You know you have heard it a thousand times before and even though deep down inside you know it’s true, you think you are the one who is going to do it. I am talking about changing someone, you know that thing you think you are going to do when you meet someone, but never seem to accomplish. Well if you watch movies like I do, then the answer has always been right there in front of you. All you have to do is have that person turn into their younger self, in which they will learn life lessons and poof, they are a changed person, just make it funny along the way.
I know you have a movie already in your head, but it’s not that one. Instead we find Jordan Sanders (Regina Hall) running the world, her way and not caring much for the people below or even around her. Whenever you have someone cruel like that, there always has to be someone who seems to take the brunt of it, usually an assistant, who is April (Issa Rae), the too nice, but smarter than her current position character. Jordan is not a good human, but one day she picks on the wrong girl who puts a spell on her, causing Jordan to wake up as her thirteen year old self. The younger Jordan (Marsai Martin) is still mean, but when you are small no one really fears the words coming out of your mouth. Now that she is no longer taken seriously, Jordan has to have April speak for her, something April takes full advantage of. Jordan is sent back to school, where she learns how to be nice, and changing everything for the better, just how you would expect the story to end?
Little really is a ‘been there done that’ type of a story, but it’s got a couple aces up its sleeve. Those would be Issa Rae and Marsai Martin, who take an average story and take it up a few notches and turn Little into a movie with more than a few laughs. The story was written by Tracy Oliver and Tina Gordon, with the later directing, with one being the writer behind Drumline, and the other being Girls Trip which is a marriage I never knew I wanted. The laughs are there, but so are the usual story troupes, including a feel good scene that makes you wonder why little Jordan has teenage boy clothes after a long day of shopping. That last sentence will make more sense after you see the film, something I suggest, just to see the talent that is Issa Rae. She alone is worth the price of admission, add Martin, who goes toe to toe with Rae and you have an enjoyable movie, that you don’t mind the parts that are not so good. I have to be honest I went in with low expectations, and I was pleasantly surprised that I came out with a smile on my face. This just reminds you that it isn’t the size that matters, but the fight in you, and it also helps to have the right cast to get you through it, no matter their size.
