'Life Size 2: A Christmas Eve'—Movie Review

Did you just catch the new Life Size movie? Wasn’t it cray-cray? OMG, that Tyra Banks! And all the other awesome-tastic hilarious bits that happened in this film! I bet you're annoyed with how this review is starting off. Me too! And the reason is that all the characters talked like that in the film!

Life Size is a film that was a television movie in the early 2000s starring Lindsay Lohan and Tyra Banks. One night a Barbie doll, named Eve, is magically brought to life after Casey (Lohan) was trying to bring her late mother back to life. Lohan tries to put the pieces together as Eve (Banks) wanders around trying to make sense of this new world. Along the way, Eve makes Casey and her father learn about love, friendship, and acceptance.

I was excited when a sequel to Life Size was announced. It was a fun movie to watch in my childhood. I loved playing with Barbie dolls! I still have memories of dressing up my dolls and reenacting funny scenarios. Now that I am an adult, Life Size is a nostalgia film that reminds me of my childhood. Most others can agree.

After watching Life Size 2: A Christmas Eve I was a little disappointed. First, they changed the title last minute to A Christmas Eve. Unless they wanted to relate it to Eve, I’m not sure. Life Size 2 would have worked just fine. As soon as the movie started none of the characters were really appealing to me. I’ll admit the acting and dialogue was cringeworthy and annoying at times.

The toy company that manufactures the famous Eve doll is in trouble. Instead of trying to save the doll, Grace Manning (Francia Raisa), decides to discontinue Eve. Francia Raisa, star of Grown-ish, is our Lindsay Lohan. Sadly, Lohan could not return due to scheduling conflicts. But, she does have a cameo, which made me smile.

Grace is a troubled, obnoxious thirty-year-old child. Similar, but not so much, Grace’s Mom is gone. Similar to the first film, Eve wants to help solve the pieces to the missing puzzle. Grace refuses Eve’s help. I am not going to give away the reveal, but the end result was disappointing.

Tyra Banks returns as the lovely, yet bonkers, Eve. This time Eve is brought to life through a resurrection spell and she is discovered the next morning in Grace’s bed. I also want to complain about the multiple unnecessary innuendoes. Was this film geared towards kids, or adults? I spotted over a dozen innuendoes not even in the first ten minutes.

I did enjoy Banks’ scenes. I could tell that she was having fun in this new sequel, especially in the brunch scene where she orders just about everything on the menu, including drinking liquid butter. I was mostly looking forward to that scene seeing how the commercial constantly aired it. But, would you really awkwardly rap with a random guy on the street?

Viewers also got a look into Eve’s world as a Barbie doll! No, literally, she has her own world where she can call other Eve dolls from her mobile phone. Arguably, that is a creative touch. I like to imagine other words and how characters interact.

I do want to say this. Two out of four of our main characters are openly gay or bisexual. And there is also a very diverse cast. That’s what instantly caught my attention while watching this film. There was also a scene where Grace stands up to a group of kids who she inadvertently thought were bullies picking on her neighbor. I love how this film openly displays gender norms, sexuality, and color. Movies have fought against controversy, rights, and even bans for either violence or risque overtones.

If you want to give Life Size 2: A Christmas Eve a watch, go ahead. It was quirky and had its fun moments. If you want to see your favorite doll, Eve, one last time, go ahead and watch it.