REVIEW: 'The Better Sister' Boasts Strong Performances But Gives Mixed Messages
- Sarah Angelo-Haight
- May 30
- 4 min read
Disclaimer: This review contains minor spoilers for 'The Better Sister'.
The Better Sister is based on the 2019 book by Alafair Burke. I did read the book prior to viewing the 2025 Amazon MGM adaptation, starring Jessica Biel as Chloe Taylor and Elizabeth Banks as her sister Nicky Macintosh. This means I knew the “whodunit” of the plot going in, but the knowledge really only elevated the experience as it allowed me to focus less on solving the mystery and more on the other elements of the production.
The Better Sister tells the story of Chloe, whose picture-perfect life is turned upside-down after the murder of her husband Adam Macintosh (Corey Stoll). As the investigation unfolds, the secrets she has been keeping threaten to destroy the life she has created for herself. One of the most damning secrets involves her sister, Nicky, who was originally married to Adam, and who is the biological mother of Ethan, the teen at the heart of the investigation (played with quiet intensity by Maxwell Acee Donovan).
There is not a single reliable narrator throughout The Better Sister. Everyone is hiding things, and everyone is lying to make themselves look better. Chloe is the most egregious offender, attempting to take the moral high ground even as it becomes clear her damage control is meant more to protect her reputation than anything else. In the book, Chloe is given credit for being a face of the #MeToo movement and while the television adaptation does not go quite that far, the audience is still forced to sympathize with a rich, white woman who lives a life of extreme privilege. A great deal of the plot involves not just the murder investigation, but Chloe’s attempts to use her privilege to sweep things under the rug.
Chloe’s privilege is called out by the narrative on several occasions, particularly when she attempts to circumvent the bond process when Ethan is accused of Adam’s murder. The prosecutor points out that if Ethan’s skin color were darker, it wouldn’t even be a discussion of whether he would be spending the night in jail. At the same time, there are some truly jarring instances of casual racism that felt out of place in the message the narrative was trying to spin. Additionally, the homophobia exhibited towards the lesbian detective Nancy Guidry (Kim Dickens) could certainly be explained away as being part and parcel of the sheltered and spoiled demographics she works with, but is ultimately unwelcome, and muddles the messaging. Considering the novel barely touches upon her sexuality, fleshing out her character by way of the angry lesbian trope in the show feels cheap.
It also feels outdated. Across the board, The Better Sister hinges on the politics of 2019, which feels nearly a lifetime ago now. In what is likely the most glaring example, Ethan’s alibi relies on the illicit marijuana dealing of his friend. Considering marijuana has been legal in New York, where The Better Sister takes place, since 2022, the absolute moral outrage associated with Ethan’s pot-smoking ways feels incredibly out of touch. The show is clearly trying to make a point about how things are different for people with higher net worth, but in a way that makes the working class characters like Guidry and Nicky seem like characters, not real people to relate to.
This is not to say the acting is not on point. Biel and Banks do an excellent job as estranged sisters, both of them wishing to be seen and understood by the other, but with a chasm of trauma between them that cannot easily be crossed. Banks in particular imbues Nicky with a vulnerability that is fascinating to watch. She of all the other characters is the most honest; she is also the one who is given the least benefit of the doubt because of the lies surrounding her, told by the people who should have otherwise been caring for her. Cory Stoll is easy to hate as Adam, a truly reprehensible man who considers himself the moral authority in both his family and his career. The supporting cast is strong, each character with their own tale that weaves along the main plot.
The Better Sister, like the people whose story it tells, is imperfect. There are truly lovely moments, especially between Chloe and Nicky, and Nicky and Ethan. The conclusion is ultimately satisfying, especially once all of the twists and turns have been unfurled. It’s hard not to root for the sort of justice that is served.
Rating: ★★★☆☆
About The Better Sister
Release Date: May 29, 2025
Executive Producers: Olivia Milch, Regina Corrado, Craig Gillespie, Jessica Biel, Elizabeth Banks, Marty Adelstein, Becky Clements, Alissa Bachner, Kerry Orent, Annie Marter, Michelle Purple
Directors: Craig Gillespie (101), Leslie Hope (102/103), Azazel Jacobs (104), Dawn Wilkinson (105/106), Stephanie Laing (107/108)
Production: Tomorrow Studios and Amazon MGM Studios
Distribution: Prime Video
Cast: Elizabeth Banks, Jessica Biel, Corey Stoll, Kim Dickens, Maxwell Acee Donovan, Bobby Naderi, Gabriel Sloyer, Gloria Reuben, with Matthew Modine, and Lorraine Toussaint.
Synopsis:The Better Sister, based on the novel by bestselling author Alafair Burke, is an 8-episode electric thriller limited series about the terrible things that drive sisters apart and ultimately bring them back together. Chloe (Jessica Biel), a high-profile media executive, lives a picturesque life with her handsome lawyer husband Adam (Corey Stoll) and teenage son Ethan (Maxwell Acee Donovan) by her side while her estranged sister Nicky (Elizabeth Banks) struggles to make ends meet and stay clean. When Adam is brutally murdered, the prime suspect sends shockwaves through the family, reuniting the two sisters, as they try to untangle a complicated family history to discover the truth behind his death.
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