To All the Boys I've Loved Before

Netflix has been scorching the rom-com game this summer. As other major movie studios have neglected this beloved genre, Netflix has capitalized on this underserved market by releasing a steady stream rom-coms just about every week. The latest, 'To All the Boys I've Loved Before,' is perhaps the best yet.

Sometimes, I just want a movie that will make me smile. It's such a simple wish that often goes unfulfilled when watching movies. But not this time. During this movie, I couldn't stop smiling. I smiled so much that it made my mouth sore.

Lara Jean (Lana Condor), a delightful 16-year-old who doesn't realize how delightful she is, lives her love life in fantasyland. She enjoys romantic novels and daydreaming about love, but she's afraid to pursue it in real life. She's forced to reckon with this when the five love letters she wrote to her crushes are mysteriously (but not really mysteriously because the culprit is obvious) mailed to each of them.

One letter went to (gasp!) her sister's ex-boyfriend Josh (Israel Broussard), who Lara Jean has secretly crushed on for years. Another went to Peter, the ex-boyfriend of Lara Jean's nemesis.

This guy who plays Peter, Noah Centineo, looks to be one of the breakout stars of 2018. He's ridiculously charming in a Mark Ruffalo kind of way. He will also star in the upcoming Netflix film, 'Sierra Burgess is a Loser,' so look for more big things from him in the future.

After finding out that she likes (or at least used to like) him, Peter suggests he and Lara Jean enter into a fake relationship. It's perfect-he can make his ex-girlfriend jealous, and she can convince everyone that she isn't in love with Josh. The two of them make rules, ones that seem destined to be broken at just the right moment. Even in the earliest stages of the fake relationship, they have obvious chemistry, both as characters and actors. Condor is a bit flat in her performance, but Centineo effortlessly lifts her up, and lifts up everyone, really, each time he appears on screen.

The story is decidedly 2018. The dialogue includes biting remarks like, "you don't even post about me on Instagram anymore!" Instagram comes up a lot. The litany of present-day references and apparent progressiveness of the overall film made me wonder why the writers made the Asian girl a terrible driver. Is it supposed be that self-aware type of joke that pokes fun at a silly stereotype? Maybe, but it didn't play that way.

The only real complaint I have is the casting of Lara Jean's sister. The actress is 30 years old and looks old enough to be Lara Jean's mom. That opening scene becomes confusing very quickly when this 30-year-old woman kisses her teenage boyfriend, and we find out that we're supposed to believe she's 18. Fortunately, the sister leaves for college, and we can forget about how weird that moment was.

'To All the Boys' likely won't surprise viewers with any twists-it's not going for that. But, it remains charming throughout, even if it has its ebbs and flows. Once the story passes the effervescent 30-minute opening spurt, it goes somewhat flat. It's like a soda that's lost its fizz-it's still sweet and pleasant enough, but it's not quite the same. Though I must admit, I gobbled it all up, even the hokey message about putting yourself out there because you never know what might happen.

Bottom line: the movie is delightful. I'm smiling now just thinking about it. Give it a watch. You'll be glad that you did.

This movie has this certain vibe that makes you want to fall inlove. The script of the movie was definitely superb and was able to translate the emotion that you would feel while reading the book. The cast, the music, the atmosphere of the film, evwrything was on point. Definitely a must see

I'm not going to lie, there were a lot of red flags going in to this, given the massive amount of dull and terrible Netflix films that have come out this year, many of which focused on relationships and slice-of-life type stuff, but I think I kind of like this one. It's certainly the least obnoxious of the bunch, and is even more surprisingly carried by the young female supporting actress. There's nothing this film does that's extraordinary, but it's an easily watchable film that's fine through and through, and manages to avoid dragging despite having such a simple premise and it doesn't overstay its welcome. The leads in the film aren't amazing, but they're certainly above average, and are relatively charming. The film is quite heavily reliant on exposition, and feels oddly reminiscent of 13 Reasons Why, though I would say this is a much more tasteful story that handles it's premise appropriately whereas 13 Reasons Why felt melodramatic and edgy. The melodrama here manages to be less melodramatic, and the material is light-hearted enough to deal with a pinch of superficial acting.

The dramatic elements are certainly nothing new, such as dealing with the loss of a parent, but they're implemented in a reasonable manner and are played out naturally and they add a bit of spice to what might have been an otherwise bland story with flat characters. It's refreshing nowadays to see characters with tragic backstories being portrayed in an empowering way. These elements are almost understated, and as a result the characters seem stronger than the usual. Towards the end there's a bit of an incident, but it doesn't cause tonal whiplash, and it's certainly not frustrating as it tends to be in other stories.

I'm not a huge fan of teen films, especially not in modern times with how the music industry has degraded into simple, easy-to-produce tripe whilst brainwashing the simple-minded teenagers into thinking they love superfluous and downright useless music, and there's certainly an abundance of that in this film. It's a shame because the score feels fine for the most part, and the film opts for no music when a scene works better without it. I'm fine with simple and fluffy tunes to accent the films various moments, but the commercial trash is hard to deal with, even in small doses.

This film's a bit of a pleasant surprise, and is among the few 2018 Netflix films I would recommend so far. For those who dislike 13 Reasons Why for being edgy or tasteless, this film will likely be more up your alley, and it's much less of a time investment as well.

Oldsters (like me) are decades removed from this movie's target YA audience but, if you liked the teenage angst movies of John Hughes ("Sixteen Candles," "Pretty in Pink," "Some Kind of Wonderful") you can truly enjoy this modern-day, politically corrected dip into that genre. ("Sixteen Candles" actually gets a shout-out in the flick.)

It takes some suspension of disbelief (some relaxation of the critical mindset that comes with age) but no more than others of its type. ("Lady Bird" being the exception -- a teen angst movie that overlaid the Hughes blueprint with grit and realism.)

The biggest obstacle is accepting the obviously older actors playing teens, especially the 30-something actress playing the 18-year-old sister. (Molly Ringwald was 16 when she played a 16-year-old.) If that doesn't bother you, then go for it. (Mostly it's 20-somethings in the late-teen roles, according to birthdates on IMBD.)

Very relatable and cute. A perfect feel good movie.