-esque bully path before getting a rather abrupt redemption arc. While I was disappointed at Kimmy's potential depths being ignored in the original, I'm even more disappointed by the sequel following up on those depths in such a lackluster way.

Spoilers Over

Most of the other returning actors are just as good as Michelle, with a few of them being involved in subplots that are much more enjoyable than the Jodi/Jack idiocy. Sabrina Carpenter is still funny as Jodi's quirkily supportive older sister Harper and shares another touching scene with Michelle when Harper opens up to Jodi about her worries about the next chapter of her life. Steve Zahn and especially Angela Kinsey get more of a chance to play up the sweeter qualities of Jodi's bumbling but loving parents Richie and Helaine Kreyman, particularly during a heartfelt scene where they comfort Jodi during an anxiety attack.

Anjelika Washington similarly has more room to shine due to Fareeda getting her own subplot regarding her fashion designer ambitions and changing relationship with Stig. Luke Eisner meshes surprisingly well with Washington during this process and otherwise makes Stig Mohlin the surprise show-stealer of Tall Girl 2. Despite the dodgy Swedish accent, Eisner makes Stig impossible not to love with his goofy antics and wholesome desire to make amends with Fareeda and Jack. The only downside is that Stig is pursuing a bromance with the same guy who exploited his insecurities for his own gain. But at least the viewer only gets some temporary mild respite from Griffin Gluck's obnoxious performance as an obnoxious character during the softer scenes Jack shares with Stig. One last notable new cast member in this Tall Girl installment is Johanna Liauw as Stig's sister Stella. Not only does Liauw join Eisner in being lovably funny, but Stella gets a cathartic moment where she calls out Jack for pushing Jodi away when she failed to align with his idealized image of her. Nothing really comes of it, but still, points for trying.

All the good acting and likable characters of Tall Girl 2 do their best to make up for the annoying storyline that is Jack and Jodi's floundering relationship. But with that storyline and Dunkleman's irritating attitude lingering like smoke for the whole movie, their efforts can't undo all the damage. Like the original, Jodi's likability and Stig's charm are among the reasons to stick around through the scenes that'll make you want to take a milk crate to Jack's skull. They're joined by other fun characters, many bringing with them interesting side stories that break up the tedium of Jack and Jodi's "Wouldn't Be a Conflict If They'd Just Communicate" conflict. While it's a point below the original movie on the rating scale thanks to the toxic romance at its center, Tall Girl 2 is still worth checking out for the talented actors and endearing supporting characters.

Score: 4 out of 10 caramelized onions.