According to Drive Research, about 59% of people celebrate Valentine’s Day globally, six million people get engaged on Valentine’s Day and about 53% of people aged 18 to 34 will still make the day special, even if they are not celebrating. Finally, 86% of people believe in true love.
Consider me one of those people in the last category after watching “Love at First Sight.”.
This 2023 Netflix original is based on a book, “The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight,” written by Jennifer E. Smith and released in 2012. The story follows 20-year-old, artistic Hadley Sullivan (Haley Lu Richardson) and 22-year-old, statistics-obsessed Oliver Jones (Ben Hardy).
Hadley, the most Type-B person on the planet, is on her way to London for her father’s (Rob Delaney) wedding but misses her flight by four minutes. While waiting for her next flight, she meets Oliver, the most Type-A person on the planet, who introduces himself by offering to charge her phone. The two immediately hit it off.
Then, by some force of fate (a magical fairy-like being played by Jameela Jamil), the two are seated in the same row on the plane, giving them even more time to get to know each other.
However, upon arrival in London, the two are separated into the chaos of the airport, not knowing if they are ever destined to see one another again.
As Jameela Jamil’s unnamed narrator says at the beginning of the movie, this is a story about fate, not love, as we see how Hadley and Oliver’s lives intertwine.
I stumbled across this movie on a random night while doomscrolling through Netflix, trying to find something I wanted to watch. If I remember correctly, this was probably the first time a Netflix promo made me want to watch a movie, and boy, was I glad I did.
This movie was specifically made for the hopeless romantic. This movie is for the person who goes to an airport, coffee shop or other crowded space and romanticizes someone asking for their number, going on a date and spending the rest of their lives together.
That person is me and I absolutely adored this movie.
Richardson and Hardy give an incredible performance as Hadley and Oliver. Even though I was familiar with the actors, I never felt like I was watching a performance. Hardy’s nerdy, perpetually worried depiction of Oliver played perfectly against Richardson’s laid-back, disorganized Hadley.
The banter was quick and realistic, putting me on the edge of my seat for what would come next. Even separated, the two gave wonderful performances. They embodied their individual conflicts and mindsets very well, reducing me to tears for both sweet and sad reasons that I will not spoil for you.
The story also comes from a very real place. There was never a moment where I was taken out of the movie for something seeming unrealistic, other than Jamil’s magical moments of being everywhere at once, but even that seemed to work its way into the story.
Kindness and love sit at the root of the message of the movie, as well as the acceptance that comes with those. The movie shows depictions of all types of love and the varying emotions to go with it, including grief. Overall, “Love at First Sight” shows how sometimes, the universe has other plans for your life, but that doesn’t mean to give up hope in the beauty of the world.
Hadley and Oliver’s story goes to show how a little kindness and love can go a long way in a world of uncertainty.
I would argue “Love at First Sight” could be one of the greatest modern romcoms. It has an undeniably cool female main character, a swoon worthy male main character, a little magic and a lot of heart. These things all came together to make this unforgettable movie.
Unfortunately, I never heard a word about it before its release.
However, call it fate, destiny or Jameela Jamil, “Love at First Sight” found its way to me, solidifying itself in my mind as one of the sweetest, saddest and most emotional romcoms of the century.
If you find yourself reaching for a new, sweet movie to watch, I promise, this movie will be love at first watch.
Comentarios