Name: Tall Girl 2
Genre: Comedy, Romance, Drama
Released: 2022-02-10T00:00:00+00:00
Cast: Ava Michelle, Griffin Gluck, Sabrina Carpenter, Clara Wilsey, Angela Kinsey

The pre-show “burning ceremony” in Tall Girl 2 is meant to be a moment of catharsis for Jodi Kreyman (Ava Michelle), but it plays out like a clunky, contrived plot device rather than a genuine emotional beat. This scene encapsulates the film’s biggest problem: its insistence on retreading familiar ground without adding anything meaningful or fresh. Directed by Emily Ting from a script by Sam Wolfson, this Netflix sequel tries to expand on the self-acceptance themes of the first movie but ultimately stumbles into predictable high school movie tropes.

What Tall Girl 2 is: A teen romantic comedy that follows Jodi as she navigates newfound popularity after her inspiring speech at the homecoming dance. Now a confident, popular girl with a boyfriend (Griffin Gluck as Jack Dunkleman), Jodi faces fresh challenges when she tries out for and lands the lead role in her school’s production of Heathers. The film attempts to explore various insecurities—Jodi’s lingering doubts about her height, Harper’s (Sabrina Carpenter) struggles with being defined by beauty pageants, Fareeda’s (Anjelika Washington) desire for parental support in pursuing fashion design—but these threads are woven together so loosely that they feel more like separate subplots than a cohesive narrative.

The performances anchor the film, though not always effectively. Ava Michelle is adequate as Jodi, but her character’s arc feels redundant after the first film’s conclusion. The script gives her little room to grow beyond the self-assured persona she adopted in Tall Girl, and much of her screen time is spent vacillating between confidence and insecurity without much nuance. Griffin Gluck fares worse as Jack, whose character swings wildly between supportive boyfriend and petty teenager without any real motivation or depth. His outbursts—like the one where he angrily breaks up with Jodi over a kiss she shared with Tommy (Jan Luis Castellanos)—feel more like plot conveniences than genuine emotional reactions.

The standout performance comes from Sabrina Carpenter, who brings energy and charm to her role as Harper. Her subplot about breaking free from the beauty pageant circuit feels fresh compared to the rest of the film’s recycled tropes, and she delivers some of the movie’s funniest and most heartfelt moments. Anjelika Washington also stands out as Fareeda, whose quiet determination to pursue fashion design against her parents’ wishes adds a layer of authenticity to the otherwise thin characterizations.

Where Tall Girl 2 truly falters is in its direction and storytelling. Emily Ting’s visual style is unremarkable, relying on standard high school movie aesthetics—bright colors, wide shots of lockers and cafeterias—that fail to distinguish it from the countless other films in this genre. The musical sequences lack energy, missing an opportunity to inject some much-needed vibrancy into the story. Even the film’s attempts at humor fall flat, relying too heavily on slapstick or awkward silences rather than witty dialogue or clever situational comedy.

The script’s biggest misstep is its cluttered plot. Between Jodi’s musical tryouts, her crumbling relationship with Jack, Harper’s pageant struggles, and Fareeda’s fashion design dreams, there’s too much going on without enough depth in any of it. The attempt to correlate issues of height with other insecurities like body image falls flat, treated more as a plot device than a meaningful exploration. The film’s reliance on familiar tropes—like the “burning ceremony” or the redemption arc for Kimmy (Clara Wilsey), Jodi’s former bully—feels lazy and uninspired.

That said, Tall Girl 2 does offer some genuine moments of warmth and humor. The dynamic between Jodi and Kimmy is one of the film’s strongest elements, as their scenes together have a rawness that feels authentic. Clara Wilsey delivers a standout performance, bringing depth to a character who could easily have been dismissed as a one-dimensional antagonist. Their redemption arc may be predictable, but it’s handled with enough sincerity to make it feel earned.

The film also attempts to tackle themes of self-acceptance and the pressures of high school life in a way that feels relevant, even if its execution is flawed. The message that it’s okay to struggle with insecurity and doubt is an important one, particularly for young viewers who may be dealing with similar issues. However, the film’s inability to delve deeper into these themes—preferring instead to gloss over them with superficial resolutions—ultimately undermines its impact.

Tall Girl 2 is a forgettable sequel that doesn’t measure up to its predecessor. It tries to cover too many themes without diving deep into any of them, resulting in a film that feels bland and predictable. While it offers some genuine moments of warmth and humor—particularly in the performances of Sabrina Carpenter and Clara Wilsey—they aren’t enough to salvage the film’s cluttered plot and uninspired direction.

For fans of the first Tall Girl, this sequel may offer some mild entertainment, but it lacks the heart and originality that made its predecessor worth watching.