The Netflix new release screen wins again, this time feeding the thriller binging monster I’ve become. Friday morning, I watched the Luckiest Girl Alive, a Mila Kunis led women’s suspense based on a bestselling novel of the same name. I’ll be honest, I knew nothing about the book and only watched enough of the trailer to glean that not all was on the up and up. Beyond that, I went in blind.
Based on the opening sequence and voiceover, I thought it was going to be an easy going mystery about a con woman who’d killed someone or something like that, but it didn’t take long for me to realize I was very wrong. This was the story of a woman desperate to create a world that would allow her to forget about the horrible shit she’d been through. Grift. She refers to the life she’s crafted as a grift, which is where the con woman assumption came from.
This story absolutely blindsided me. It ended up being a lot darker than expected. The hot button issues to be aware of are school shootings and rape. I was floored and cant recommend it enough but bring tissues. I don’t want to go into any more detail than that in the spirit of saving you from spoilers. However, if you want to know more about the story or its author, TIME wrote a great piece about how the book and movie came about. It’s a really interesting read.
