Wow. I didn't know quite what I was about to watch when I started this. What I knew was that it would be relevant if you were a kid in the 90's like I was. I had also heard that it's very heavy. What I didn't know is that precisely what it is is basically an honest dive into the video diary of late 80's/early 90's child star Soleil Moon Frye (Punky Brewster) and her slow burn out of child stardom and into...well, the harshness of reality.

The 90's were the last decade before the internet and social networking would change our life experience forever. There was a magic in the energy of society and in our human existence that will never be there again. If you were like me, and apparently Soleil was, we brought our video camcorders with us as often we could, and we recorded as much as we could. For about 2 decades, Soleil put all this footage away, and didn't touch it - but now she's decided to take it all out and bring us a story from her experiences.

Now, I'm gonna be honest, there's not one true focus with this documentary - it's not that simple, but it's one of the most from-the-heart, personal things I have seen put into the format of film in quite some time. The primary thing that I took from this personally is that even movie stars are no different than a lot of us when it comes to the experience of growing up - we're naive, we find our people, then we slowly drill our way into the abyss of conscious reality together without even realizing what's happening. Though this movie is only 82 minutes long, it brings you on the most touching, nostalgic, and eventually tragic rollercoaster so, so quickly, and effectively.

The tragic part is that when you're a star, you're generally enabled - you're able to stall out on letting reality catch up to you. Generally, drug use is tied to that. In this case, that all leads to deaths, and in Soleil's case, so many of her friends died it's actually insane. There's a lot to take in here - those who are still alive feel like they are so lucky to be, and a lot of them seem to have a very deep understanding for the suicidal.

I can't say much more, but I always thought Soleil Moon Frye was extremely likable - now I think she's an angel on Earth, and I'm very happy she's still alive. I feel some of her pain, and through watching this, I stop and think less about my own pain, and more about the pain of every single person on this planet.

Really, everyone should watch this - but even more so if you were a kid in the 90's or gave even the slightest interest in 90's pop culture. After writing this, I almost want to watch it again already. I feel like these people are my friends now. I had no idea that all these young 90's actors were homies who partied together full time. I mean, I used to lie to kids when I was little and tell them Brian Austin Green (90210) was my older brother, and he's one of the leads in this. I feel so connected somehow. It's emotional as hell and completely beautiful. Watch it.

I was very excited to see what kind of 90s goodness would be in these home videos. For the first half of the movie or so, I was ok with it. The longer it went on, the more it just became all about Soliel. And I don't just mean that she was the main subject; she is the intended audience. As she reads through more diaries and poems and looks back on moments that are only interesting for her, it becomes clear that this project was put together solely for her "growth." That might have been ok if it was the least bit entertaining, and it first it seems like it might be, but that stops as things get more repetitive. You can see in her current day interview footage how proud she is that she has learned so much by looking back at these tapes, but we don't get much out of the deal.

In 2021's Kid 90, the "kid" I guess is child actress Soleil Moon Frye. Frye was on a hit TV series titled Punky Brewster. I haven't heard from Soleil in quite some time and now she's resurfacing as a reflective 44-year-old. I also didn't realize that Frye was once involved in a romantic tryst with bad boy Charlie Sheen (who knew).

So yeah, Kid 90 is a documentary where people mumble, indulge, and pander. It's heavy on archive footage, heavy on zigzagging, heavy on F-bombs, and slight on narrative. Said footage is fascinatingly grainy yet gimmicky and plodding. Actors like David Arquette, Brian Austin Green, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, and Stephen Dorff show up to do present-day interviews about their relationship with Frye. It seems Soleil had a lot of Hollywood buddies despite being off the A-list since well, '88.

Showing 90s footage of teenage actors partying and revealing that 8 people associated with Moon Frye died at incredibly young ages (20-30 give or take),Kid 90 chronicles Soleil and her circle of friends through video, voice messages, pictures, and revealing diary notes. It's obvious that Soleil got permission from almost everyone involved. Otherwise there'd be no movie.

Kid 90 has Soleil Moon Frye's commitment and the stunted footage she accumulates over time is quite impressive. But hey, where's the story here? And where's the focus? And what are we the audience suppose to feel about Soleil?

Are we suppose to make out sympathy for her even though she's worth about $5 million? It depends on your views I guess. And is her plight about wanting the viewer to see something of yore suppose to make a statement? I'm not sure.

Kid 90 is not a vanity project per se. It just feels unnecessary and moot considering that Moon Frye never broke out of her Penelope shell. Mixed review "kiddo".