Netflix may be known for having its share of hit series and films, but one Netflix original film in particular is taking the cake on all the rest. The Valerie Weiss-directed film Mixtape premiered on the streaming platform on Friday, Dec. 3, and while the film has mostly flown under the radar among Netflix subscribers – it hasn’t yet broken into the Top 10 streaming charts – it has earned a perfect Rotten Tomatoes score and rave reviews from critics.
Dubbed as a “nostalgia trip,” Mixtape takes place in Spokane, Washington in 1999 and follows Beverly, an orphaned middle schooler being raised by her grandmother who, on the eve of Y2K, find the broken mixtape her late parents made. Wanting to connect with her late parents, Beverly sets out on a mission to find the songs on the tape, along the way making friends with her quirky neighbor, Ellen, the intimidatingly tough Nicky, and Anti, an anti-everything record store owner who’s the key to finding the tracks. Mixtape stars Gemma Brooke Allen, Nick Thune, and Julie Bowen.
Videos by PopCulture.com
While Mixtape hasn’t yet cracked Netflix’s streaming charts, which are currently being dominated by the likes of The Unforgivable, Selling Tampa, and The Witcher, the film has certainly made an impression on critics. Mixtape has earned an extremely rare and highly-coveted perfect rating on Rotten Tomatoes, where it has a 100% Tomatometer rating aggregated from 10 reviews and an audience score of 78%.
Critics have praised Mixtape as “a feel-good movie about connecting with your roots, making friends, and finding yourself” that is “a can’t miss film for the whole family.” Tessa Smith of Mama’s Geeky wrote that Mixtape is “a unique coming of age story that is full of charm. It celebrates self-discovery and being yourself, which is unfortunately overdone in films right now, making it forgettable.” Meanwhile, Common Sense Media‘s Jennifer Green wrote in her review of the film, “This terrific rendering of the energy, innocence, and angst of the tween years squeezes a lot of emotion and a cast of memorable characters into its 97 minutes.”
It remains to be seen if Mixtape will make its way onto Netflix’s streaming charts. The film has received a 78% approval rating from the audience on Rotten Tomatoes, though a Decider Twitter poll suggested viewers were a little more divided, with 27% saying the movie was worth a watch while another 27% voted to “skip it.” Mixtape is available for streaming on Netflix. Stay tuned to PopCulture.com for the latest updates!
