Close Menu
  • Login
  • Support Us
  • Newsletter
  • News
  • Features
  • Interviews
  • Reviews
    • Video Games
      • Previews
      • PC
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X/S
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Xbox One
      • PS4
      • Tabletop
    • Film
    • TV
    • Anime
    • Comics
      • BOOM! Studios
      • Dark Horse Comics
      • DC Comics
      • IDW Publishing
      • Image Comics
      • Indie Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • Oni-Lion Forge
      • Valiant Comics
      • Vault Comics
  • Podcast
  • More
    • Event Coverage
    • BWT Recommends
    • RSS Feeds
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
Support Us
But Why Tho?
RSS Facebook X (Twitter) YouTube
Trending:
  • Features
    Marvel's Spider-Man Secret Lair promotional image

    Get a Look At the Secret Lair x Marvel’s Spider-Man Superdrop

    09/08/2025
    Starseeker: Astroneer Expeditions gameplay still

    Starseeker: Astroneer Expeditions Is All About Adventure (with Friends)

    09/08/2025
    Chord in Persona 5 The Phantom X

    Now Is The Perfect Time To Jump Back In ‘Persona 5: The Phantom X’

    09/05/2025
    Cosmic Spider-Man card details

    [EXCLUSIVE PREVIEW] The Spider-Man Set Gets A 5-Color Legendary Spider

    09/02/2025
    Lee Corso from College Football GameDay in EA Sports games

    EA Sports Always Understood Lee Corso’s Legacy

    09/01/2025
  • Indie Games
  • K-Dramas
  • Netflix
  • Apple TV+
But Why Tho?
Home » Film » REVIEW: ‘Luckiest Girl Alive’ Is A Harsh Look at Being a Victim

REVIEW: ‘Luckiest Girl Alive’ Is A Harsh Look at Being a Victim

Charles HartfordBy Charles Hartford10/12/20223 Mins Read
Luckiest Girl Alive - But Why Tho
Share
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Reddit WhatsApp Email

Luckiest Girl Alive - But Why Tho

Luckiest Girl Alive is a drama starring Mila Kunis on Netflix. Ani Fanelli (Kunis) looks to be living a dream life. Writing for a magazine, she lives in New York City with her rich, attractive fiance Luke. But beneath her confident exterior, Ani is still reliving events that happened in high school. Things that, thanks to the failures of most of those around her, she has never gotten to properly address.

Get BWT in your inbox!

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and get the latest and greated in entertainment coverage.
Click Here

Get BWT in your inbox!

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and get the latest and greated in entertainment coverage.
Click Here

As I sit down to write this review, part of me is viscerally upset. I’m upset because of how terrifyingly real Luckiest Girl AliveI’s narrative feels to me. Sadly though, this realness doesn’t just come in the horrible moments that punctuate Ani’s trauma. No. It comes just as much from the almost uniform manner in which nearly everyone in her life fails to see her and what she needs to be able to properly heal from the horrendous events of her past.

When the film first has us joining Ani’s life, we see her as she is today. Successful, and seemingly in control of her life. Almost immediately though, this curtain is drawn back thanks to some remarkably voiced internal dialogue on the part of Kunis. As Ani maneuvers through her days, we find anger and resentment that simmers constantly beneath her surface. When a documentary filmmaker approaches Ani to have her talk about the horrible events of her high school years, everything rapidly comes to a head.

As Luckiest Girl Alive progresses through its narrative it splits its time between Ani’s present and her past. As the movie gradually unveils what happened to Ani all those years ago, we quickly learn just how horrible the key moments of her life were. But what makes these moments even worse is how everyone around her twists, ignores, or tries to manipulate them for their reasons.

While nothing is as scarring as the horrendous acts that highlight Ani’s worst days, the film nevertheless does a great job of showing just how thoroughly damaging the fallout is too. Virtually every conceivable terrible reaction to Ani’s trauma is dolled out to her in turn. From those wanting to sweep it under the rug, to those wanting to blame her for the events that are brought down upon her, and perhaps worst of all, those who treat her badly for not confronting people about it in the manner they believe she should. With only a couple of exceptions, not a single person in Ani’s life seems to have only her best interest at heart. It is equal parts heartbreaking and terrifying to watch.

