The Long Plot, Sans Spoilers
Natalie (Rebel Wilson) is a cynic when it comes to love, romance, and *fairy tales.* Even her work best friend Josh (Adam Devine) tells her so. Romantic comedies just don't appeal to her at all, and she's convinced that handsome, successful guys like Blake (Liam Hemsworth) will never notice her. She also may or may not be jealous of famous models like Isabella (Priyanka Chopra). When it comes to her work, no one respects her as an architect and she feels like people just see her as the "coffee bitch."
All of that changes when she gets into an accident and finds herself in an alternate universe. Here, everyone—especially guys—thinks she's "beguiling," her apartment has been magically upgraded, she is treated like royalty in the office, New York smells good, background music mysteriously plays, and she can't utter a single curse word. Natalie knows that this is NOT real and something's off. That's when she realizes that somehow, she's in a romantic comedy and SHE is the leading lady.
The Short, Honest Plot
It's a fun, cute story about learning to love yourself. Isn't It Romantic serves as a reminder for us to look closely at the rom-com films we watch and learn to criticize them at one point or another.
The Actors And Where You Last Saw Them:
Rebel Wilson as Natalie
While we know her best for her performances in the Pitch Perfect movies, Rebel has actually appeared in films such as Bachelorette (2012), How To Be Single (2016), and Grimsby (2016). Her upcoming heist movie with Anne Hathaway is called The Hustle.
Adam DeVine as Josh
Also a Pitch Perfect alum, Adam has starred in both animated and romantic comedy films such as The Lego Batman Movie (2017) and When We First Met (2018). He also has a recurring role in the TV series Modern Family.
Priyanka Chopra as Isabella
We previously saw the new Mrs. Nick Jonas in the Indian film Barfi! (2012), where she played an autistic character named Jhilmil. She made her Hollywood live-action film debut in the action-comedy Baywatch (2017).
Liam Hemsworth as Blake
Liam is known for his roles in The Last Song (2010), Empire State (2013), and The Hunger Games series. He got married to Miley Cyrus, his The Last Song co-star, in 2018.
Did You Know?
- Rebel Wilson is both the lead actress and a producer of the film!
- When the cast was asked which romantic comedy best describes them, they chose Bridget Jones' Diary (Rebel), My Best Friend's Wedding (Priyanka), and Forgetting Sarah Marshall (Adam).
- According to Priyanka, they shot the "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" karaoke scene for two days! They heard the song more than 500 times. Whoa.
- One of the film's screenwriters, Katie Silberman, also wrote the 2018 Netflix rom-com film Set It Up!
What I Think:
I'd like to start by saying that I love romantic comedies and romance films with a passion, and before watching the movie I was scared that it might shatter my impressions about them. BUT IT DIDN'T! Sure, Isn't It Romantic points out what may be wrong and exaggerated about rom-com films, but it does so in a loving and endearing way.
It was refreshing and relatable to see Rebel Wilson as the film's leading lady. We love seeing cookie-cutter leads, but the thing is, they don't look like us. We don't always look perfectly-dressed when we go to school or work, we don't wake up with fully-made up faces. Guys don't always fall head over heels in love with us. We don't look adorable (more like adorkable LOL) when we trip. Rebel shows us that it's okay to be a REAL girl, it's okay not to look like the perfect leading lady. We can be the leading lady of our own lives!
I've watched films like My Best Friend's Wedding and 10 Things I Hate About You since I was nine years old. I also love recent rom-coms like To All The Boys I've Loved Before and Set It Up. But, I sometimes forget that these stories aren't REAL. They're created by writers, they're essentially...a fantasy. And there's a tendency for us to question ourselves and our real lives: "Why isn't this happening to me?" "Why isn't anyone singing 'Can't Take My Eyes Off You' for me in public?" "Why do leading ladies get everything?"
I guess what the film teaches us is that, at some point, we need to draw the line between fantasy and reality. It's okay to love romantic comedies, as long as we don't expect real life to be exactly like them.
What My Friend Thinks:
"Romantic comedies have always been my favorite film genre. I've gone through most of the must-watch rom-coms in the past 30 plus years and have come to know and love the usual tropes by heart. So it was hard for me to watch a film that basically mocked everything I loved about them: The picture-perfect apartment, the glamorous job (most likely in the media industry), the gay best friend, and hot stranger the lead girl falls in love with. I mean, OF COURSE, these are all clichés and Isn't It Romantic just…shattered that fantasy. But, that obviously was the whole point of the film. So, will I continue watching rom-coms? HELL YES! But I already know what it is—a movie, that's all." —Jacinda Lopez
I’d Recommend It To:
- People who ADORE romantic comedies.
- People who HATE romantic comedies. You'll realize why people love them!
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