Over/Under Review – Heartfelt Preteen Girl Coming of Age Drama, Entertaining
- Details
- Category: Haute This Issue
- Published on Monday, 17 August 2026 10:01
- Written by Janet Walker
Over/Under, from Bulldog Film Distribution, presents a coming of age adolescence drama as the film explores the ups and downs of friendship, puberty, and the loss of innocence as the real world breaches the carefree days of childhood.
The film begins on the Massachusetts shore, when both Violet West, played by Emajean Bullock, and Stella Steinberg, played by Anastasia Veronica Lee, are catching morning moths, known for their magical powers. When each wish the same, and in childlike wonder, their wish materializes they are in awe of the power of the morning moth.
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As we see they are both nine, and the idyllic days of summer are filled with simple pleasures, riding the waves, swimming, and sneaking over to the nude section of the beach, hiding in the bushes as they react in shock to the fully developed bodies of the adults.
The girls both live on the west coast, Violet in San Diego, and Stella in Los Angeles, and as the school year begins, it is the last year of middle school, and for Violet, the mean girls are brutal. Violet's dad is in the entertainment industry, and she is board shorts, sports, and sneakers, and Stella, is sandals, pedicures, and summer skirts. Stella's mom also has cancer, and while the cancer is not the main story, we see the trauma effecting Stella, as her mom reacts to the new medicine, and the scar on her chest from the mastectomy.
As school begins for Violet, the mean girls bait her with friendship only to tease and bully her relentlessly. She also starts her period.
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During the next summer, Stella and Violet are summering on the shore, and as Stella has fears of sleeping away from home, they learn a new trick, and it works and finally Stella is able to sleep through the night at someone else home, it is a milestone in their friendship. The bond has cemented.
As they are both ten, now, puberty, in all its stages has come upon them, Violet first, and as Stella is showering, she sees the blue box under the bathroom sink and asks Violet to teach her to use a tampon.
And so, this seems to be the last summer of simple pleasures, the girls are growing up slowly, and even as they has started their periods, their bodies are still slow to develop and swimming is still facing the waves, calling out over/under as the decide how best to face the force and sneaking over to the nude beach, now somewhat more aware, but still grossed out by what they are seeing.
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As the next summer approaches, Violet is forced to change or forever be bullied by the mean girls, and she straightens her hair, and allows the mean girl leader to teach her some of the important rules of teen life: wait 30 minutes after you hear your stomach growl, and the hunger will go away, and of course, the best rules for make-up, and making out. Rules they live by we discover.
As the next summer approaches, the dynamics in Violet's family are changing her parents are fighting, a lot, and her older brother calls her a slut, and more than likely has no idea the adult definition versus the just 13-year-old definition.
However, it is the summer of Violet's and Stella's first fight. The mean girls have had their influence on Vi, and now she is moving up in the social skills of teenage dating, and the art of kissing, which she also explains to Stella, which we see, Stella in her still naiveté takes to heart.
Unfortunately, as the discussion with another friend becomes more toward, second base, Vi humiliates Stella, in an effort to be at the top of the social food chain. Stella leaves in the middle of the night, unable to sleep in the house, and refuses to speak with Violet. As they are both summering, Violet begins to understand the importance of caring for friends, not simply speaking the words, but caring for their feelings, not humiliating them for pleasure or points.
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This leads to the third act and the importance of creating boundaries, standing your ground, and caring enough for your own well-being to walk away, even from someone that was important, when you are not treated with the respect deserved.
Over/Under is a carefree look at the growing pains of modern adolescences, the emotional and physical changes, the trauma of parental discord and unforeseen life-altering medical situations and finally realizing that through the disturbance of puberty and the external voices of how and what, discovering what matters is the unbreakable bond of a friend.
The ensemble cast portrayed contemporary childhood, pre-teen and adolescence with authenticity and the outside influences were very relatable, especially as some parents unwittingly expose their children to body shaming, and habits that can result in dysmorphia.
Engaging and entertaining Over/Under opens across the UK and Ireland, through digital download on August 24, 2026 and in the United States on August 25, 2026. See it.
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Country: UK.
Director: Sophia Silver
Language: English.
Runtime: 88 minutes.
Digital Release Date: August 24, 2026 (UK, Ireland), August 25, 2026 (United States).
Digital Platforms (UK, Ireland, USA): Apple, Amazon, Google TV/YouTube Movies.
Digital Platforms (Canada):Apple, Google TV/YouTube Movies.
Executive Producer: Cooper Raiff.
Producers: Sophia Silver, Grace West, Grace Gregory, Kimberly Hwang, Chelsea Davenport.
Writers: Sophia Silver, Sianni Rosenstock.
Cast: Emajean Bullock, Anastasia Veronica Lee, Adam David Thompson, Madeline Wise, Brandon Keener, Christiane Seidel, Valeria Cotto.
Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation's top stories, for more than a decade. A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Under the banner of her production company, HL Productions, LLC, Ms. Walker has completed five screenplays "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She has also published "Unholy Alliances: A True Crime Story," and "Days, Times, Seasons, and Events: A Collection of Poetry & Prose," which can be purchased here. She is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and a member of the International Federation of Journalists.