Directed by Ol Parker | Written by Brett Goldstein and Joe Kelly | 114 min | ▲▲1/2 | Netflix
This is a shockingly by-the-numbers romantic comedy for those who miss the ones Kate Hudson or Katherine Heigl used to star in. It features the ageless Jennifer Lopez in the lead role, partnered with British comic actor and writer, Brett Goldstein, here doing double-duty on the script. His comedic talent is clear — as anyone who’s watched his stand-up, Ted Lasso, or Shrinking can attest.
She’s Jackie Cruz, the CEO of a discount airline under the thumb of a domineering board and her father (Edward James Olmos), who founded the company, and he’s one of her lawyers, Daniel Blanchflower, a Brit who’s come to the United States partly due to his incarcerated sister, Lizzy (Jodie Whittaker, really laying it on thick with the Cockney). The firm has a wildly overreaching employee non-fraternization policy, which means Jackie and Daniel can’t get it on even though they’re totally into each other, which, for a romcom obstacle, isn’t the worst. Naturally, they have a lot of fun ignoring those corporate rules and regs.
As mentioned, there’s a lot here for people who think movies like Materialists are just too progressive and want something that really sticks to familiar beats — Netflix is where a lot of these movies live, though few are as well-cast as this. The central couple is surrounded by reliable character actors who bring a lot to the table, including Betty Gilpin, Tony Hale, Bradley Whitford, Amy Sedaris, and a couple of welcome Star Trek veterans, Mary Wiseman and Michelle Hurd. And there’s no doubt Goldstein’s gifts lift the script to a higher level — with the exception of a scene where he gets an erection when he shakes her hand, that is a real low point.
The real problem is that he’s kind of miscast: he’s just a little too stiff (no pun intended) and weird to be a plausible love interest for Lopez — the chemistry doesn’t fizz with the hots they’re supposed to have for each other. For that kind of sizzle with these actors (and others), maybe go watch All Of You or Out of Sight.
