From Jeremy Kibler

Whether you foolishly ripped off the tags or wisely got tag protectors, those of us who were alive remember the hotter-than-Tamale craze of the Beanie Baby during the late 1990s. They were not only trending as collectibles but as financial investments. In a similar fad following Tetris, Air, and BlackBerry, here is another movie about the behind-the-scenes origins of another popular corporate product, specifically the rise and fall of the people involved. More of a comedic dramatization than an all-truths-and-no-lies docudrama, The Beanie Bubble focuses on the orbit of the business owner who was so narcissistic he put his own name on the tag of those bean-filled plushies.

A former mechanic in the 1980s, Roberta “Robbie” Jones (Elizabeth Banks) meets Ty Warner (Zach Galifianakis), who’s living in the same apartment building. She gives in Ty and his charisma, starting a business that makes and sells stuffed Himalayan cats. These two are co-founders and (eventually) on-again, off-again lovers, until Ty restructures their business agreement, forcing Robbie to lose her title and have her salary cut. The cats are later rebranded into understuffed Beanie Babies. Enter 17-year-old intern Maya Kumar (Geraldine Viswanathan), who had no interest in med school and instead finds that she could be a major asset to building sales for Ty, Inc. Ty then meets Sheila (Sarah Snook), a lighting saleswoman and single mother of two who’s afraid to put her trust in a man again. Ty wins over both Shelia and her daughters, who become Ty’s muses and inspire one of the Beanie Babies. There’s only one common denominator who would burst this bubble. 

Writer-director Kristin Gore (Al’s daughter) and co-director Damian Kulash (OK Go’s lead singer) don’t pretend to tell the truth and nothing but the truth. Their true aim is to give credit where credit is due: the unsung female heroes whom co-founder Ty Warner screwed over. Like Ken being nothing without Barbie, Ty wasn’t much without these women (even if they’re fictionalized or composited here). Based on the book “The Great Beanie Baby Bubble: Mass Delusion and the Dark Side of Cute” by Zac Bissonnette, the film takes a broad, non-linear approach to telling this story that started such a phenomenon. The choice to interweave all three stories, narrated by Robbie, Maya, and Shelia, between the ‘80s and ‘90s is initially questionable. However, in showing Ty’s cyclical behavior that will never change, the threads all come together. 

Played by a mustache-free Galifianakis, Ty is both a charmer and a greedy, despicable man-child who likes taking all the credit. It’s an eccentric performance, and probably one of Galifianakis’ best. Even if Ty unfortunately defines these women at this point in their lives, the three performers are unbeatable. Banks is razor-sharp, as always; Snook is wonderful, full of warmth but not without a backbone; and Viswanathan is engaging with a quick wit. The Beanie Bubble is not as pointed as it could have been, but the movie we got plays out in lively, entertaining fashion with a humorous tone of rage and frustration.

The Beanie Bubble is currently in select theaters and will be streaming on Apple TV+ starting July 28, 2023. 

Rating: 3.5/5

Follow Jeremy at @JKiblerFilm