What manages to make Luckiest Girl Alive‘s story even more impactful than its simple concept is Kunis’s acting. As Ani’s emotional state grows more and more unstable, Kunis delivers the woman’s every moment with skill and power. This committed portrayal of her character’s anguish makes the ending moments when she finally starts doing what she needs to feel truly triumphant. I have rarely wanted to give a high five to my TV screen so bad.

Luckiest Girl Alive delivers a heartbreakingly real feeling story about just how coldly the world can be to someone who has survived traumatic events. While its willingness to focus on this coldness makes the film hard to watch, it is a struggle that I cannot help but feel like I owed Ani, and so many others, to experience.

Luckiest Girl Alive is streaming now on Netflix.

Luckiest Girl Alive
  • 10/10
    Rating - 10/10
10/10

TL;DR

Luckiest Girl Alive delivers a heartbreakingly real feeling story about just how coldly the world can be to someone who has survived traumatic events. While its willingness to focus on this coldness makes the film hard to watch, it is a struggle that I cannot help but feel like I owed Ani, and so many others, to experience.

Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit Email
Previous ArticleREVIEW: ‘Andor,’ Episode 6 – “The Eye”
Next Article REVIEW: ‘Daredevil,’ Issue #4
Charles Hartford
  • X (Twitter)

Lifelong geek who enjoys comics, video games, movies, reading and board games . Over the past year I’ve taken a more active interest in artistic pursuits including digital painting, and now writing. I look forward to growing as a writer and bettering my craft in my time here!

Related Posts

The Long Walk (2025) film review promotional image
9.5

REVIEW: ‘The Long Walk’ Is The Most Heartfelt And Heartbreaking Stephen King Adaptation

09/11/2025
Natasha O’Keeffe in Whitetail
6.5

TIFF 2025: ‘Whitetail’ Is An Intimate View Of A Woman Stuck In Time

09/10/2025
Love Brooklyn
6.0

REVIEW: ‘Love, Brooklyn’ Rests on Pretty

09/10/2025
Park Jeong-min in The Ugly
7.0

TIFF 2025: ‘The Ugly’ Is A Harsh Exercise In Self-Reflection

09/09/2025
No Other Choice
9.0

TIFF 2025: ‘No Other Choice’ Delivers a Bleak Vision of Capitalism

09/09/2025
Molly Lewis in Whistle
8.0

TIFF 2025: ‘Whistle’ Is A Breath Of Fresh Air

09/07/2025

Get BWT in your inbox!

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and get the latest and greated in entertainment coverage.
Click Here
TRENDING POSTS
The Long Walk (2025) film review promotional image
9.5
Film

REVIEW: ‘The Long Walk’ Is The Most Heartfelt And Heartbreaking Stephen King Adaptation

By Kate Sánchez09/11/2025Updated:09/11/2025

The Long Walk is a brutal watch. Equally heartfelt and heartbreaking, it’s one of the best adaptations of Stephen King’s work.

EA Sports FC Icons Match promotional image from Nexon News

2025 Icons Match Returns With Football Legends Bridging The Pitch And Video Games

By Kate Sánchez09/03/2025Updated:09/03/2025

NEXON has announced the return of the ‘2025 Icons Match,’ a live event that brings a full roster of legendary players to the pitch.

Black Women Anime — But Why Tho (9) BWT Recommends

10 Black Women in Anime That Made Me Feel Seen

By LaNeysha Campbell11/11/2023Updated:12/03/2024

Black women are some of anime’s most iconic characters, and that has a big impact on Black anime fans. Here are some of our favorites.

DanDaDan Season 2 Episode 11
8.5
Anime

REVIEW: ‘DanDaDan’ Season 2 Episode 11 – “Hey, It’s a Kaiju”

By Allyson Johnson09/11/2025

The ragtag group faces down the mysterious kaiju in the thrilling and beautifully animated DanDaDan Season 2 Episode 11.

But Why Tho?
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest RSS YouTube Twitch
  • CONTACT US
  • ABOUT US
  • PRIVACY POLICY
  • SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER
  • Review Score Guide
Sometimes we include links to online retail stores. If you click on one and make a purchase we may receive a small contribution.
Written Content is Copyright © 2025 But Why Tho? A Geek Community

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

But Why Tho Logo

Support Us!

We're able to keep making content thanks to readers like YOU!
Support independent media today with
Click Here