So I’m not the first person to note that the rom-com is a genre in decline these days, as is basically every genre not actively featuring superheroes. But so when this was released on Peacock simultaneous with theatres[1], the idea of watching a big-budget rom-com sounded kinda nostalgic and fun, and so we watched this.

I wish I could say that it was great and shows how theatres need to get things like this back on screens, but in fact it was… basically fine? “Amiable” is the best word to describe it. It’s enjoyable while it’s on, and the characters are likable enough in a lowkey way that it almost seems not to matter that they never grow or develop or change or even really fall in love. But on reflection, that’s kinda weird?

I think part of what makes it seem less weird is that Owen Wilson and Jennifer Lopez are… well, old. They’re both 53! And so when 53-year-olds get together in their second (him) or fourth (her) marriages, you don’t exactly expect it to have the high drama of teen love. But even with that in mind, it still felt a little weird. Like, they’re hanging out pleasantly enough, and then Owen is all like “I assume we’re gonna bang now” and I’m like what on earth makes you think that?!? But they did! And in a later scene she says she loves him in a way that felt similarly out of nowhere and unmotivated.

There’s no real reason for them to get together, there’s no particular chemistry or obvious attraction or anything. And from a plot perspective, they never really get past the things that would seem to push them apart — the movie sets up his jealousy and the complete incompatibility of their lifestyles, but then does nothing at all to fix it before they get together anyway. But maybe it doesn’t need to be fixed? They seem to like each other well enough, and maybe it’s not realistic to expect the elderly to change how they live their lives in a major way. Growth and change is for yutes.

(Side note: In a movie that is mostly just following standard genre convention in a rote way, it is notable that it’s the female lead who gets to have the totally unremarked-upon age-inappropriate relationship, with her movie-starting fiance being 28 years old. Although they also discreetly refer to Lopez’s character as being “over 35,” which is true but also maybe slightly misleading in its implications.)

Anyway, there’s no particular reason you need to watch this, and if you’re looking for a brilliant reminder of what rom-coms can be, this isn’t it. But it’s pleasant, and nobody is a superhero, so hey.

  1. I would never go see this in a theatre, but knowing that they put it in one makes it feel like more of a real movie than if it were a direct to Peacock production. Theatrical release as marketing campaign is totally a thing that’s going to happen, isn’t it? ↩︎