A comedy that can’t quite decide who it is aimed at, Little tells the story of bitchy businesswoman Jordan Sanders (Hall). Bullied at school, she later learned to be tough and bully everyone else and now reduces her staff and assistant April (Rae) to quivering wrecks on a regular basis.
However, when Jordan wakes up one morning and discovers she’s magically back in her high school body (as played by Martin), she has to learn how to navigate school all over again, as well as keeping her business afloat and her current romance (Luke James) at bay. Gosh, with the help of April do you think the younger version of Jordan will become a better person along the way?
With an absolutely perfect performance from Martin (who is also an executive producer on the film, at the tender age of 14), this could have been a family comedy that hit all the right notes like classics Big and Freaky Friday. Instead, far too much time is spent on Hall’s older (and annoying) version of Jordan and far too little on young Jordan and April’s relationship, and Jordan’s new friendships with the awkward kids at school.
The humour is uneven, too, sometimes aimed at the whole family and – thanks to a few eyebrow-raising sex references – other times better suited to older audiences on a girls’ night out. It’s a shame, as Issa Rae and Marsai Martin’s pairing is a comic treat – it just belonged in a better movie.
Is Little suitable for kids? Here are our parents’ notes...
There are a few quite explicit adult sex references, and a scene in which Jordan’s boyfriend dances/strips suggestively. For this reason, the film is more suitable for teenagers and adults rather than the under 12s.
There is also some mild bad language.
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