Cookie Queens is a plainly presented documentary, styled as a recounting of four little girls’ average lives as they set goals for themselves and struggle to reach them. Just because those goals are about selling Girl Scout cookies doesn’t mean there’s a lack of stakes, though. In fact, the grounded touches of Cookie Queens make those efforts all the more emotional if they struggle and uplifting if they achieve them.
Directed by Alysa Nahmias with a keen eye that knows how to catch the stylish touches of a painfully real world, it’s hard to watch this movie without tearing up or feeling your heart swell at the emotion on display. While it can’t match the ambitious reach of some documentaries, there’s a real sense of heart that makes it a winning story for the whole family. Ideal for younger audiences and with enough underlying humanity to be compelling at any age, Cookie Queens is one of the sweetest movies of the year.
Always Be Closing (Cookies)
Cookie Queens is largely focused on the distinct narratives of four girls from around the country, albeit connected thematically through their efforts to sell Girl Scout cookies with a feel-good approach. Olive is an enterprising 12-year-old in North Carolina looking to continue her successful streak of cookie seasons, who balances her efforts to be publicly confident with her own little doubts.
Shannon Elizabeth is an 8-year-old in El Paso who wants to sell enough cookies to go to camp, her endless enthusiasm running parallel to her parents’ more pragmatic views on their situation. Nikki is a 9-year-old in California who wants to live up to her older sister’s legacy and prove herself to the perpetually cool teenager during the latter’s final year selling cookies.
The 5-year-old Ara rounds out the four. She’s dedicated to the modest goal of just selling more than she did last year, a sweet uphill battle that has some of the best moments of the entire film. All four narratives are grounded in their portrayal of little girls just having fun, while also balancing some surprising sales tactics that range from musical performances to local news appearances.
It’s a delicate balance that Cookie Queens has to walk, but it does so wonderfully well.
Cookie Queens never plays down to them, or any of the little girls in the film, for that matter. Each is given the chance to speak for themselves and appear alongside loved ones, highlighting little moments of bravado and confidence alongside self-doubt and curiosity.
The film never becomes overly dramatic or unnecessarily complex, but it isn’t afraid to touch on the financial struggles of some families or the growing pains that come for everyone naturally. Nahmias finds lots of creative staging that never loses sight of the girls, keeping everything grounded in the real world. The tenor of the movie never becomes overwrought or cloying. It’s a delicate balance that Cookie Queens has to walk, but it does so wonderfully well.
Cookie Queens Is Sweet With Just The Right Amount Of Bitter
The trick to Cookie Queens is that it never feels like it is exploiting the little girls, or highlighting the Girl Scouts organization for the sake of it. There’s very much a lack of focus on the larger group and a tighter look at the four subjects, who serve as an ideal snapshot into the current generation of children.
It feels at times like the earnest little sister to something like Girls State, where a big part of the charm and appeal of the film comes in the small moments. While it’s cute seeing all four girls strive, the best scenes come when they’re talking to their friends or reflecting on their ambitions. There’s probably a harsher doc to be made about how late-stage capitalism infects childhood, but this isn’t it.
There’s a naturalism to the film that never feels the need to become too dour or painful. It’s the kind of documentary that isn’t going to necessarily change the world, nor is it really trying to. In fact, that smaller scope, and the little flashes of humanity that result from it, is the real draw. The camera finds little moments of vulnerability and honesty amid the natural jokes, ambitions, and dramas of growing up.
When Nikki innocently asks her older sister why someone would want to go back to feeling like a kid, there’s a real earnest touch to her quandary that makes it all the more emotionally effective. The film doesn’t need to spell out the joys and struggles of growing up when it can just show them with a soft smile and big heart.
Audiences looking for some deeper analysis of the world and the state of society have other films out there for them. However, even if you’re not an avid documentary watcher, there’s plenty to love in Cookie Queens to make it worth checking out and get a view of what it is like growing up today.
- Release Date
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August 7, 2026
- Runtime
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91 minutes
- Director
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Alysa Nahmias
- Producers
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Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Geralyn White Dreyfous, Meghan Markle, Regina K. Scully, Ruth Ann Harnisch, Michael Dweck, Gregory Kershaw, Andrea van Beuren, Jamie Wolf, James Costa, Nathalie Seaver, Hallee Adelman, Jennifer Pelling, Tegan Acton, Emma Pompetti
Cast
