The Beanie Bubble [2023] – Zach Galifianakis, Elizabeth Banks on AppleTV+

The Beanie Bubble focus on the women in Ty’s life that helped make the beanie craze instead of the fake bubble head that is Ty. And that’s a good thing… mostly.

Starring Zach Galifianakis, & Elizabeth Banks, the move highlights the rise and fall of Ty Inc., the creator of the beanie babies’ plush toys, from the perspective of the women behind Ty. In fact, The Beanie Bubble‘s cast makes the movie an easy watch, but that enjoyment is lessened by its shallow treatment of the real-life story. Good performances help buoy up this lesser installment in the corporate innovator biopics that have flooded the market recently.

Highlight of the movie? Geraldine Viswanathan. I wasn’t expecting her, and she did an excellent job if not perfect. To be honest, I knew nothing about the plush toys or the story. But her portrayal of Maya made it super fun to watch. In fact, her limited screentime made me want to see more of her.

A new addition to the growing body of corporate biopics, this film features excellent acting and a multi-layered, female-centered perspective. Where it slips off course is in structure. The non-linear timeline is the film’s biggest problem. Even when I was extremely focused on the events, the storytelling and editing made it confusing to understand what was going on. Instead of focusing on plots and character arcs, we are left with gimmicks.

Should You Watch It?

With the recent wave of good movies about the rise of certain games or crazes, I wanted this movie to be great. I was cheering for it. What I ended up with was an okay-to-good movie that I will never watch again.

Where Can I Watch It?

You can stream The Beanie Bubble exclusively on AppleTV+.