DM Z

I am not a rom-com person, but I thought I would give this movie a chance because it deals with a very serious subject and it was something other than another Marvel movie. I quickly realized I should have chosen Wolverine or anything other than this terrible movie. I did not read the book which I think is ideal when reviewing a movie based on the book, I didn’t have to judge it against the wildly popular TikTok novel and I have an unbiased opinion. The major issue I have with this movie is the casting choices. Here we have a very serious subject, DV, that usually leaves women in a desperate situation for many, many reasons - especially economic despair. Why in the world would they choose an actress like Blake Lively who is not only a D-list actress better known for being married to Ryan Reynolds, but also has zero depth of character on and off screen? So they chose a gorgeous actress who has great hair, and a pretty face just to sell the movie? This is a very serious subject! I had no idea what the movie was about so I was taken aback when the abuse starts to happen, but I could not get past Blake’ vapid expressions, hair flips and lip biting. Her presence in the movie doesn’t do the subject matter justice at all, she is not a serious actress so the message is completely loss. It made it cringy to watch - I was so disappointed. This movie is evidence that Hollywood is grasping at straws to kickstart their dying industry - no one goes to the movies anymore, and this is why. The range of characters, and casting is no longer limited to blonde, blue-eyed white women that must look perfect in front of a camera to sell tickets. On demand distribution shows us that a good story, and great acting, is all one needs to really make a success out of a series or movie. Hollywood still doesn’t get the assignment - the studio execs are holding on to this sinking ship of ideas that concludes with terrible casting choices against good storylines - and it is a Titanic formula that will result in theaters just closing down completely. Blake Lively is not a good actress. People will go to see this movie, especially the romantic, day dreaming audience who live for romance novels, but that alone does not make it good. It focuses more on getting the camera angles on its gorgeous stars right than creating a real story with a serious subject matter that should provoke serious, mature feelings of discomfort and sympathy; NOT leaving the theater thinking that Blake’s hair looks gorgeous, or her skin looks amazing wow I wish there were more close-ups of her lipstick - which some people have seriously written about this movie - how tragic! I am sure the author did not intend for her book to be turned into Love Island, most authors don’t have control over casting once it goes the route of a movie.