As recently as 6-7 years ago, a movie positioning itself as a rallying cry for young girls to stand up and speak out against the deep-rooted sexism that exists in the world's bedrock institutions could've been a triumph that made a real impact in the culture. In March 2021, where most people of all ages that don't treat any change to the way people are treated within society as a grave threat to their way of living are more aware of the toxic behavior and double standards women face than ever before, its arguably borderline unnecessary.
Will The Tik Tok generation enjoy Moxie? More than likely. It features several likable characters, ample teen drama and a positive portrayal of young girls fighting back against the archaic crap their high school administrators champion that's easy to rally around. So how does Moxie stumble despite building a foundation that should seemingly lead to at least a somewhat successful, inspiring teen movie? Simple: It's with how the characters and its messaging are constructed.
Amy Poehler and her writing team of Tamara Chestna and Dylan Meyer try to paint this current generation as repressed, quiet kids who are afraid to make noise when they see/feel like something is wrong with the way their high school conducts its business. Given the current American political climate and all of the godawful things this generation has seen happen in the world during their formative years, this is an extremely difficult idea to buy in on. Today's young people don't only have a heightened understanding of the shitty, misogynistic behavior that has been perpetuated through the patriarchal systems that have been in place since the documented dawn of civilization, they have the will and bravery to speak out against it. These kids don't need any inspiration to take on injustice that they see at any level and the fact that Moxie is structured in a way to seem like they do makes it feel bizarrely dated and completely out of touch with the ideals of the generations its portraying and no amount of good intentions from the people that made it can cover up that baffling miscalculation. It's truly impossible for me to enjoy a drama that's grounded in real life that doesn't even really attempt to accurately reflect its subject-even when its something like this that is an otherwise perfectly fine movie and if Poehler, Chestna and Meyer simply reframed the story and characters to fit the ideals that the high schoolers of today proudly and openly covet, Moxie could've turned out much differently.
Grade: C
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