Netflix’s latest romantic film ‘Love At First Sight’ is based on Jennifer E. Smith’s book ‘The Statistical Probability Of Love At First Sight’. Is the film worth your time? Or can you simply skip it? Read the full movie review to find out.
Director: Vanessa Caswill
Cast: Haley Lu Richardson, Ben Hardy, Rob Delaney, Katrina Nare, Jameela Jamil, Luke Whoriskey, Tom Taylor, Dexter Fletcher, Sally Phillips
Available On: Netflix
Duration: 1 Hour 31 Minutes
Hadley (Haley Lu Richardson) and Oliver (Ben Hardy) begin to fall for each other on their flight from New York to London. The probability of ever finding each other again seems impossible, but love - and London - may have a way of defying the odds. Will the two ever get to meet each other despite not knowing each other’s phone number? Will the city of London play spoilsport? Will there be any divine intervention to get the two together? Will the two absolutely forget about each other after the one night of passion on the flight from New York to London? Well, for all that you’ll have to watch ‘Love At First Sight’.
Haley Lu Richardson is a charm to watch onscreen. Her performance is effortless which makes you unknowingly feel drawn towards her. The character feels oh-so-real, and that’s what makes it so likeable. The character has its own personal emotional baggage. The way Haley Lu Richardson makes sure that the character doesn’t come off as a total snob because of this is brilliant. She manages to also retrain the character from going overtly happy-go-lucky. That restrain makes her performance come out so brightly that you’re feeling for the girl onscreen, but you even know that she’s not just the cutesy girl next door and there’s much more to her than just the smile and good looks.
Ben Hardy as the British statistical geek could have brought in a lot more physicality to the performance. For instance, audiences love to perceive geeks wearing specks – a thing that was so sorely missed in Ben Hardy’s character. Then the obvious British humour or rather sarcasm was missing in Ben Hardy’s performance. While it’s understood that he is upset as he’s going for his mother’s memorial, but this humouristic sarcasm is usually ingrained in Brits from their childhood, and it’s very difficult to do away with, which eventually means that they end up showing that off even in sad occasions like a memorial. Besides these, Ben Hardy tried his best to make the character come off as dreamy as possible.
Jameela Jamil, as the narrator, or the voice of God, is so apt for this role. Even though she has minimal screen time, she makes you laugh throughout. The way she pops up at every untoward junction makes you feel that God’s present everywhere and probably helping you out in some way or the other. If the makers want to make sequels to the film, Jameela Jamil’s God-like narrator character could be used to tell someone else’s love story, thereby creating a universe of its own.
Katie Lovejoy’s screenplay based on Jennifer E. Smith’s book ‘The Statistical Probability Of Love At First Sight’ is refreshing. She tries to take the road less travelled. She doesn’t ensure that this is the usual romantic film tropes are used and tries to show characters which are so very real. While the overall plot is very predictable, making the characters have their own emotional baggage was a masterstroke. It makes you, as a viewer, feel that even characters in romantic films have real-world relatable issues, and everything is not going oh-so-perfect in their lives.
Vanessa Caswill’s direction is pleasantly surprising. She hasn’t chosen the usual tropes to tell a romantic story. While most romantic stories, which have an angle of the airport, would try to finish it off at the airport, Vanessa Caswill does take that route and leaves you nicely surprised. You’re hoping for the two characters to miss each other out and then finally get to meet each other right at the very end, but that’s not what Vanessa Caswill has done, and this moving away from the usual tropes is what makes you like the film even more.
Usually, romantic films throw at you lots of exotic locales and make you go all wow with the beautiful landscapes and shots. Sadly, that’s missing in Luke Bryant’s cinematography here. The story traverses two of the most loved cities of the world – New York and London, and yet somehow Luke Bryant shot almost the entirety of the film in either closed spaces or during the night. Why? I can understand that there are requirements for the script, but that’s where the genius of a brilliant cinematographer comes in. They find new and innovative ways to show the scenes so that the lovey-dovey feels come with the necessary exotic feel of being in a foreign land. Sadly, the cinematography was a huge letdown in this film.
Joe Klotz and Michelle Harrison’s editing is crisp, and they make sure that you’re not loitering around when the story becomes predictable. With just over an hour and a half, the film is perfectly cut and doesn’t drag anywhere.
The music by Paul Saunderson is definitely a high point of the film. It keeps you hooked on the story. Where the cinematography falters in giving you exotic visuals, Paul Saunderson’s background score makes you feel in sync with the story. It makes you feel as if you’re running right by the side of the two characters throughout. That racy romantic feel is what’s so noticeable about the music of the film.
Yes
‘Love At First Sight’ is a slight diversion from the usual mushy romantic films that you see time and again. It’s gooey for sure and gives you a giant bear hug of love but it does also make the character look so very real. It manages to showcase that individuals in romantic films also can have their own emotional baggage, and not come off as everything is going so flowery and dreamy in their lives. That tinge of realism is what makes ‘Love At First Sight’ stand out, despite its obvious predictability. It’s definitely a Breezy Repeatable Watch. I am going with 3.5 stars.