Big Girls Don’t Cry (2026) – Review and Summary (Sundance)

Every teenager cries for freedom, but do you also hear the silent screech for belonging as well?

ByAmari Allah Hours Posted on

Spoiler Alert: This summary and review contains spoilers.

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“Big Girls Don’t Cry” Film Details

Movie Summary

It’s sometime in the 2000s, when MSN Messenger was how teens connected, the internet wasn’t fast enough to be a resource for any and every question you had, and a different kind of alone existed than what teens have today. Sid, a 14-year-old, knows loneliness. Yes, her best friend since she was a kid, Tia, lives next door, but what she really wants is Adele, her older sister, who is coming home for break.

However, with Adele bringing her friend Freya, this messes with the program and with trying to show she can hang, Sid starts looking into more mature, or rather growing up too fast, girls in the area, effectively leaving Tia behind. But with Sid not only facing rushing coming of age, but also burgeoning queer desires, will this holiday be one to remember, or one Sid is desperate to forget?

Cast and Characters

Sid (Ani Palmer)

  • Character Summary: Sid is a 14-year-old guy with no notable interests, besides a few girls, but she is curious about the world and what works for other people, in terms of being happy, feeling like they belong, and not being just here.

Tia (Ngataitangirua Hita)

  • Character Summary: Tia is, maybe was, Sid’s best friend since they were kids. But as Sid goes off to find herself, or who she isn’t, Tia remains on her own journey, a bit shocked, sometimes appalled, at who she believes Sid is becoming.

Adele (Tara Canton)

  • Character Summary: Adele is Sid’s older sister, who is away most of the year at university. Thus straining their relationship a bit, especially as Adele doesn’t seem to want to make up for lost time – mainly because, when she thinks of home, it just triggers a lot of bad memories.

Freya (Rain Spencer)

Rain Spencer and Ani Palmer appear in Big Girls Don’t Cry by Paloma Schneideman, an official selection of the 2026 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Jen Raoult.
  • Character Summary: Freya is one of Adele’s closest friends who quickly integrated with her family. However, as close as she gets to Sid and Leo, there comes a point where she reminds them she is but a guest and didn’t sign up to take on either one permanently.

Leo (Noah Taylor)

  • Character Summary: A single father with dreams that couldn’t evolve past being a hobby, Leo hates his life. To deal with that, he isolates, he drinks, and pretty much his take on fatherhood is providing food and a roof over his kids’ heads – nothing more, nothing less.

Review and Commentary

Highlight(s)

It Nails The Vibes Of The Past [83/100]

Even as a dude, there is so much in Big Girls Don’t Cry that brings an immense feeling of nostalgia. From the dial tone sounds of dial-up internet, talking to random people on MSN Messenger, sometimes pretending to be someone else, to lying about having sex because you don’t want to feel left behind. It all hits so hard and sets you up to take you back to your early teen years.

But, rather than try to paint things with rose colored glasses, Schneideman forces you to remember beyond the good times and re-explore the uncertainty you had. Not in your future, like what you’ll be and do as an adult, but the uncertainty of the moments where you didn’t have the vocabulary for what you feel. You feel pushed to remember when you found yourself suddenly unsatisfied with the friends and family you had, because you felt you could access others, something different, what you thought at the time could be better.

Most of all, what Schneideman delivers is the beginning of that odd period between feeling too young yet too old. Also, trying to get comfortable with being in the long transition from being a child to being seen as an adult, with a natural focus on how that plays out for women.

Sid’s Search For Belonging [84/100]

Focusing on Sid’s experience, there is something about her wanting to be more than part of people’s routine that is sticking with me. Leo, her dad, sees her every day, but it isn’t with hugs, joy, and trying to connect. She has become an obligation that he is stuck with since Sid’s mom is off in Ukraine. In many ways, even though she is far nicer, Tia, too, can feel like her existence in Sid’s life is routine. Someone who is reliable but not necessarily chosen, just a person who is there and doesn’t require notable effort.

This is why Sid’s journey feels so real. She wants to connect with her sister, be chosen by her, and experience some form of maternal investment, but is rejected. Then, as Sid seeks out others, she realizes the milestones others have hit, be it sex, piercings, and more, which she barely has a grasp on.

Each part of Sid’s journey just reminds you how overwhelming it is to navigate feelings for the first time, and when not in a place that can feel safe, with friends who can reaffirm you, it doubles the weight of every decision. And as much as Freya takes to Sid for a bit, she is there just for the break, and it becomes clear, like Sid’s mom, that there is no sense of commitment to building a reliable connection. Sid isn’t Freya’s responsibility, and when she becomes too much, she makes that clear.

It all doesn’t lead to feelings of heartbreak, but does make you think about, if things were that tough, that lonely, when you were a teen, imagine how it feels now. Back then, you may have had the internet, but were more pressed to seek out people in the real world. Now, you have access to millions of people, and they have access to you, yet it can be immensely challenging to build a steady, tangible, and healthy connection with anyone.

Tia’s Reaction To Sid’s Abandonment [82/100]

I want to give a special note regarding how Tia handles Sid. It can hurt to be the one left behind, but I like how Tia isn’t desperate for Sid’s return, easily forgiving, considering some of the things Sid did, and doesn’t try to change herself to keep up. As much as Sid’s journey can be relatable for many of us, Tia’s journey can be too. For not everyone is rushing through a checklist based on what they’ve seen or heard from peers, movies, or television.

I’d even say Tia is perfectly balanced between holding her ground, but not being pushed to be someone who draws you away from Sid’s journey. She is part of Sid’s history, a factor in who she is, but this doesn’t mean she needs to be part of her future. You have likely seen and/or experienced growing apart from someone, and Tia reminds you that it doesn’t have to be something bombastic or a grand betrayal.

Many friendships are built on proximity, convenience, and once those are removed, some of them wither and die slowly. Sometimes, with the need to ask what happened, but other times, knowing that simply the friendship lasted for a reason or season, but wasn’t meant to last a lifetime.

Overall

Our Rating (83/100): Positive (Worth Seeing)

Paloma Schneideman doesn’t just give you a sense of nostalgia, but truly captures what it is like to be a teenager. Yes, with the focus of being a teenage, burgeoning queer girl, but there is a reminder that the heart of every story has something universal to it. So even if you aren’t from the Oceanic area, wasn’t exposed to parties at 14, and life didn’t exactly mirror Sid’s, you can still pick up on her feelings. There are moments when you can identify with her, and it overall makes Big Girls Don’t Cry not feel niche but capable of feeling like opening a time capsule.

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Amari is the founder and head writer of Wherever-I-Look.com and has been reviewing media since 2010. He approaches each production with hope, rooting for every story to succeed, and believes criticism should come from unmet potential, while praise is reserved for work that meets or exceeds expectations.