LADIES FIRST (NETFLIX) (2026)

SYNOPSIS: A ladies man finds his life upended when he wakes up in a parallel world dominated by women. With the rules of engagement changed, he goes head-to-head with a fiery female colleague in a playful satire about what happens when the script is flipped.

MOVIE REVIEW:

Ladies First is the English remake of the French film I Am Not an Easy Man (Je Ne Suis Pas Un Homme Facile), though it also feels heavily inspired by the 2000 American romantic fantasy comedy What Women Want, in which a male chauvinist undergoes a fantastical journey that ultimately changes him for the better.

Instead of Mel Gibson, we have Sacha Baron Cohen playing Damien Sachs, a cocky and chauvinistic advertising executive who is on track to become the next CEO of Atlas. To satisfy a client who prefers a woman in charge, Damien following the advice of his assistant promotes veteran employee Alex Fox (Rosamund Pike) to the position of creative director. However, after Alex becomes disgusted by Damien’s sexist remarks and behavior and decides to quit the company, Damien chases after her, accidentally crashes into a lamppost, and wakes up in a world dominated by women.

In this alternate reality, his boss Fred (Charles Dance) is now a meek assistant, office receptionist Felicity (Fiona Shaw) is the CEO, and the office cleaner Glenda has become the chairwoman of Atlas. Worst of all, Alex has taken over Damien’s former position and is now poised to become the company’s next CEO.

Ladies First is the kind of comedy clearly aimed at a female demographic, supported by an impressive English cast. The film is ambitious in its attempt to tackle sexism and misogyny through satirical humor and role-reversal scenarios. At its core, the movie explores themes of male chauvinism, sexual harassment, and gender politics through its gender-swapped premise. However, before the first hour is even over, the sharp satire gradually dissolves into a fairly conventional romantic comedy.

Director Thea Sharrock (Me Before You) and her creative team clearly have fun reimagining society through switched billboards, luxury brands, and classic literary references, often to amusing effect. One standout sequence, featuring a rarely seen side of Shaw opposite Cohen’s Damien, delivers the film’s only genuine laugh-out-loud moment.

Cohen, no stranger to playing exaggerated comedic personalities, is ultimately hit-and-miss here. While he lacks the effortless charm that Gibson brought to a similar role in What Women Want, Cohen compensates by fully embracing Damien as a genuinely unpleasant human being. Still, it is difficult to fully believe in Damien’s transformation by the film’s conclusion. Pike, meanwhile, appears to relish playing a character who holds power over the men around her, and her chemistry with Cohen is consistently entertaining.

Despite its promising premise and clear potential to say something meaningful about gender dynamics, Ladies First ends up feeling surprisingly shallow. While the film delivers occasional laughs along the way, they are simply not enough to salvage a comedy that struggles to build meaningfully on its own ideas.

MOVIE RATING:

Review by Linus Tee