By Mr. Will Wong
Beanie Babies were a worldwide sensation, gaining feverish traction just as many of us were signing-up for our first e-mail accounts in the ’90s, at a time when eBay would go on to change the way people shopped. These adorable little animal stuffies from manufacturer Ty, would win hearts with endaring poems on their tags. A select few of these toys would go on to gain status as the coveted ones on the marketplace, selling for up to thousands of dollars. I am one of those people who used to collect Beanie Babies and one of my proudest moments as a collector was getting highly-coveted Canadian-themed Beanie, Maple the Bear. The adorable white bear donning a Canadian flag on his left chest. While the craze eventually stopped and the demand plummeted, the legacy of Beanie Babies live on. I even named my beloved Shih Tzu “beanie“.
Writer and Co-Director Kristin Gore teams-up with OK Go frontman Damian Kulash to direct THE BEABIE BUBBLE, based on the Book The Great Beanie Baby Bubble: Mass Delusion and the Dark Side of Cute by Zac Bissonnette. The Film balances the Comedy and the Drama behind the unbelievable rise of Beanie Babies, including those at the center of the story.
Ty Warner (Zach Galifianakis) is ambitious and ruthless in his vision to make Ty the world’s leading toy manfucturer. We witness his journey and how quickly success and power get to his head. But this story is more about Robbie (Elizabeth Banks), his lover who tries to spearhead the brand’s global expansion only to the UK, only to be met with resistance from Ty and so a power struggle ensues. Maya (Geraldine Viswanathan) is a whiz and we meet her just as she’s still in school, responsible for many of Ty‘s most genius ideas, including the mentioned poems these toys came with. And we also meet Sheila (Sarah Snook), a single mom to two girls who falls Ty Warner‘s charms and together they form a family, also are responsible for some of the genius ideas behind these toys which connected with the world.
One thing I was expecting when I heard about this Film’s existence, was that it would touch upon more the impact Beanie Babies had on the world – a celebration of the toy that brought deep joy to fans of all ages, and piles of money to secondary market sellers. It is crazy to think how these stuffies became monetary investments, like stocks and people legimately got rich off them – including Warner who took the company’s profits from millions to billions, while paying those who helped him only a pittance.
Rather than being a celebration of the beloved toy, the story centers on the deception, betrayal and hurt that had taken place while the company had flourished. All at the hands of Ty Warner and his misguided leadership. And this is not to say this isn’t also a fascinating story, because it is and as we all know, there is always an imminent feeling of consequences to come the linger in the Film. And that’s part of the thrill here, seeing the bubble burst.
Galifianakis has been quiet in recent years, so this is a welcome return, delivering a bit more of a subdued maturity from some of the more quirky characters that his brand has become synonymous with. Banks, true to form, exudes a likable confidence as Robbie, who’s always a step ahead of Ty Warner. Toronto’s Viswanathan is charismatic, but never loses focus of Maya‘s ambition and vision as well for the company, and meanwhile Succession‘s Snook isn’t given quite as much to work with but is a pleasure to see, as a mother who loves her daughters most first and foremost, giving this a bit of heart.
THE BEANIE BUBBLE is in select theatres July 21, 2023 and arrives July 28, 2023
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