Spoilers ahead for Love At First Sight.
Netflix is back at it again with young adult romantic comedies with the release of Love at First Sight. Adapted from the young adult book The Statistical Probability of Falling in Love, the entire movie hinges on viewers believing that two strangers can meet and fall in love instantly. And this viewer definitely found herself struggling to believe it (but some of us at CinemaBlend disagree).
Love at First Sight begins when Hadley (Haley Lu Richardson) misses a flight to London and finds herself waiting around in the airport until the next flight in a few hours. The two bond and then end up seated next to each other on the six-hour plane ride, where they continue to bond. After separating in London, Hadley and Oliver can’t stop thinking of one another and will stop at nothing to reconnect to see if there really is a spark between them.
Hadley & Oliver’s Chemistry Is Charming
Now, don’t get me wrong, Love at First Sight isn’t a bad movie. In fact, it has several charming qualities to it. Most notably, Hadley and Oliver have tremendous chemistry with each other.
From the moment the two cross paths, it’s clear that their personalities mesh well together. Hadley finds Oliver’s endless statistics charming, and in return, Oliver finds Hadley’s lame jokes endearing. They feed off each other’s energy and what ensues is several scenes full of witty banter that had me pausing to laugh.
This is both a testament to the incredible writing by Katie Lovejoy (who wrote To All The Boys: Always and Forever) and the talented acting by Richardson and Hardy. But good chemistry and banter can only take a movie so far, and for me, it didn’t take me far enough to believe that these two were headed for a happily ever after.
But I Just Don’t Believe They’re In Love With Each Other Yet
Maybe it’s just me and my preference for slow-burn romances, but I just don’t believe that Hadley and Oliver love each other after spending less than 24 hours together. And that’s pushing it, considering they spend a portion of the movie apart.
For one, I have a hard time believing that two strangers in an airport would be that open with each other. The two seem to skip the usual small talk conversation and dive right into their greatest fears at Hadley’s request. Then, a few scenes later, Hadley opens up about her complex relationship with her father on the flight to London. I don’t know about you, but I definitely don’t go around venting about my family to strangers — no matter how charming they might be.
And don’t even get me started on their reconnection. While I can certainly buy Hadley and Oliver wanting to see each other again after connecting on the flight. I can’t get behind Hadley bailing on her father’s wedding (no matter what her feelings are about it) to go searching for Oliver in a city she’s never been before on the off chance the couple she heard was talking about him. She has to have more common sense than that!
Plus, there’s the entire issue of Oliver not being as open as Hadley is. How can she be sure she’s in love with him after one night when he’s barely opened up to her beyond reciting random statistics to her?
It all just seems a bit far-fetched for my tastes — and I’m a self-proclaimed rom-com connoisseur! Call me cynical, but I just don’t see how Oliver and Hadley can be in love with each other already. And as much as I hate to admit it, I don’t see how they end up living a happy life together like the movie suggests.
Love At First Sight may not be making any of the best romantic comedies of all-time lists, but it’s still a charming movie. If you’re a rom-com fan with an active Netflix subscription, I definition suggest checking it out for yourself.