To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before

3/5

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before (based upon the book of the same name) wouldn’t have been a usual watch for me but given its strong online reviews and accessibility from my own sofa, I settled down for what was a charming hour and forty-five minutes.

Lara Jean, a shy, innocent girl who loves romantic fiction, lives her teenage years through fantasy. Through the films prologue we find she has written 5 love letters to all the major crushes in her life, including her elder sister’s boyfriend. Her younger sister reacts to Lara Jean’s lack of social life by mailing all these letters off to the various crushes. Teenage romantic comedy circumstances then ensue with Lara Jean agreeing to fake a relationship with one of the crushes Peter Kavinsky, to make his ex-girlfriend jealous. His ex-girlfriend being Lara Jeans high school nemesis Gen.

The plot may seem a little convoluted (and like all rom-coms it is), but it is pulled off due to a charming array of characters, strong direction and solid performances from both leads of the film. Lana Condor as Lara Jean and Noah Centineo as Peter Kavinsky provide very watchable performances with clear chemistry that ensure that the movies ridiculous plot turns, and scenarios are at least believable. They are supported by an array of good performances the stand out being Lara Jean’s younger sister Kitty, played by Anna Cathcart, who gets the majority of the film’s good lines.

The film is directed by Susan Johnson who does a good job of channelling the John Hughes films of the 80’s, even self-referencing ‘Sixteen Candles’ repeatedly throughout the film. Johnson maintains that aesthetic feel throughout well and keeps the film moving. The final act does however come across a little rushed, but the character development is there early on to provide enough satisfaction once the inevitable happy ending has occurred.

As far as Netflix originals go, it is high up on their current roster and is a solid aside to their brilliant, although a lot more mature, teenage comedy ‘Sex Education’ series. The film sets out to be a harmless bit of fun and is successful in doing this. The directing is good, the screenplay is solid, although it could have been funnier and there is a certain charm to the 2 main leads that makes this very watchable. Would highly recommend for a hungover morning in bed or as an easy distraction after work.