By Arushi Aditi
Rating: 3.5/5
A typical enemies-to-lovers romcom, this movie stars Sydney Sweeney (as Bea) and Glen Powell (as Ben). The movie begins with an instant romantic connection between both characters, however a misunderstanding sours their relationship. They soon find themselves reunited at a wedding in Australia where their constant bickering turns into friendship and, eventually, love. However, hurdles are continuously thrown their way as they fail to accept their true feelings for one another.
Being a bit of a biased rom-com lover, I found this film to have an admiring balance of entertainment, light-hearted humour, and heartwarming love. Sweeney and Powell’s intense romantic chemistry (as popularised on social media) and simple comedic dialogue leave viewers with nothing but positive energy by the end. Many argue that this movie could pioneer the renaissance of typical rom-coms (going back to classics such as 10 Things I Hate About You and She’s The Man), appreciating the mere simplicity of two people falling in love. This movie could also be seen as a loose adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing, making it part of the Shakespeare-to-romcom pipeline.
From a more critical lens, the lack of originality of this movie could be seen as a mere repetition of a classic rom-com plot but translated into the Gen-Z world: it spices up the sexual scenes, brings in more TikTok slang, and includes some LGBTQ representation. Moreover, certain interactions seemed a little awkward, and parts of the dialogue were clumsily thrown into the movie without a second thought. I cannot get past the wedding vows, where one of the brides says: “You are the peanut butter to my jelly.” For a successful romcom, there must be a succinct balance between realism and obvious fiction. While Ben’s grand romantic gesture (hint: it involves a helicopter ride!) is acceptable, as it emphasises the importance of love and the extent to which characters can go to ‘win someone over,’ the writing strayed away from the necessary realism that would have connected with viewers.
Nevertheless, I left the theatre with ‘Unwritten’ stuck in my head and a desire for a man like Glen Powell to run up the Sydney Opera House stairs to confess his love for me. If you love romcoms and simple movies about the beauty of finding true love, this movie is for you. However, if you are looking for a film with depth, substance, and a realistic portrayal of today’s world, I would suggest opting for something else.
