With Covid-19 causing high alert about public gatherings and events, live performances are extremely hard to come by these days. Fortunately, To The New Girl brings on-stage spoken word performances to home entertainment. Working with ten talented female performers to tell ten powerful stories of scorn, resentment, and ultimately empowerment, To The New Girl delivers on everything I enjoy about open mic night in dramatic and often satisfying ways.

To The New Girl is based on a play of the same name and melds anger, frustration, and reluctant acceptance into ten unique situations of women losing their lover to someone else. With only occasional glimpses of a small audience, the movie’s focus is fixated on the stage and the women of a variety of backgrounds pouring their hearts out in these spoken letters to their exes’ new romantic interests.

Zoe, played by Charlotte Evelyn Williams, is the first of the ten female performers lined up to deliver impassioned messages to an exe’s new lover, setting a fierce and tenacious tone for To The New Girl right out the gate. “He loves me,” she explains to her boyfriend’s side fling, screenname: xxlovemykitty69xx. Then with a confident attitude and a snap over her head says, “How can he not, I’m fucking adorable.” And she’s right. As her monologue toggles between confusion, sensuality, and fury, her stage presence is electrifying and her delivery is hard to not pay attention to; all qualities I can’t help but love, especially in this capacity.

The stories of egregious violations of faithfulness that follow are just as compelling. Like with Sheila (Lavetta Cannon) resorting to sincere prayer as she deals with the frustrations of being - in the most literal sense of the word - impregnable, while Stephanie carries her husband’s child. And Bethany (Skyler Vallo) coming to terms with her sexy television evangelist husband’s secret affair with another man. And while the final performance from Harriet (Leslie Simms) might be less expressive than the previous nine performances, it might just be the most emotionally intense story offered.

To The New Girl isn’t just ten women ranting about the end of their deteriorated relationships; all of their stories take a unique vantage point on how they address the infidelities. As they explain their situations, the messages to their exes’ lovers offer a refreshing sense of self-reflection and empowerment, with a strong script supported by impressive delivery. 

This film is proof that you don’t need elaborate production value to communicate captivating stories. In fact, the minimal nature of the film works to its benefit, allowing the talented performers to shine in the spotlight. People might not be going out right now, but To The New Girl properly sets the stage for an entertaining mic night in.

Acting and Casting - 2 | Visual Effects and Editing - 1 | Story and Message - 2 | Entertainment Value - 2 | Music Score and Soundtrack - 1 | Reviewer's Preference - 1 | What does this mean?

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