Based on the book of the same name by Jessica Knoll, Luckiest Girl Alive follows a young woman who reinvents herself in adulthood to escape the trauma of events during her teenage years.
The woman in question is Ani FaNelli (Mila Kunis), a sharp-tongued New Yorker who seemingly has it all.
With an envious position at a glossy magazine and a dream Nantucket wedding on the horizon, her life is about to come crumbling down.
As a teenager at the prestigious Brentley School, a shocking incident took place. One that Ani has spent years trying to forget.
And for the most part, she has succeeded. That is until the director of a crime documentary invites her to tell her side of the story, forcing Ani to confront the truth even if it means the unravelling of her picture-perfect life.
Luckiest Girl Alive Trailer
Is Luckiest Girl Alive Worth Watching?
On the face of it, Luckiest Girl Alive looks like a run-of-the-mill drama. Successful adult recounts a horrific teenage incident but thankfully all ends well that ends well and she moves on with her life.
Except that Luckiest Girl Alive is not that sweet. In fact, it is quite reminiscent of the true crime documentaries that we all watch in our millions.
You know the ones. In order to get those ratings up, we expect ordinary people to relive the worst moments of their lives without really giving much thought to how that impacts them when filming has stopped.
We can fool ourselves into thinking that exposing a dark truth is somehow a cathartic experience for the person on the screen. The reality, as wonderfully exposed in the film, is far from being that simple.
Yes, Luckiest Girl Alive is well worth watching. Mila Kunis is superb as a survivor of sexual assault who must decide whether to stay quiet or hold those responsible to account.
It has drama and tension in abundance and will keep you hooked until the credits roll.
It may even make you re-think all of those true crimes shows!
Luckiest Girl Alive Release Date
Directed by Mike Barker and starring Mila Kunis, the Netflix movie began filming in July 2021 in Toronto, Canada and ended in September 2021 in New York.
Netflix then announced that Luckiest Girl Alive was scheduled to be released in select cinemas on September 30, 2022.
The streaming release date was confirmed as October 7, 2022.
Is Luckiest Girl Alive A True Story?
Yes and no. The basis for the story comes from the 2015 New York Times bestseller written by author Jessica Knoll.
Knoll wrote the book by drawing on her own personal experiences of being gang raped and bullied as a teenager. However, it was only in 2016 that she made it public knowledge.
So from that perspective, some elements in the film are true. However, the rest of the story is fiction.
Luckiest Girl Alive Netflix Cast
Mila Kunis (Bad Moms Christmas) as Ani Fanelli, a woman with a meticulously crafted life
Chiara Aurelia as teenage Ani Fanelli
Finn Wittrock as Luke Harrison, Ani's wealthy fiancee
Scoot McNairy as Andrew Larson, a teacher from the school
Jennifer Beals as LoLo Vincent
Connie Britton as Dina, Ani's mother
Thomas Barbusca as Arthur Finneman
Justine Lupe as Neil Rutherford
Dalmar Abuzeid as Aaron Wickersham, the true crime documentary maker
Alexandra Beaton as Hilary Hitchinson
Alex Barone as Dean Barton
Carson MacCormac as young Dean Barton
