Cookie Queens Review – A Feel Good Film Celebrating Girls and Girl Scouts, A Must See
- Details
- Category: Haute This Issue
- Published on Monday, 03 August 2026 10:37
- Written by Janet Walker
Cookie Queens, from Roadside Attractions, brings to the screen a tribute to a uniquely American rite of passage as the documentary follows four girls, as they enter into the annual $800 million Girl Scout Cookies sale season.
The documentary introduces viewers to Ara, Shannon Elizabeth, Nikki, Olive, each living in different parts of the country and each on their own unique journey. With Ara, the youngest living in San Diego, Shannon Elizabeth also a Brownie living in El Paso, Texas, Nikki, a Girl Scout living in Chino Hills, CA, and following in the footsteps of her two older and very successful sisters, who were the top sellers in the area, and Olive, a wunderkind sales-person, who has held records and broken her own records each year, earning an estimated 200K for the Girl Scouts of America.
Baby Doe Review – A Surprising, Captivating, True Crime Story
As the opening scenes begin we hear a younger Olive explaining to a group of scouts the practice of "upselling," and the importance of always upselling and knowing the product. We then meet the girls, and each have a goal, and a strong parents, who are either troop leaders and/or active in the girls goals. Selling Girl Scout Cookies is an investment, as the cookies must be paid for in advance, and the monies collected from those who ordered.
As cookie season arrives, we see the cookies arriving from 50 boxes for Ara, 2750 boxes for Shannon Elizabeth, 1500 boxes for Nikki, and 10,000 boxes for Olive. While pre-sales account for some of the sales, each of the girls and their parents set up cookie booths in shopping centers during the beginning of the six week limited selling window hawking cookies.
With the selling window moving quickly, the girls would be up early, spending the entire day determined to sell, sell, sell passing on things they would rather do, deferring the pleasure of today for a hard won goal, which is really a life lesson.
Chickenhare and the Secret of the Groundhog Review – Fun-Filled Adventure, Sharp Animation, Entertaining
Wham! Ten Days in China Review – A Trip Back in Time, Entertaining Musical Docu-Drama
Throughout the documentary we also learn more about the Girl Scouts organization, and as the troops would pass through the Brownie initiation, the memories of this author's Brownie initiation came flooding back as the ritual was the same, the songs the same, and the tradition of the organization which has helped young girls build confidence, poise, and lifelong friendships as well as become more socially active, and develop social skills has remained constant for more than a century.
Cookie selling season is not without stress for both the girls and the parents. For Shannon Elizabeth, who wanted to earn enough to attend summer camp, the clock was ticking and her parents were feeling the squeeze. They had a family meeting, and Shannon Elizabeth, like all the girls seemed more savvy on ideas to utilize technology in selling, and suddenly they were combining old school flyers with new school QR codes and payment apps, and suddenly in the eleventh hour the sales took off.
There is also the stress on the girls. Olive, who has been the top seller in her troop for years, is seen having a heart to heart with her mom, and in surprising maturity explains being the top seller is really her mothers goal and not hers. Olive is feature with her best friend, Celia, as the pair are from the Charlotte, North Carolina, also attend coed etiquette classes, where both boys and girls learn social graces.
Reading Lolita in Tehran Review – Excellent, A Story of Rebellion and Literature, Affecting
Nikki's parents are planning a European vacation and explain before the season starts that the girls are responsible for raising their own funds for the trip. And they are diligent, determined, and as a family, work hard for all three girls to reach their sales goals.
As we see by the end of the documentary, each of the girls show business savvy, fortitude, innovation, originality, and the drive to set a goal and accomplish it.
Cookie Queens, a captivating, delightful documentary, showcases a century old tradition modernized by the resolve and fortitude of today's young Girl Scouts and their parents. The feel good film also highlights how this organization prepares girls to be the next generation of leaders.
Enchanting and charming, Cookie Queens opens in theaters August 7. See it.
The Welcome Table Review - Bold, Strong Investigative Research, Informative
Country: U.S.
Language: English.
Runtime: 91 minutes.
Director: Alysa Nahmias.
Producer: Michael Dweck, Gregory Kershaw, Alysa Nahmias, Jennifer Sims.
Executive Producer: Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Chanel Pysnik, Regina K. Scully, Geralyn Dreyfous, Ann Lewnes, Hallee Adelman, Ruth Ann Harnisch, Melony Lewis, Adam Lewis, Stephen G. Hall, James Costa, Trevor Burgess, Heather Kahlert, Tegan Acton, Emma Pompetti.
Writer: Alysa Nahmias.
Featuring: Ara, Shannon Elizabeth, Nikki, Olive.
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. 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.
