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To All the Boys I've Loved Before
WHERE TO WATCH:
OUR RATING
4/5 Stars
WHAT IT'S ABOUT:
What if all the crushes you ever had found out how you felt about them...all at once? Lara Jean Song Covey's love life goes from imaginary to out of control when the love letters for every boy she's ever loved-five in all-- are mysteriously mailed out.
WHAT WE THOUGHT:
My name is Leandra and I have a confession to make. I am totally obsessed with Netflix’s teen romance movie, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before. In fact, I have already watched it three times.
Even though the film is about a high school romance my 16-year-old self and my 34-year-old self can totally relate to it.
And that’s what makes this movie such a gem. It doesn’t matter what stage of life you are at, we all know what it feels like to put yourself out there romantically – the ups and downs of romance is daunting at any age.
The film is based on the young adult novel by Jenny Han (young adult novels have upped their game since I was a teen btw).
The story centres on Lara Jean Song Covey (Lana Condor), a 16-year-old high school junior who would rather live in her books and inside her head than the real world.
She’s had five crushes in her lifetime and wrote secret letters to each of them that she kept hidden in her closet. Until they get sent out ‘mysteriously’ which turns her somewhat quiet life upside down.
Her main love interests are typical teenage rom-com fare: The boy next door, who is also her sister’s ex-boyfriend Josh (Israel Broussard), and the popular jock Peter (Noah Centineo).
The plot doesn’t break the mould when it comes to the genre and that’s okay, you know exactly how this is going to go and that’s what makes it so sweet.
And for teenagers these characters are fully fleshed.
Lara is shy but not insecure, she is totally confident in her smartness and her quirky style, she doesn’t follow the crowd. And she doesn’t need the big makeover trope (She’s All That I’m looking at you). It’s the type of character that every girl can appreciate.
And Peter’s high school jock is not one dimensional either – he is attentive, sensitive and an all-round nice guy.
What I also enjoyed about the movie is how the relationship between Lara and Peter progresses, it’s not superficial they bond over real stuff.
The two leads Lana Condor and Noah Centineo have chemistry for days! They made their characters and their stories so believable and just lit up the screen together.
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before will certainly go down as one of the classic teen movies for its generation.
It takes from all those 90s ones that we loved and breathes new life with a diverse cast and believable real characters.
It's a really sweet movie and I dare you not to fall in love with it.
WATCH THE TRAILER HERE:
