I can't have been the only person who gasped out loud when Noah suddenly slammed his hand on the car door, screaming at Elle to get in. And even worse, he doesn't take her home, but to a secluded place. He's not suave or charming, he's an emotional abuser whose behaviour is disturbingly romanticised.
@Caro Jean Great minds certainly think alike, right? 😉 Also, many thanks, we performed that musical for my local community theatre, and it's my favourite one to date!
I know you probably don’t know me, but I feel like I see you on every single movie react I watch and I love that 😂 (also love the Addams Family - The Musical profile picture!!)
Not a fan of this movie, but wasn't it clear from the beginning that he had anger issues? I think he was terribly misunderstood. Moreso, in part 3, he broke up with her because he cared about her. He was learning to be a better person... I think
I had a childhood 'friend' that did something like Noah. He was my only friend and I found out senior year that he'd told every person in my class that we were dating and that they better not talk to me. It wasn't even just boys. It was everyone. I went to a tiny highschool and by sophomore year everyone ignored me. I was so depressed, wondering why no one liked me, and b/c he was my only friend, I talked to him about it. It's insane, and I'm still dealing with the after effects. He's part of the reason that I left my home town. It irritates me so much that this behavior is so frequently portrayed as romantic. Living it, is horrifying.
@Kade Fletcher yeah, you probably don't want to attend your 10 years highschool reunion. Some of my friends called ahead to ask if their friends would be there, otherwise they weren't going to go. If I ran into friends I had from 2nd grade on, we'd be able to chat and catch up on old times. Was able to locate one, sad to hear her brother had passed. I'M not too good at staying in touch though, ashamed of that. Left for college and lost track. Did visit one while I was in college though.
I want to make a movie exactly like this. A romance full of red flags, but played as cute and fun for the first 3/4 of the film. Then the guy turns from cute to violently abusive. The climax of the movie is her finally deciding to leave and figuring out how to excape. The trailers will only play up the fun romance, so maybe the people who need that dose of reality the most will go see it.
You cannot believe how long I’ve wanted you guys to react to Kissing Booth. I was literally like “If they think Twilight is bad (which it is), they’re gonna have an absolute field day with Kissing Booth”
10:29 Regarding Jacob Elordi, he genuinely seems like a good guy overall. I've seen interviews with him and he seems a pretty soft spoken, down-to-earth kind of guy. He really likes film, historical and otherwise, and he's a pretty good actor imo. I often think about why he gets these kinds of parts and honestly it's probably just his physicality -- he's a big guy 6'5" and he looks imposing on screen. I would also like to note that the casting for his romantic counterparts in both The Kissing Booth and in Euphoria are 15 inches and 11 inches shorter than him, respectively. It creates a certain optic. He talked about the focus on his physical presence being somewhat frustrating, actually, since it ends up taking up a lot of time that he would prefer to recenter around his performances.
I agreed with pretty much everything except the height thing. My partner is 6’3” and I’m 5’. If anything upsets me more than people infantilizing me because of my height, which has happened my whole life, it’s when they do so in comparison to my partner. I’m 26 and they’re 25. Constantly being referred to as a child is degrading and disrespectful to both my partner and I. People come in all shapes and sizes. I hate hearing people talk like my existence gives them the “ick” merely because I’m short and that somehow makes my relationship problematic in some way. We are both adults who are in a healthy consensual relationship and just happen to be on either end of the height spectrum. Other people make the size difference an issue by infantilizing the shorter person. I personally find it incredibly demeaning. Edit: For context: I completely understand that for shooting and framing reasons it would look better and more balanced. I have no issue with that. And I do agree with this particular movie, since its focus is on a toxic relationship that also has the added towering height difference, it plays into the power imbalance of the couple. My issue was with the notion that just being short and being with someone taller implies the shorter person is then seen as a child or childlike in comparison. He said that exact thing about his wife. If you want a better photo with your wife that's framed well, then fine use an apple box so you can get an even and balanced photo. But don't imply you need the apple box because having a short wife means she looks like a child in comparison and makes you look creepy. That's weird. It implies that even in public, when you cannot use an apple box, that you think she looks like a child when next to you. She is a grown ass adult. Again, it is insulting towards the shorter person and their partner. It implies being with someone short is icky or creepy since they are "childlike". Which again is untrue. People come in all sizes. The short partner is still a grown ass adult and should be treated and respected like one.
@Mr. Stuff Doer This is what I meant by my comment. I completely understand that for framing reasons in photos and movies it might look better. I have no issue with that. And I do also agree that with this particular movie that focuses on a toxic relationship and then also has the added towering height difference, it plays into the power imbalance. My issue was with the notion that just being short and being with someone taller implies the shorter person is then seen as a child or childlike in comparison. He said that exact thing about his wife. If you want a better photo with your wife that's framed well, then fine use an apple box. But don't imply you need the apple box simply because having a short wife somehow makes you look like a creep and are worried your wife looks like a child in comparison. That's weird. She is a grown ass adult.
They mentioned that it is not the issue, it's how the framing looks. It makes her appear even smaller and that for the filming sake, they should have done the apple box.
I agree as well. Im 5’ and typically have dated men a lot taller than me. However, I don’t think they were intentionally trying to infantilize the height difference between them. I interpreted it as them saying she should have worn heels in certain shots or stand on a box, so you can see both of their faces in scenes like that or even film from an upwards angle. Again, I agree it’s frustrating being infantilized for my height, but i don’t think it was intentional on their part, I think they were trying to imply that certain scenes should’ve been shot differently, given the height difference between the actors
@Mr. Stuff Doer Also now chewing over the thought that the height difference thing coding as "ideal romantic match" also plays a bit into the infantalizing of the shorter female partner; the power dynamic of big strong worldly manly (protector) and their naive sweet innocent (protectee) is like 500 romance tropes distilled but I hadn't really made the connection between hmm, that _sounds_ a whole lotta like an adult (caregiver) and their child (ward), and the large height disparity on the romance novel cover _looking_ a whole lot like...that...too...eugh... Of course as you point out romance is wish-fulfillment fantasizing, so a) what part of this is just an oroboros of "well this is what I think is romantic/hot/ideal so I'll write that" and "I think this is romantic/hot/ideal because that's what I've seen presented as such" and b) how will that change over time as societal norms and preferences and exposure evolves... my kids are too young for TikTok so I'm not up with the trends of what the youths think is "peak hotness" these days but I hope whatever it ends up heading toward, it's got a little more variety and lot less stereotyping...
When I first watched this movie all I could think was “this is every single trope from typical Wattpad books”. When I found out it WAS a wattpad book I was shocked. The classic wants of every teen girl; Boy best friend, to clumsily stumble into becoming hot/popular, to have a dead parent I guess, and a crazy controlling boy you’re having a forbidden romance with.
I wasn't surprised at all when I found out lmao. I was never interested in wattpad original stories, but I *was* into fanfictions, so I knew the formula even if it wasn't the exact same. I'll never understand why *that* story was the one they decided to make into a movie. I've been there for years, there are tons of good writers on there, but for some reason they picked the worst ones 💀
Do you happen to know what fanfic its based off of? Or are they original characters? This is so funny to me lol.. After is harry styles, 50 shades was twilight and Twilight was MCR fanfic.. i need to know and google aint giving me answers 😂 AND THEY’RE ALL THE SAME DUDE LIKE 😂🚩🚩
This is helping me calm down right now, I just went through something incredibly traumatic and am shaking. I prayed as well and that helped, now I’m watching this and it’s regaining my mood because it’s distracting me. Thanks for making my day a little better. I hope others who are going through something right now can feel the warm hug I’m sending. I’m scared, but I’m gonna try to get through this.
hope you are in a physical and emotinal safe place, and that you are feeling a little better. You are going to get thru this and get stronger, and also heal. Best of luck to you on your journey. Sending a hug right back 💗💗💗💗
I hope you’re feeling more safe, I always feel better after praying too, and I also hope you are able to rest and eat a good meal. I truly hope you’re safe and that there’s more things that can make you laugh and smile. Sending warm hugs and good thoughts out to you love, you absolutely deserve them~
I made a rule for myself when I was 14 that I wouldn't build my happiness on someone else's grief by cheating with their significant other. Decades later, that has kept me out of more trouble and grief of my own.
The part at 7:48 when Allan is mimicking the shy girl, reminds me of Merida's father pretending to be merida in brave, when he is encouraging his wife the queen to talk to Merida
Ugh, the whole telling other boys not to ask her out... that was a major factor in me not being able to get a date all through high school. The guy told all our mutual friends (and anyone else who would listen) that we were a couple, and we never were. I tried asking guys out a few times, in a very "it's just hanging out" kind of way, and got all sorts of "but what about P----?" responses that took a long time to figure out.
i read this in the 6th grade on wattpad and thought it was the best thing, and ended up trying to find someone like these abusive "bad boys" for ages. we need to stop telling kids this is what they want
Would highly suggest Easy A if you want a teen drama that'll help you heal from this mess! Similar potential topic but actually on purpose with good intentions :)
Third! Plus it's also a book adaptation, and imho is a really great example of when it's better to make major adaptational changes (in this case, genre and time period) to keep the themes of the book clear and relevant.
I was recommended a book by my teenager and to my horror I read it. (If she wants to read a book she gets me to read it first so she knows if it’s any good). It was “It ends with us.” It was a tough read but the “twist” wasn’t a shock to me because there were soooo many red flags. (I told her she shouldn’t read it and gave her a quick brief what it was about). She’s 15 and had some questions and we had a chat about it. She had a lot of questions about abu5ive relationships. It was nice she felt comfortable in asking me these things. Her Auntie Jess was raised in an abu5ive household and had an abu5ive partner at one point as well so she is aware of this stuff personally. (She’s not actually related, just my best friend since we were 5 and stayed with us when things got bad).
@Laurajayne Nolan it was the first time we had contact in many years. She was saying how she was trying to leave her husband. And i just told her that she needed to figure out her issues with her husband and not come to me. So idk haven't talked since. But every time I hear or see this book it reminds me. Makes me very curious about the book. Idk what it's actually about
@Adrian Rodriguez maybe she just liked the book. You can always ask her but if you feel it might be something more, ask yourself is there a reason you think it might be something more and if the answer is yes then you have your answer as to why they recommended it.
As someone with a cinema degree, I absolutely LOVE Alan's audiovisual rage at the lack of an apple box 😂😂😂 "WHO *SHOT* THIS?" I felt that in my bones 😂
The second he said apple box, I thought of Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford in Star Wars The Empire Strikes Back, that famous first kiss between Han and Leia. Carrie was a good foot shorter than Harrison so they put her on an apple box to keep him in the frame with him for that scene.
As someone with no cinema degree, what were they thinking?? They could’ve had him squat or spread his feet apart to appear shorter, or do other forces perspective angles. Adult relationships with height differences are fine, but when it’s being shown like this in regards to high school kids it’s weird.
As soon as Alan described the apple box I immediately thought of the one used in X Files that was used for Gillian Anderson or for Natalie Portman in the Thor movies
on halloween last year, my friends and i were looking for a horror movie to watch, and we ended up hatewatching this instead. it was absolutely terrifying
This movie made me furious! I was revolted, the only reason I even finished it is because I was waiting for her to come to her senses. Please do tall girl next because the absolute entitlement of the childhood friend being in love with you so you have to love them back drives me up the wall.
Both parts of the "pair" should get checked, if for diferente reasons. I mean, the protagonist having trouble finding shoes and clothes is literally the only real problem she has ("How's the weather up there?" every 5 seconds isn't even bullying, ffs, and the sequel showed she never even felt antsy before) but she acts like that and some weird sense of unfemininity are the end of the world and gets shocked when it turns out that height isn't a personality trait. So, maybe oversheltering?
A show not a movie but something I think you would really like is Assassination Classroom. It's definitely a don't judge a book by its cover type of show. It seems like a typical Jump Shonen for teen boys but then you realize it's so much more. The show has so much depth and wisdom to give regarding life. Each and every single student come out of that classroom changed for the better as they each undergo development and learn major life lessons. It's truly incredible. I am a social worker and this show really is spectacular in helping teens (and many adults) cope with various challenges in life.
I've never seen it and judging it by cover i didn't plan to, but the way you described it made me want to watch it now :) So thanks, i'm putting it on my "to watch" list.
During their kissing scene in the rain when one of you said that even thought they are only 2 years apart it's like watching a 14 yr old and a 30 yr old kiss, experience wise, this is exactly what it is. She's never even been in a relationship & he's been tom-catting all over the place. Which, no shame to either of these scenarios but I don't think it can make for a healthy relationship because the unexperienced one is likely to feel insecure & want to prove themselves to the point of ignoring their own boundaries & going at a pace that is too fast for them and to the experienced one they aren't going to be aware that their partner needs it to be slower because the significance of the first times are lost on them. To them it's "just kissing" "just making out" "just touching you in x, y, z." It's another form of a power imbalance.
‘A man looming over a child’, made me think of one of my favourite movies where there was a big height difference and I just didn’t remember it making me feel icky. Went back to watch and turns out camera angle alone can really make a big difference. I don’t think there was an apple box, but they always had her on a stair etc, or when they were standing side by side the camera was directly in front so you didn’t get a dominant effect, and it probably helped that the actors were likely in their late twenties or early thirties. Thank you Alan for helping me appreciate my favourite movie even more
@Sam Ah, not to worry. Most passions of mine revolve around the past anyways (history, classic lit, etc.), so bearing historical context in mind is natural and not a bother!
@nora, Just a quick note, the film takes place in 1850, and it was filmed 1954. I hate when people don’t watch it with those contexts in their brain, yes there are some moments that would not fly today, but please enjoy it for what it is and don’t shred it apart over modern standards
@刺音JUNKIE somehow 50 shades feels less worse, because both are adults (even tho that is stilll horrible). but both romantize toxic relationships with a girl that is naive + unexperienced and a dude that is extremely controling
@Jasmine Spencer I'm 17 and from the ages of 13 to about 16 I read A LOT of wattpad and I don't have the best home life. Paired with wattpad it was really damaging
A lot of the popular wattpad books are unhealthy abusive relationships written as a romance And it is extremely sad when you think about the demographic I suggest any pre/teen or person who has a history of abuse to step away from wattpad Delete it for a year
honestly even though they would've made a much healthier romance in the end, I'm glad that for once it was a really loving friendship that never turned to " I've loved you all along! Why can't you see it's always been me!"
Love the recognising of Joey's acting skills! I personally find it hard to tell when it's the script/editing/etc and not the acting skills but for Joey I always recognised that she had genuine talent that just wasn't being used for this movie.
About the height difference between the two main actors, I actually liked it because it feels real. Like in reality we can see big height differences between couples. But yeah, agree in that then they should frame the scenes together without having to cut one of them.
Honestly would love to see your take on Dr. Doofenshmirtz and fatherhood in Phineas and Ferb. Maybe through a compilation of his backstories with his parents and then the way he treats Vanessa
This movie has no female gaze. It is filled with the male gaze and with (what I assume) is what the director THINK is a female gaze, but really is just a male gaze directed towards the different male characters instead of the women. Maby a video about the different gazes is needed? 🎉But I got to say Alan and Jonathan: Thank you for this amazing video! Your reactions always makes my day 😄👍
The trend of abusive/controlling men becoming obsessed with one girl and trying to “own” her has been a big theme in pop culture for the last I’d say decade, and I wonder if the reason is because in a society that goes out of their way to make women feel insecure, the idea that an unassuming woman could drive a man to show such intense emotion is “empowering.” In reality its really disturbing, bc if you’ve never been targeted by an abusive predator, it’s one of the worst things a person can go through. It happened to me, and sure the love-bombing stage felt amazing, but over time, I was pulled apart and rendered a broken mess that took YEARS to put myself back together, and in some ways, I will always be marked by that experience. Hollywood needs to stop selling the idea that possessive/abusive behavior is romantic. Its dangerous and cruel.
PREACH!!!! I love this. Living with a domestic, narcissistic, physically and emotionally abusive father in my early life, I know what it is to live this. As a young woman, I'm still untangling emotional trauma from my early years. Please refrain from romanticizing these sorts of situations; it is not true. Too many people-especially women, which is genuinely tragic-have no idea what it is to live with these kinds of men. It is NOT ROMANTIC BY ANY MEANS.
I think the main reason it's romanticized is to excuse toxic/sexist behavior because then toxic and sexist men don't have to change their awful behavior and how they interact with/view women as objects for their own desires. In fact, it's portrayed as charming so why would they change? I think the spin on it that women are "empowered" by it is to make it easier to excuse the behavior while also making women easier to manipulate if they find themselves in these situations and relationships because they're gonna think this trash is normal and even desirable so why would they leave a guy who is treating them this way since it's framed as "romantic" rather than abusive. It also makes it more difficult for others to call out this behavior now that it's been supplanted with a 'positive' spin since most people will say that the woman likes this toxic behavior so what's the issue if she is 'willingly' staying because she can 'obviously see' what's going on. Unfortunately people don't know enough about trauma bonding and how that warps your ability to see that you're being manipulated and made codependent by this behavior in the first place. Plus if this romantic portrayal is what you're constantly exposed to, you're not going to see the behaviors as the huge red flags that they are because they've been so normalized. TDLR: Having this kind of portrayal of toxic behavior as romantic lets terrible men continue to be terrible while also allowing them to also get the girl because she won't realize that he's abusive and will think it's normal and even romantic that he's like that. It also prevents others from calling out these behaviors because of its normalization which lets the abuse get brushed aside fairly easily by bystanders and/or the woman in the relationship.
@A D A 15 years old who grew up consuming this type of message and thought it was completely normal. It keeps happenning only because older people who should be correcting those beliefs and behaves are encouraging it to keep going. This sh* needs to stop and it will only be able to if the adults in charge stop spreading the misinformation
17:33 Absolutely cracking up at the fact that Jono has like two separate reactions to that, one of immediate disgust and then another after he really registered what Alan just said. I had to watch it like five times
Man I remember watching this with my ex who was pretty manipulative and he was talking about how romantic this movie was and while watching it I just had a bad feeling in my gut unsure of why, I mean I liked the movie mostly but you have no idea how carthic it was to watch this and finally understand why my gut didn't trust the movie, thank you so much 😊
As I am 5'2", I can say that seeing a movie not using an apple box was great! A couples' height difference should not be something people feel uncomfortable about, being short doesn't mean being a child. I was 23 when I was told that I would need to show my id to watch a movie... a PG-13 movie!
But that's not what they said concerning real life. They said the shot looks horrible because of the height difference. Also because of the toxic dynamic between the two characters, having the abusive man look SO MUCH TALLER than the victim is pretty weird and shows the power he has over her.
Please review Strange World! I love the part where the grandfather gives advice about how to impress a crush (put them in danger then save them) and his grandson calls it out as a super toxic way to start a relationship. It's really cute and healthy in ways that I know you'll enjoy.
I watched this movie with my grandma because she was sick of watching animated movies with me and wanted a "romantic" one. Through the entire movie I kept feeling red flag alarms setting off in my head, while she was watching it passionately as if it was Romeo and Juliet. I still don't understand how she didn't feel creeped out Edit: Guys, enough with the Romeo and Juliet rants please😭😭😭 I know its a tragedy story, I only meant it as a joke.
I'd love to see you do "To All the Boys I've Loved Before." I saw it soon after I watched The Kissing Booth, and I compare/contrast these two movies in my head all the time.
I needed this in my life!! One of the major ick moments for me is that kiss in the rotunda in the garden. It’s like they were trying to parallel The Sound of Music’s “16 Going on 17”, which is when played today is a pretty ick song!! Can’t wait for part two!!
Omg I'm so happy that someone finally brought up how ENORMOUS he looks in comparison to her. When I saw that scene the first time, all I could think was how BIG his hands were in comparison to her face 😬 like he could crush her. I was TERRIFIED for her for the rest of the movie. Honestly thought it would take a turn.
When I watched this movie...pretty much all the red flags that you two are mentioning continued to stick out to me throughout the whole movie...so yes...I will be showing my daughter THIS video if she ever comes to me wanting to watch this movie so she can be warned of the tool-ish behavior and hopefully not fall for it. 🤞🤞🤞
I think from my experience with female friends from abusive relationships, whenever they try to date again they almost have these notions that men being mean and being treated badly is something that is attractive because of their experienced trauma. The thing is the abuse starts like this with flirty jabs at them that turn into far more serious and heavy stuff later on.
As someone who went through a "relationship" that lasted 2 1/2 years, to which I broke up with him within the first month. Getting with a good man. Who treats you very well. It far better than being abused. I don't fond over abusiveness, I feel disgusted, and I imagine men and woman who went through that, would probably feel the same if they find a good partner. As my two of my favorite KZclip father's say. Consent is sexy.
I think that's also why a lot of people eat up these kinds of romance stories, because it's normal and romantic to them. Everyone I know who is really obsessed with Twilight and 50 Shades of Grey has a terrible relationship history.
@crab21 As someone who has been in an abusive relationship with the opposite sex, yes its a build up and it progresses over time with subtle boundary crossings laced with "loving intent." I know everytime I seemed to threaten to leave suddenly they were sorry or "having an off day" or another excuse to rope me back. They may have multiple sides but its hard to see when its main conduit is via manipulation.
When Noah says, "The independent Elle Evans, who *doesn't want to be told what to do by anybody,* is coming to me for help." I always think, "But, she didn't ask to be told what to do. She asked for help. Those can be mutually exclusive."
When I learned this was based on a book written by a teen, everything made so much sense. It's the sort of thing I read back in FictionPress day; I understand the author's (twisted) logic that makes Noah the" good bad boy" and, idk, maybe partaking in this kind of story is part of growing up. But I really think we adult writers have to offer better male lead models, so teenagers don't think guys like Noah are desirable partners.
This movie is based on a book written by a 15 year old girl. When I found that out, it explained so much to me. I remember when I was a young teen, I thought that men being overprotective seemed like an attractive trait--the dark brooding male has always been romanticized. Once you actually date someone like that though, you find out that it's not sexy, it's just stressful. I loved watching your take on it all! This movie was uncomfortable to watch; I kept wanting it to redeem itself. I can't believe how many people love it--but I guess the hot, aggressive male trope hasn't been outgrown by everyone just yet.
"She thinks no one has been interested in her, its been heartbreaking for her." Dude, you just described my entire life. The only times I get any attention from the male race at all is when I'm wearing a v neck and you can see the crease of my boobs.
@Mia-Sara King Most things I've seen label rules as something you impose on someone else vs a boundary that is something you draw a line for to protect yourself. I'm not sure I explained that very well but there is a difference. Rule: You are not allowed to swear in front of me or you can't be my friend. Boundary: I am not friend with people who swear. As stranded in Seattle said; "you are not allowed to hook up with your best friend's brother" is not the same as "I am not comfortable being best friends with someone who is hooking up with y brother." Its about imposing action vs drawing a line.
@Stranded in Seattle I disagree with that rule. Don't tell me who I should fall in love with. If you are going to control me we can't be friends. That is my boundary.
Rule: Never hook up with anyone from your BFF's family. Boundary: If you hook up with my brother, then you are not my BFF. Pretty much the same thing, just labelled differently. Either way, she overstepped because her hormones meant more to her.
It’s great you guys touched on the sexualization of high schoolers in tv and film. It’s a lot of the reason I love Stranger Things. They really just keep it PG-13 with the kids and teens in that show (even if the actors are legal. They’re still playing young kids), with some cute appropriate jokes. I would love a reaction video on that show!
Since us as the fans demand more suffering, you should DEFINITELY check out the After movies. There's definitely a lot of questionable things in those movies and I'd love to see you guys react to it
Megan: "Is that us?!?!" Alan: "No, cause if we're ever in pictures I PUT YOU ON A APPLE BOX." Loving how sweet Alan is to make sure his wife can be since in pictures and for it not to look creepy, unlike what this movie did for the raining gazebo scene.
Not about this video but I would really like to put out there that The Croods would be an exceptional movie to react to. It's a great lesson in how family dynamics can change as a family grows, both as a group and individually.
The movies "7 Brides for 7 Brothers" 1954 and "McClintock!" 1963 are major classics I would love to see you guys review, especially the relationship/family dynamics in those videos, especially McClintock since it has a movie starring John Wayne and its always shown around major Holidays with 7 Brides for 7 Brothers.
@The Boginoid I don't care if it is offensive for you or not. I'm not going to rephrase same reasons I've already given, this is pointless and make me feel even worse. but you can't tell me how I should feel about it. I'm hurt by the channel I was feeling about as a safe space and you can do nothing about it, so don't try to convince me into something *you* think is true. this is how I feel and see it and I've expressed it. and you don't have to comment it
@Chirduck He is not making fun of it, I don't take it lightheartedly either. Yes, they had a laugh but if he truly was so concerned about couple's heights diffenrences he wouldn't marry someone that much shorter. Also, there's a difference between artistic aesthetics and lookism. A huge one too. Subtext is important in all forms of art, he is a filmmmaker, he knows his subtexts, he doesn't want to appear looming over his wife, nothing wrong with that. Also, the reason he pointed out the height difference in the movie is a) it simply looks bad in some shots b) there's already an unhealthy powerdynamic going on between the characters and she appearing that much shorter emphasises that to a disturbing degree. Noone shaming short people for being short. I'm not exactly tall either and couldn't care less.
@The Boginoid no it doesn't make sense. making fun of something person can't change about themself is not cool. and let's divide their height difference and they way they treat each other. there is nothing wrong with representation of different kinds of couples, even if you're lookist, who thinks its not aesthetic. choosing couples based on innate features makes you sound like a nazi (in a different way, but you get it)
@Chirduck How is it an offense? It makes sense on a purely aesthetic level (more balanced pictures), and a psychological level (he's not looming over her) and it shows that he cares she looks her best. This isn't a dig against short people being short.
Hi guys, I know you'll probably never see this, but to carry on with the trend of breaking down romantic relationships in movies, I'd love to see you guys react to Alice, Darling. It's supposed to be a really great movie about the depths of emotional abuse, and would probably be important to talk about and dissect (if not here than maybe on the Mended Light channel). Also, a breakdown of Evelyn and Waymond's relationship would also be top notch.
The contrast more realistic version of all this movies is The Invisible Man, and is fantastic how they tell the abuse and the consequences of an abusive relationship.
I’ve honestly learned that when we don’t grow up in an environment that teaches us what healthy love and boundaries look like, we emulate and seek out that toxic behavior. We’re also surrounded by it because of movies. We are seeing what someone else’s pov or idea of love is. We fall in love with the characters or stories and think “this is what love is” because it’s different or better than what we grew up with, or we think it is, not realizing how troubling it really is. Not until we put in the work to heal or go through therapy and find out that love isn’t what we thought it was and even though boundaries are hard they’re necessary.
I'm not sure if it was mentioned, but the fact that Noah was kissing another girl but completely prevents and controls Shelly's opportunities of being in a relationship is maddening. Especially since it is being shoved under the rug as him being "Omg he's so protective of her but he's a baaaddd boy."
I know, right? And then the narrative goes out of its way to villainise the 'other girl' who, while a bit snotty, was not the one trying to get into Elle's pants for the majority of the movie. Plus one could see her rude behaviour as her being understandably upset and insecure over the hot guy she was with just blatantly ditching her for another girl. Noah, however, just gets a free pass, and is even seen as the hero for 'rescuing' the heroine from the girl he chose to snog. Argh!
Ooooh great one here. Don’t know if you guys have already done the After series because those movies are full of toxicity in young relationships that I think would be beneficial to young people/teenagers to understand that that kind of relationship is not okay. Love your content as always.
I'm an aspiring director/film writer and seeing both the technical side as well as being the audience, these movies HURT. Growing up, my friends loved to talk about boys, loved when they teased them, pull their hair when the boy had a crush-- absolute bullshit. My Asian mom used to tell me "If a boy likes you, he will come here (our house) to see you." Especially the first few times to hang out and being a teenage girl, that was weird. Now I know what she meant and I'm thankful that she taught me that I had to be respected. Now I'm in my early twenties and the bar for men is so damn low, my bisexuality is turning lesbianism. I would love to create a movie that reboots this idea into the vibe they go for but with a similar idea. Love u dads
Okay, I feel like we should say this was originally written on Wattpad which was basically a free forum for bad books written by young writers figuring out their craft. Bless them I'm sure the author was like 16 when they wrote it and this was the drama that was played during that time. The understanding of healthy relationships is kind of acquired because these tropes are the ones that were popular.
I personally, as an adult, adore fictional toxicity. The drama and stupidity feeds my soul. But I am well aware it's fiction and nothing I want in real life because I have that hindsight from being a teen. The worst part is I remember doing dumb things like this and feeling like it was that dramatic or healthy as a teen. I think the problem with this media, and a lot of media in general is that all media influences real life to a degree, and that can be a good or bad thing. I love that you guys did this movie though because as both a drama book and a film it was boring XD
When i first watched kissing booth i had just gotten out of a really bad relationship and i fell in love with the concept of noah flynn. The idea of a guy who would 'protect me' and obsess over me just left me gushing and giddy. Rewatching this after being in a normal healthy relationship as well as years of therapy i just got the ICK
And that mentality is exactly why you don't get into another relationship after a break-up. You overcompensate in the worst possible way to the opposite extreme. Get yourself some rebound booty, but don't try to make it work with someone after you've had your heart broken.
possessiveness from a partner and feeling wanted and important is for sure an attractive idea for many people. but it’s the fact that his possessiveness over elle is controlling, nonconsensual, and forceful.. that’s whats dangerous. It’s horrible behavior that will make it much harder for someone to confront it in their own lives down the line because they’ve seen it in movies like these that frame it as something romantic and desirable.
The part about the apple boxes reminded me of the anime Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun/Monthly Girl's Nozaki-kun. There is one really funny scene where someone is trying to draw the backgrounds for a manga they are working on, but messes up and makes it look like one character is floating, so they drew a box under him. Then they drew a few more backgrounds and kept on needing to add boxes to the scene to the point that they came up with a lore reason for all the boxes.
Thank you! I thought about red flags and weird actions in the movie but thought if that’s popular then might be fine. I’m glad to listened to your opinions which resonated with mine. I was not the only one who saw subtle creepy vibes.
I completely agree with you and agree with what y’all are saying. BUT this movie literally made me realize I was not happy in a relationship, especially that kissing scene. It made me realize I wasn’t in love with the person I was with and I wanted to see stars when I kissed the person I was in love with.
I really appreciate everything you guys do, like for real, and I would love to see a psychology of a hero based Rick Grimes from The Walking Dead. Seeing as the series just ended.
I am thankful to the Kissing Booth movies because it made Netflix want to work more with Joey King. They asked her if she had anything she wanted to make, and the very book series she'd been sitting on since age 11 was the same I've been sitting on since 11. When Uglies comes out, that might be a good movie to react to. It's about a futuristic world where you are forced into plastic surgery at 16 to make you "pretty". These kids have been so shame their whole lives for being "ugly" (aka normal) that full body modification is the only thing they look forward to in life and to not get it done makes you basically inhuman and you're shipped off where no one has to look at you. Bullying and body shaming is encouraged by parents, teachers, doctors, police, etc.
The female gaze is not just the male gaze but focused on hot men. The male vs female gaze is the difference between Suicide Squad and Birds of Prey. They're both focused on the attractiveness of the same character, but they come from entirely different angles.
this movie looks like it's full of the MALE gaze. and once again, men are confused by what that means lol the female gaze can apply to male characters as well, but they're not just half naked muscled guys they're men real women would actually find attractive. some say Thor vs Loki (MCU) is a good example of male/female gaze.
Jacob Elordi legitimately is a fantastic actor, who plays these douchebags really well, and he's also followed in Robert Pattinsons footsteps of subtly hating his own movie(s). I'd love to see him in other roles some day
I have enjoyed hearing your insights on different movie couples, and I am curious to know what the two of you would think of the couple from “The Proposal.” Thank you both for all of your advice and humor.
Thanks for making such amazing videos, I always learned a lot from them. Please react to the film flipped 2010!!! The story and the characters relationship are so lovely.
Y'all are doing the Lord's work. I think it is crucially important to call out the toxic and abusive things in these movies, which are more insidious than a lot folks realize. Movies like this not only romanticize abuse, they normalize it. Then many of the young people who watch these kinds of movies, idealize them instead of critique them. It is so important to have a space like this, where everything that is not okay gets called out. Also, even before you said a man wrote and directed it, I knew.
Made worse by being based off a story a 15 y/o wrote, so a man saw a showing that the "bullying is love" narrative was took to heart by someone and thought "I'll use it but with as many semi nude shots as I can get away with"
Love what you say about wanting to see a film where the relationship is built on friendship. Would love to see you do friends with benefits. It's got enough USE YOUR WORDS moments to yell at, but some good friendship and family stuff I think you'll like
i must have left that comment already when i was watching your twilight stuff. As a recovering falling for the pretty bad boy girl, this is hitting so close to home, and having the two of you reflect it so perfectly is healing!! I have left these relationships behind long time ago and had therapy and so on. but dear god.. i wish youtube and your channel would have existed 15 years ago!
You guys are such a brilliant comic duo :) And I love your Lord of the Rings place name posters in the background. They're all film locations in New Zealand 😃
I’m having a flashback to high school where I (5’2” as an adult) had a crush on a guy who was 6’5”. One of my friends drew a picture of us dancing at homecoming, where I was smaller than his feet and his body disappeared into the clouds.
Man this is surreal. Seeing The Kissing Booth advertised to me heavily on Wattpad years ago. Then the movie coming out so quickly after it shot up to a high rank on Wattpad. Now seeing the movie reviewed here, on another social media site that I frequent. This story has really come full circle in my life. And makes me depressed that I started writing a book that long ago and have failed to finish it still.
I'm three minutes in and already convinced that the pair of you going, "Yeah, but that's not love." while you can faintly hear Foreigner in the background is iconic.
I was 16 when this came out and really liked it but I did see the problems with Noah and the bully. But by the end I was swayed because it was fun to watch, I’m glad I can see it again with a better perspective now thanks cinema therapy :D
I just feel the need to add that characters of opposite sex being friends and staying friends is a positive and necessary message. It is much bigger than the character just being a "nice guy". She should definetly end up with somebody else other than Noah but not with him
True that's why the "Friendzone" is such a misogynistic toxic concept. It basically says as a man having a platonic friendship with a women which is not sexual at all, is an absolutely worthless waist of time, so better manipulative her/just pretend to be a friend/make her feel guilty, to get what you actually want, which is s*x. That's why it's good when friendships in Movies/Shows between women and men get portrayed as worthy, okay and normal. Elle shouldn't end up Noah since he's a toxic controlling jerk, and not with her male best friend either.
Yeah! Particularly straight characters of the opposite sex. There is the "gay guy friend" trope but that still sends the message that you can't be real loving platonic friends with someone with a sexual orientation toward your gender.
I think it's a bit short-sighted to say teenage life is so much about looks. As a teenager I was just as able to fall in love with guys who don't conform to traditional beauty standards (my first boyfriend was one) as I am now, as a grown woman.
the fact that later in the movie when lee sees that elle has hurt her head his first thought is asking his brother what he did HIS OWN BROTHER THINKS THAT WAY OF HIM
Are you guys going to do falcon and the winter soldier? I would love to hear not only if the therapy is good or believable and also just about the relationships and Bucky and Sam as individual characters and John Walker. I feel like three are loads of things to react to and the filmmaking has plenty of things to talk about in my opinion because it feels different from other Marcel movies. Like when they just stay in a dripping water when Lemar is tied up I think that is really interesting
I first watched this before I fully understood myself and had the words but thank you Alan and Johnathan for putting into words.... everything I hated about this movie. There were some good moments but they did Not outweigh the rest of the movie
My theory is that on top of guys conditioning women to bend to their will and think it's cute is that it plays into women's insecurities. When you feel really unattractive, a hot guy obsessing over you to the point of toxicity is actually a nice feeling. It's an overcorrection. I'd have fantasies like that myself when I was younger and when I inevitably got assaulted and raped (date style) I ended up feeling like I was "asking for it" even when I wasn't. Just another complicated layer of rape culture.
i remember watching this movie and HATING it while my mom actually enjoyed? not only that but other girls my age were going crazy over it and i felt like “am i the only one seeing all this shit?” i was so mad and still am because so many girls end up in abuse relationships because movies like this romanticize and normalize his behavior like is something great and that we should be thankful for when is actually so problematic and toxic it’s frustrating to see people falling for it!!!!
OH MY GOD I just now realized why so many of these "romantic movies" are so toxic, they equate lust with romance! U guys really opened my eyes, it makes so much more sense now 😭 kissing booth, after, 365 days (in every extreme way possible), 50 shades, etc. All os those man are 'attractive' and one night stand material, but definitely not significant other material. But that wouldnt make for an interesting story
"That's not cute. That's not cute, Elle!!" That should be the movie title I love this the reactions are funnier than the movie "I'm in love with a man in the sky.... Here's an armpit" 😂
I can't have been the only person who gasped out loud when Noah suddenly slammed his hand on the car door, screaming at Elle to get in. And even worse, he doesn't take her home, but to a secluded place. He's not suave or charming, he's an emotional abuser whose behaviour is disturbingly romanticised.
@Caro Jean Great minds certainly think alike, right? 😉 Also, many thanks, we performed that musical for my local community theatre, and it's my favourite one to date!
I know you probably don’t know me, but I feel like I see you on every single movie react I watch and I love that 😂 (also love the Addams Family - The Musical profile picture!!)
Not a fan of this movie, but wasn't it clear from the beginning that he had anger issues? I think he was terribly misunderstood.
Moreso, in part 3, he broke up with her because he cared about her. He was learning to be a better person...
I think
This sort of scene is exactly why it ranked so high on Wattpad.
I mean this is the guy who would portray Nate in 'Euphoria'. He's too good at being the worst.
I'll never forget how Lee saw Elle hurt and assumed that Noah was abusing her. It takes a lot for someone to think that way of their own sibling
When Noah gave Lee a wedgie for touching his motorcycle or perhaps hitting him for a small stupid reason as preteens.
likeee
Or experience 😬
I had a childhood 'friend' that did something like Noah. He was my only friend and I found out senior year that he'd told every person in my class that we were dating and that they better not talk to me. It wasn't even just boys. It was everyone. I went to a tiny highschool and by sophomore year everyone ignored me. I was so depressed, wondering why no one liked me, and b/c he was my only friend, I talked to him about it. It's insane, and I'm still dealing with the after effects. He's part of the reason that I left my home town. It irritates me so much that this behavior is so frequently portrayed as romantic. Living it, is horrifying.
the fact that you had to wonder if it's your fault that nobody liked you makes it truly horrible. i am so sorry and i hope you're better now.
@Recovering Soul Yeah, definitely not doing that.
@Kade Fletcher yeah, you probably don't want to attend your 10 years highschool reunion. Some of my friends called ahead to ask if their friends would be there, otherwise they weren't going to go. If I ran into friends I had from 2nd grade on, we'd be able to chat and catch up on old times. Was able to locate one, sad to hear her brother had passed. I'M not too good at staying in touch though, ashamed of that. Left for college and lost track. Did visit one while I was in college though.
@Recovering Soul You know, I hadn't thought of that way, but you're right.
He robbed you of having childhood friends, omg
I want to make a movie exactly like this. A romance full of red flags, but played as cute and fun for the first 3/4 of the film. Then the guy turns from cute to violently abusive. The climax of the movie is her finally deciding to leave and figuring out how to excape. The trailers will only play up the fun romance, so maybe the people who need that dose of reality the most will go see it.
let us know where the crowdfunding happens so i can chip in
I love that
There are quite a few books like that out there already! Some of my friends have been reading the "It Ends With Us" series
Like heather’s?
Yes.
You cannot believe how long I’ve wanted you guys to react to Kissing Booth. I was literally like “If they think Twilight is bad (which it is), they’re gonna have an absolute field day with Kissing Booth”
Now they need to do The Duff.
twilight is so bad it’s good. can’t say the same for all the wattpad movies that tried to recreate what twilight did
@Netanel Linzer Better or worse than After.
Better or worse then 50 shades of grey
As an asexual teenager, my teenage experience was wild with how un-wild it was
SAME
Same. But lack of sexual attraction actually landed me in a wonderfully pure and love based relationship
As an allosexual with a gratefully slow social life, you didn’t miss much.
Samesie 💞
Same!
“The days of you controlling my life are over.”
“We’ll see about that.”
Behold my earth-sized red flag 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩
You wave that flag. Wave it high and long. Spell out RUN in semaphore, because that's the message everyone should be getting from that scene.
10:29 Regarding Jacob Elordi, he genuinely seems like a good guy overall. I've seen interviews with him and he seems a pretty soft spoken, down-to-earth kind of guy. He really likes film, historical and otherwise, and he's a pretty good actor imo. I often think about why he gets these kinds of parts and honestly it's probably just his physicality -- he's a big guy 6'5" and he looks imposing on screen. I would also like to note that the casting for his romantic counterparts in both The Kissing Booth and in Euphoria are 15 inches and 11 inches shorter than him, respectively. It creates a certain optic. He talked about the focus on his physical presence being somewhat frustrating, actually, since it ends up taking up a lot of time that he would prefer to recenter around his performances.
I agreed with pretty much everything except the height thing. My partner is 6’3” and I’m 5’. If anything upsets me more than people infantilizing me because of my height, which has happened my whole life, it’s when they do so in comparison to my partner. I’m 26 and they’re 25. Constantly being referred to as a child is degrading and disrespectful to both my partner and I. People come in all shapes and sizes. I hate hearing people talk like my existence gives them the “ick” merely because I’m short and that somehow makes my relationship problematic in some way. We are both adults who are in a healthy consensual relationship and just happen to be on either end of the height spectrum. Other people make the size difference an issue by infantilizing the shorter person. I personally find it incredibly demeaning.
Edit:
For context: I completely understand that for shooting and framing reasons it would look better and more balanced. I have no issue with that. And I do agree with this particular movie, since its focus is on a toxic relationship that also has the added towering height difference, it plays into the power imbalance of the couple. My issue was with the notion that just being short and being with someone taller implies the shorter person is then seen as a child or childlike in comparison. He said that exact thing about his wife. If you want a better photo with your wife that's framed well, then fine use an apple box so you can get an even and balanced photo. But don't imply you need the apple box because having a short wife means she looks like a child in comparison and makes you look creepy. That's weird. It implies that even in public, when you cannot use an apple box, that you think she looks like a child when next to you. She is a grown ass adult. Again, it is insulting towards the shorter person and their partner. It implies being with someone short is icky or creepy since they are "childlike". Which again is untrue. People come in all sizes. The short partner is still a grown ass adult and should be treated and respected like one.
@Mr. Stuff Doer This is what I meant by my comment. I completely understand that for framing reasons in photos and movies it might look better. I have no issue with that. And I do also agree that with this particular movie that focuses on a toxic relationship and then also has the added towering height difference, it plays into the power imbalance. My issue was with the notion that just being short and being with someone taller implies the shorter person is then seen as a child or childlike in comparison. He said that exact thing about his wife. If you want a better photo with your wife that's framed well, then fine use an apple box. But don't imply you need the apple box simply because having a short wife somehow makes you look like a creep and are worried your wife looks like a child in comparison. That's weird. She is a grown ass adult.
YES YES YES SAY IT LOUDER
They mentioned that it is not the issue, it's how the framing looks. It makes her appear even smaller and that for the filming sake, they should have done the apple box.
I agree as well. Im 5’ and typically have dated men a lot taller than me. However, I don’t think they were intentionally trying to infantilize the height difference between them. I interpreted it as them saying she should have worn heels in certain shots or stand on a box, so you can see both of their faces in scenes like that or even film from an upwards angle. Again, I agree it’s frustrating being infantilized for my height, but i don’t think it was intentional on their part, I think they were trying to imply that certain scenes should’ve been shot differently, given the height difference between the actors
@Mr. Stuff Doer Also now chewing over the thought that the height difference thing coding as "ideal romantic match" also plays a bit into the infantalizing of the shorter female partner; the power dynamic of big strong worldly manly (protector) and their naive sweet innocent (protectee) is like 500 romance tropes distilled but I hadn't really made the connection between hmm, that _sounds_ a whole lotta like an adult (caregiver) and their child (ward), and the large height disparity on the romance novel cover _looking_ a whole lot like...that...too...eugh...
Of course as you point out romance is wish-fulfillment fantasizing, so a) what part of this is just an oroboros of "well this is what I think is romantic/hot/ideal so I'll write that" and "I think this is romantic/hot/ideal because that's what I've seen presented as such" and b) how will that change over time as societal norms and preferences and exposure evolves... my kids are too young for TikTok so I'm not up with the trends of what the youths think is "peak hotness" these days but I hope whatever it ends up heading toward, it's got a little more variety and lot less stereotyping...
When I first watched this movie all I could think was “this is every single trope from typical Wattpad books”. When I found out it WAS a wattpad book I was shocked.
The classic wants of every teen girl; Boy best friend, to clumsily stumble into becoming hot/popular, to have a dead parent I guess, and a crazy controlling boy you’re having a forbidden romance with.
lmfao the dead parent 💀 thats so true though
I wasn't surprised at all when I found out lmao. I was never interested in wattpad original stories, but I *was* into fanfictions, so I knew the formula even if it wasn't the exact same. I'll never understand why *that* story was the one they decided to make into a movie. I've been there for years, there are tons of good writers on there, but for some reason they picked the worst ones 💀
@Karina Gedling it’s not from a fanfic, the kissing booth is an original story on wattpad! I believe you have to pay money to read the story now lmao
Do you happen to know what fanfic its based off of? Or are they original characters? This is so funny to me lol.. After is harry styles, 50 shades was twilight and Twilight was MCR fanfic.. i need to know and google aint giving me answers 😂 AND THEY’RE ALL THE SAME DUDE LIKE 😂🚩🚩
This is helping me calm down right now, I just went through something incredibly traumatic and am shaking. I prayed as well and that helped, now I’m watching this and it’s regaining my mood because it’s distracting me. Thanks for making my day a little better. I hope others who are going through something right now can feel the warm hug I’m sending. I’m scared, but I’m gonna try to get through this.
You will survive this. We all believe you.
hope you are in a physical and emotinal safe place, and that you are feeling a little better. You are going to get thru this and get stronger, and also heal. Best of luck to you on your journey. Sending a hug right back 💗💗💗💗
I hope you’re feeling more safe, I always feel better after praying too, and I also hope you are able to rest and eat a good meal. I truly hope you’re safe and that there’s more things that can make you laugh and smile. Sending warm hugs and good thoughts out to you love, you absolutely deserve them~
I’m so sorry to hear about that. I hope you’re doing better and that you’re safe now. Sending lots of love your way ❤️
Are you safe right now?
I made a rule for myself when I was 14 that I wouldn't build my happiness on someone else's grief by cheating with their significant other. Decades later, that has kept me out of more trouble and grief of my own.
"He's been Edwarding all over the place" Alan just created a new slang and I'm here for it.
he wishes he could be edward.
Just came to the comment section to watch out for this ^^
@Sofia Cummings Oh no here we go again 🤣🤣
Amen.
my favorite part was when he went it's edwarding time and then he edwarded all over the place
The part at 7:48 when Allan is mimicking the shy girl, reminds me of Merida's father pretending to be merida in brave, when he is encouraging his wife the queen to talk to Merida
Ugh, the whole telling other boys not to ask her out... that was a major factor in me not being able to get a date all through high school. The guy told all our mutual friends (and anyone else who would listen) that we were a couple, and we never were. I tried asking guys out a few times, in a very "it's just hanging out" kind of way, and got all sorts of "but what about P----?" responses that took a long time to figure out.
(this is a joke) should have just taken a megaphone and yelled out in the halls "Me and P aren't dating, never have, never will!"
i read this in the 6th grade on wattpad and thought it was the best thing, and ended up trying to find someone like these abusive "bad boys" for ages. we need to stop telling kids this is what they want
Would highly suggest Easy A if you want a teen drama that'll help you heal from this mess! Similar potential topic but actually on purpose with good intentions :)
Third! Plus it's also a book adaptation, and imho is a really great example of when it's better to make major adaptational changes (in this case, genre and time period) to keep the themes of the book clear and relevant.
Seconding this!!!
10000000% AGREE. Absolute gem of a film
I was recommended a book by my teenager and to my horror I read it. (If she wants to read a book she gets me to read it first so she knows if it’s any good). It was “It ends with us.” It was a tough read but the “twist” wasn’t a shock to me because there were soooo many red flags. (I told her she shouldn’t read it and gave her a quick brief what it was about). She’s 15 and had some questions and we had a chat about it. She had a lot of questions about abu5ive relationships. It was nice she felt comfortable in asking me these things. Her Auntie Jess was raised in an abu5ive household and had an abu5ive partner at one point as well so she is aware of this stuff personally. (She’s not actually related, just my best friend since we were 5 and stayed with us when things got bad).
@Adrian Rodriguez honestly that sounds really rough, to be isolated from friends and family is awful. I hope she gets some support.
@Laurajayne Nolan one of the things she said is she has no friends. Just get husband, and that's not going well. That's why she reached out to me
@Adrian Rodriguez that is concerning then, tbh I’d try to reach out to a friend of hers and let them know she may need help.
@Laurajayne Nolan it was the first time we had contact in many years. She was saying how she was trying to leave her husband. And i just told her that she needed to figure out her issues with her husband and not come to me. So idk haven't talked since. But every time I hear or see this book it reminds me. Makes me very curious about the book. Idk what it's actually about
@Adrian Rodriguez maybe she just liked the book. You can always ask her but if you feel it might be something more, ask yourself is there a reason you think it might be something more and if the answer is yes then you have your answer as to why they recommended it.
As someone with a cinema degree, I absolutely LOVE Alan's audiovisual rage at the lack of an apple box 😂😂😂 "WHO *SHOT* THIS?" I felt that in my bones 😂
The second he said apple box, I thought of Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford in Star Wars The Empire Strikes Back, that famous first kiss between Han and Leia. Carrie was a good foot shorter than Harrison so they put her on an apple box to keep him in the frame with him for that scene.
As soon as he said “apple box”, all I could think about was the movie Tall Girl.
"Oh, look! There's an armpit!"
As someone with no cinema degree, what were they thinking?? They could’ve had him squat or spread his feet apart to appear shorter, or do other forces perspective angles. Adult relationships with height differences are fine, but when it’s being shown like this in regards to high school kids it’s weird.
As soon as Alan described the apple box I immediately thought of the one used in X Files that was used for Gillian Anderson or for Natalie Portman in the Thor movies
on halloween last year, my friends and i were looking for a horror movie to watch, and we ended up hatewatching this instead. it was absolutely terrifying
This movie made me furious! I was revolted, the only reason I even finished it is because I was waiting for her to come to her senses.
Please do tall girl next because the absolute entitlement of the childhood friend being in love with you so you have to love them back drives me up the wall.
Both parts of the "pair" should get checked, if for diferente reasons. I mean, the protagonist having trouble finding shoes and clothes is literally the only real problem she has ("How's the weather up there?" every 5 seconds isn't even bullying, ffs, and the sequel showed she never even felt antsy before) but she acts like that and some weird sense of unfemininity are the end of the world and gets shocked when it turns out that height isn't a personality trait. So, maybe oversheltering?
A show not a movie but something I think you would really like is Assassination Classroom. It's definitely a don't judge a book by its cover type of show. It seems like a typical Jump Shonen for teen boys but then you realize it's so much more. The show has so much depth and wisdom to give regarding life. Each and every single student come out of that classroom changed for the better as they each undergo development and learn major life lessons. It's truly incredible. I am a social worker and this show really is spectacular in helping teens (and many adults) cope with various challenges in life.
I've never seen it and judging it by cover i didn't plan to, but the way you described it made me want to watch it now :) So thanks, i'm putting it on my "to watch" list.
Oh my god! I love that anime, it's one of my favorites!
During their kissing scene in the rain when one of you said that even thought they are only 2 years apart it's like watching a 14 yr old and a 30 yr old kiss, experience wise, this is exactly what it is. She's never even been in a relationship & he's been tom-catting all over the place. Which, no shame to either of these scenarios but I don't think it can make for a healthy relationship because the unexperienced one is likely to feel insecure & want to prove themselves to the point of ignoring their own boundaries & going at a pace that is too fast for them and to the experienced one they aren't going to be aware that their partner needs it to be slower because the significance of the first times are lost on them. To them it's "just kissing" "just making out" "just touching you in x, y, z." It's another form of a power imbalance.
‘A man looming over a child’, made me think of one of my favourite movies where there was a big height difference and I just didn’t remember it making me feel icky. Went back to watch and turns out camera angle alone can really make a big difference. I don’t think there was an apple box, but they always had her on a stair etc, or when they were standing side by side the camera was directly in front so you didn’t get a dominant effect, and it probably helped that the actors were likely in their late twenties or early thirties. Thank you Alan for helping me appreciate my favourite movie even more
@Sam Ah, not to worry. Most passions of mine revolve around the past anyways (history, classic lit, etc.), so bearing historical context in mind is natural and not a bother!
@nora, Just a quick note, the film takes place in 1850, and it was filmed 1954. I hate when people don’t watch it with those contexts in their brain, yes there are some moments that would not fly today, but please enjoy it for what it is and don’t shred it apart over modern standards
@Sam thank you!! I’ve added it onto my list of movies I’ve gotta watch!
@nora my guilty pleasure, seven brides for seven brothers.
Please, what is the movie?
And the worst part is this is based from a story from wattpad.
So the part where they said an 11 year old wrote this is probably true
@刺音JUNKIE somehow 50 shades feels less worse, because both are adults (even tho that is stilll horrible). but both romantize toxic relationships with a girl that is naive + unexperienced and a dude that is extremely controling
Well that explains a lot.
@Jasmine Spencer I'm 17 and from the ages of 13 to about 16 I read A LOT of wattpad and I don't have the best home life. Paired with wattpad it was really damaging
A lot of the popular wattpad books are unhealthy abusive relationships written as a romance
And it is extremely sad when you think about the demographic
I suggest any pre/teen or person who has a history of abuse to step away from wattpad
Delete it for a year
Not only is it a Wattpad story, it's produced by Wattpad Studios. Which are a thing. Which is terrifying.
honestly even though they would've made a much healthier romance in the end, I'm glad that for once it was a really loving friendship that never turned to " I've loved you all along! Why can't you see it's always been me!"
Love the recognising of Joey's acting skills! I personally find it hard to tell when it's the script/editing/etc and not the acting skills but for Joey I always recognised that she had genuine talent that just wasn't being used for this movie.
About the height difference between the two main actors, I actually liked it because it feels real. Like in reality we can see big height differences between couples. But yeah, agree in that then they should frame the scenes together without having to cut one of them.
Honestly would love to see your take on Dr. Doofenshmirtz and fatherhood in Phineas and Ferb. Maybe through a compilation of his backstories with his parents and then the way he treats Vanessa
This movie has no female gaze.
It is filled with the male gaze and with (what I assume) is what the director THINK is a female gaze, but really is just a male gaze directed towards the different male characters instead of the women.
Maby a video about the different gazes is needed?
🎉But I got to say Alan and Jonathan:
Thank you for this amazing video! Your reactions always makes my day 😄👍
The trend of abusive/controlling men becoming obsessed with one girl and trying to “own” her has been a big theme in pop culture for the last I’d say decade, and I wonder if the reason is because in a society that goes out of their way to make women feel insecure, the idea that an unassuming woman could drive a man to show such intense emotion is “empowering.” In reality its really disturbing, bc if you’ve never been targeted by an abusive predator, it’s one of the worst things a person can go through. It happened to me, and sure the love-bombing stage felt amazing, but over time, I was pulled apart and rendered a broken mess that took YEARS to put myself back together, and in some ways, I will always be marked by that experience. Hollywood needs to stop selling the idea that possessive/abusive behavior is romantic. Its dangerous and cruel.
The last decade? More like the last century.
PREACH!!!! I love this. Living with a domestic, narcissistic, physically and emotionally abusive father in my early life, I know what it is to live this. As a young woman, I'm still untangling emotional trauma from my early years. Please refrain from romanticizing these sorts of situations; it is not true. Too many people-especially women, which is genuinely tragic-have no idea what it is to live with these kinds of men. It is NOT ROMANTIC BY ANY MEANS.
I think the main reason it's romanticized is to excuse toxic/sexist behavior because then toxic and sexist men don't have to change their awful behavior and how they interact with/view women as objects for their own desires. In fact, it's portrayed as charming so why would they change? I think the spin on it that women are "empowered" by it is to make it easier to excuse the behavior while also making women easier to manipulate if they find themselves in these situations and relationships because they're gonna think this trash is normal and even desirable so why would they leave a guy who is treating them this way since it's framed as "romantic" rather than abusive. It also makes it more difficult for others to call out this behavior now that it's been supplanted with a 'positive' spin since most people will say that the woman likes this toxic behavior so what's the issue if she is 'willingly' staying because she can 'obviously see' what's going on. Unfortunately people don't know enough about trauma bonding and how that warps your ability to see that you're being manipulated and made codependent by this behavior in the first place. Plus if this romantic portrayal is what you're constantly exposed to, you're not going to see the behaviors as the huge red flags that they are because they've been so normalized.
TDLR: Having this kind of portrayal of toxic behavior as romantic lets terrible men continue to be terrible while also allowing them to also get the girl because she won't realize that he's abusive and will think it's normal and even romantic that he's like that. It also prevents others from calling out these behaviors because of its normalization which lets the abuse get brushed aside fairly easily by bystanders and/or the woman in the relationship.
@A D A 15 years old who grew up consuming this type of message and thought it was completely normal. It keeps happenning only because older people who should be correcting those beliefs and behaves are encouraging it to keep going. This sh* needs to stop and it will only be able to if the adults in charge stop spreading the misinformation
@Cheri Remily this movie may have been directed by a man, but it was originally written by a 15/yo on wattpad. So... make of that what you will.
17:33 Absolutely cracking up at the fact that Jono has like two separate reactions to that, one of immediate disgust and then another after he really registered what Alan just said. I had to watch it like five times
Now I just imagine Alan carrying an apple box everywhere he goes for his wife.
Man I remember watching this with my ex who was pretty manipulative and he was talking about how romantic this movie was and while watching it I just had a bad feeling in my gut unsure of why, I mean I liked the movie mostly but you have no idea how carthic it was to watch this and finally understand why my gut didn't trust the movie, thank you so much 😊
As I am 5'2", I can say that seeing a movie not using an apple box was great! A couples' height difference should not be something people feel uncomfortable about, being short doesn't mean being a child.
I was 23 when I was told that I would need to show my id to watch a movie... a PG-13 movie!
But that's not what they said concerning real life. They said the shot looks horrible because of the height difference. Also because of the toxic dynamic between the two characters, having the abusive man look SO MUCH TALLER than the victim is pretty weird and shows the power he has over her.
Please review Strange World! I love the part where the grandfather gives advice about how to impress a crush (put them in danger then save them) and his grandson calls it out as a super toxic way to start a relationship. It's really cute and healthy in ways that I know you'll enjoy.
I watched this movie with my grandma because she was sick of watching animated movies with me and wanted a "romantic" one.
Through the entire movie I kept feeling red flag alarms setting off in my head, while she was watching it passionately as if it was Romeo and Juliet. I still don't understand how she didn't feel creeped out
Edit: Guys, enough with the Romeo and Juliet rants please😭😭😭 I know its a tragedy story, I only meant it as a joke.
@Ariane Winter
attraction IS ABSOLUTELY DEFINITELY Love INFATUATION IS basically pretty much another way of saying LOVE
@Katherine P yup and I was so glad when they said that because I loved that movie. Growing up it was Titanic (not Twilight) that I was crazy about.😊
@Mad Max Thats the joke- I meant it as a joke 😭
I watched this movie with my aunt (both of us are adults) and she thought this was soooo cute. That was completely lost on me too😂
@NeHa NagpaL and they said Jack was a good man!
I'd love to see you do "To All the Boys I've Loved Before." I saw it soon after I watched The Kissing Booth, and I compare/contrast these two movies in my head all the time.
I needed this in my life!! One of the major ick moments for me is that kiss in the rotunda in the garden. It’s like they were trying to parallel The Sound of Music’s “16 Going on 17”, which is when played today is a pretty ick song!! Can’t wait for part two!!
I love how they're still traumatized by twilight 🤣🤣🤣
Omg I'm so happy that someone finally brought up how ENORMOUS he looks in comparison to her. When I saw that scene the first time, all I could think was how BIG his hands were in comparison to her face 😬 like he could crush her. I was TERRIFIED for her for the rest of the movie. Honestly thought it would take a turn.
When I watched this movie...pretty much all the red flags that you two are mentioning continued to stick out to me throughout the whole movie...so yes...I will be showing my daughter THIS video if she ever comes to me wanting to watch this movie so she can be warned of the tool-ish behavior and hopefully not fall for it. 🤞🤞🤞
I think from my experience with female friends from abusive relationships, whenever they try to date again they almost have these notions that men being mean and being treated badly is something that is attractive because of their experienced trauma. The thing is the abuse starts like this with flirty jabs at them that turn into far more serious and heavy stuff later on.
As someone who went through a "relationship" that lasted 2 1/2 years, to which I broke up with him within the first month.
Getting with a good man. Who treats you very well. It far better than being abused. I don't fond over abusiveness, I feel disgusted, and I imagine men and woman who went through that, would probably feel the same if they find a good partner.
As my two of my favorite KZclip father's say. Consent is sexy.
starts from kindy, "he hit you cause he likes you" not confusing all for a little girl
I think that's also why a lot of people eat up these kinds of romance stories, because it's normal and romantic to them. Everyone I know who is really obsessed with Twilight and 50 Shades of Grey has a terrible relationship history.
@crab21 As someone who has been in an abusive relationship with the opposite sex, yes its a build up and it progresses over time with subtle boundary crossings laced with "loving intent." I know everytime I seemed to threaten to leave suddenly they were sorry or "having an off day" or another excuse to rope me back. They may have multiple sides but its hard to see when its main conduit is via manipulation.
I love that Lee is NEVER a romantic option. He’s just her best friend no ulterior motive.
When Noah says, "The independent Elle Evans, who *doesn't want to be told what to do by anybody,* is coming to me for help." I always think, "But, she didn't ask to be told what to do. She asked for help. Those can be mutually exclusive."
Yes! Asking for help is not becoming dependent.
When I learned this was based on a book written by a teen, everything made so much sense. It's the sort of thing I read back in FictionPress day; I understand the author's (twisted) logic that makes Noah the" good bad boy" and, idk, maybe partaking in this kind of story is part of growing up. But I really think we adult writers have to offer better male lead models, so teenagers don't think guys like Noah are desirable partners.
This movie is based on a book written by a 15 year old girl. When I found that out, it explained so much to me. I remember when I was a young teen, I thought that men being overprotective seemed like an attractive trait--the dark brooding male has always been romanticized. Once you actually date someone like that though, you find out that it's not sexy, it's just stressful. I loved watching your take on it all! This movie was uncomfortable to watch; I kept wanting it to redeem itself. I can't believe how many people love it--but I guess the hot, aggressive male trope hasn't been outgrown by everyone just yet.
"She thinks no one has been interested in her, its been heartbreaking for her."
Dude, you just described my entire life. The only times I get any attention from the male race at all is when I'm wearing a v neck and you can see the crease of my boobs.
Should there be rules in friendships? No. Should there be boundaries? Yes!!
@Mia-Sara King Most things I've seen label rules as something you impose on someone else vs a boundary that is something you draw a line for to protect yourself. I'm not sure I explained that very well but there is a difference.
Rule: You are not allowed to swear in front of me or you can't be my friend.
Boundary: I am not friend with people who swear.
As stranded in Seattle said; "you are not allowed to hook up with your best friend's brother" is not the same as "I am not comfortable being best friends with someone who is hooking up with y brother." Its about imposing action vs drawing a line.
@Stranded in Seattle I disagree with that rule. Don't tell me who I should fall in love with. If you are going to control me we can't be friends. That is my boundary.
aren't boundaries rules?
Rule: Never hook up with anyone from your BFF's family.
Boundary: If you hook up with my brother, then you are not my BFF.
Pretty much the same thing, just labelled differently. Either way, she overstepped because her hormones meant more to her.
It’s great you guys touched on the sexualization of high schoolers in tv and film. It’s a lot of the reason I love Stranger Things. They really just keep it PG-13 with the kids and teens in that show (even if the actors are legal. They’re still playing young kids), with some cute appropriate jokes. I would love a reaction video on that show!
Since us as the fans demand more suffering, you should DEFINITELY check out the After movies. There's definitely a lot of questionable things in those movies and I'd love to see you guys react to it
Megan: "Is that us?!?!"
Alan: "No, cause if we're ever in pictures I PUT YOU ON A APPLE BOX."
Loving how sweet Alan is to make sure his wife can be since in pictures and for it not to look creepy, unlike what this movie did for the raining gazebo scene.
Not about this video but I would really like to put out there that The Croods would be an exceptional movie to react to. It's a great lesson in how family dynamics can change as a family grows, both as a group and individually.
The movies "7 Brides for 7 Brothers" 1954 and "McClintock!" 1963 are major classics I would love to see you guys review, especially the relationship/family dynamics in those videos, especially McClintock since it has a movie starring John Wayne and its always shown around major Holidays with 7 Brides for 7 Brothers.
"If we were in pictures together, I'd put you on an apple box." is the most romantic filmmaker-geek line I've ever heard.
@Chirduck True, you are officially above my paygrade.
@The Boginoid I don't care if it is offensive for you or not. I'm not going to rephrase same reasons I've already given, this is pointless and make me feel even worse. but you can't tell me how I should feel about it. I'm hurt by the channel I was feeling about as a safe space and you can do nothing about it, so don't try to convince me into something *you* think is true.
this is how I feel and see it and I've expressed it. and you don't have to comment it
@Chirduck He is not making fun of it, I don't take it lightheartedly either. Yes, they had a laugh but if he truly was so concerned about couple's heights diffenrences he wouldn't marry someone that much shorter. Also, there's a difference between artistic aesthetics and lookism. A huge one too. Subtext is important in all forms of art, he is a filmmmaker, he knows his subtexts, he doesn't want to appear looming over his wife, nothing wrong with that. Also, the reason he pointed out the height difference in the movie is a) it simply looks bad in some shots b) there's already an unhealthy powerdynamic going on between the characters and she appearing that much shorter emphasises that to a disturbing degree. Noone shaming short people for being short. I'm not exactly tall either and couldn't care less.
@The Boginoid no it doesn't make sense. making fun of something person can't change about themself is not cool. and let's divide their height difference and they way they treat each other. there is nothing wrong with representation of different kinds of couples, even if you're lookist, who thinks its not aesthetic. choosing couples based on innate features makes you sound like a nazi (in a different way, but you get it)
@Chirduck How is it an offense? It makes sense on a purely aesthetic level (more balanced pictures), and a psychological level (he's not looming over her) and it shows that he cares she looks her best. This isn't a dig against short people being short.
Hi guys, I know you'll probably never see this, but to carry on with the trend of breaking down romantic relationships in movies, I'd love to see you guys react to Alice, Darling. It's supposed to be a really great movie about the depths of emotional abuse, and would probably be important to talk about and dissect (if not here than maybe on the Mended Light channel). Also, a breakdown of Evelyn and Waymond's relationship would also be top notch.
The contrast more realistic version of all this movies is The Invisible Man, and is fantastic how they tell the abuse and the consequences of an abusive relationship.
“I’m in love with a man in the sky, and oh look there’s an armpit” is probably one of the best lines to come out of this video. 😂
just watched the movies recently and Lee, Rachel and Lee's mom were my fav characters. Lee has his flaws but that makes him human. hes just a good one
I’ve honestly learned that when we don’t grow up in an environment that teaches us what healthy love and boundaries look like, we emulate and seek out that toxic behavior. We’re also surrounded by it because of movies. We are seeing what someone else’s pov or idea of love is. We fall in love with the characters or stories and think “this is what love is” because it’s different or better than what we grew up with, or we think it is, not realizing how troubling it really is. Not until we put in the work to heal or go through therapy and find out that love isn’t what we thought it was and even though boundaries are hard they’re necessary.
I'm not sure if it was mentioned, but the fact that Noah was kissing another girl but completely prevents and controls Shelly's opportunities of being in a relationship is maddening. Especially since it is being shoved under the rug as him being "Omg he's so protective of her but he's a baaaddd boy."
I know, right? And then the narrative goes out of its way to villainise the 'other girl' who, while a bit snotty, was not the one trying to get into Elle's pants for the majority of the movie. Plus one could see her rude behaviour as her being understandably upset and insecure over the hot guy she was with just blatantly ditching her for another girl. Noah, however, just gets a free pass, and is even seen as the hero for 'rescuing' the heroine from the girl he chose to snog. Argh!
Ooooh great one here. Don’t know if you guys have already done the After series because those movies are full of toxicity in young relationships that I think would be beneficial to young people/teenagers to understand that that kind of relationship is not okay. Love your content as always.
I'm an aspiring director/film writer and seeing both the technical side as well as being the audience, these movies HURT. Growing up, my friends loved to talk about boys, loved when they teased them, pull their hair when the boy had a crush-- absolute bullshit. My Asian mom used to tell me "If a boy likes you, he will come here (our house) to see you." Especially the first few times to hang out and being a teenage girl, that was weird. Now I know what she meant and I'm thankful that she taught me that I had to be respected. Now I'm in my early twenties and the bar for men is so damn low, my bisexuality is turning lesbianism.
I would love to create a movie that reboots this idea into the vibe they go for but with a similar idea. Love u dads
I love how distressed John is in this video. Poor guy 😂.
“The problem is-“
“Which problem?”
Okay, I feel like we should say this was originally written on Wattpad which was basically a free forum for bad books written by young writers figuring out their craft. Bless them I'm sure the author was like 16 when they wrote it and this was the drama that was played during that time. The understanding of healthy relationships is kind of acquired because these tropes are the ones that were popular.
I personally, as an adult, adore fictional toxicity. The drama and stupidity feeds my soul. But I am well aware it's fiction and nothing I want in real life because I have that hindsight from being a teen. The worst part is I remember doing dumb things like this and feeling like it was that dramatic or healthy as a teen. I think the problem with this media, and a lot of media in general is that all media influences real life to a degree, and that can be a good or bad thing. I love that you guys did this movie though because as both a drama book and a film it was boring XD
When i first watched kissing booth i had just gotten out of a really bad relationship and i fell in love with the concept of noah flynn. The idea of a guy who would 'protect me' and obsess over me just left me gushing and giddy.
Rewatching this after being in a normal healthy relationship as well as years of therapy i just got the ICK
And that mentality is exactly why you don't get into another relationship after a break-up. You overcompensate in the worst possible way to the opposite extreme.
Get yourself some rebound booty, but don't try to make it work with someone after you've had your heart broken.
I totally get that. Sometimes we idealize the bad because we don’t know what the good is like.
possessiveness from a partner and feeling wanted and important is for sure an attractive idea for many people. but it’s the fact that his possessiveness over elle is controlling, nonconsensual, and forceful.. that’s whats dangerous. It’s horrible behavior that will make it much harder for someone to confront it in their own lives down the line because they’ve seen it in movies like these that frame it as something romantic and desirable.
I think that's the draw of this genre. Who doesn't love the idea of being the centre of attention 24/7?
The part about the apple boxes reminded me of the anime Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun/Monthly Girl's Nozaki-kun. There is one really funny scene where someone is trying to draw the backgrounds for a manga they are working on, but messes up and makes it look like one character is floating, so they drew a box under him. Then they drew a few more backgrounds and kept on needing to add boxes to the scene to the point that they came up with a lore reason for all the boxes.
Thank you! I thought about red flags and weird actions in the movie but thought if that’s popular then might be fine. I’m glad to listened to your opinions which resonated with mine. I was not the only one who saw subtle creepy vibes.
I completely agree with you and agree with what y’all are saying. BUT this movie literally made me realize I was not happy in a relationship, especially that kissing scene. It made me realize I wasn’t in love with the person I was with and I wanted to see stars when I kissed the person I was in love with.
I really appreciate everything you guys do, like for real, and I would love to see a psychology of a hero based Rick Grimes from The Walking Dead. Seeing as the series just ended.
I am thankful to the Kissing Booth movies because it made Netflix want to work more with Joey King. They asked her if she had anything she wanted to make, and the very book series she'd been sitting on since age 11 was the same I've been sitting on since 11.
When Uglies comes out, that might be a good movie to react to. It's about a futuristic world where you are forced into plastic surgery at 16 to make you "pretty". These kids have been so shame their whole lives for being "ugly" (aka normal) that full body modification is the only thing they look forward to in life and to not get it done makes you basically inhuman and you're shipped off where no one has to look at you. Bullying and body shaming is encouraged by parents, teachers, doctors, police, etc.
The female gaze is not just the male gaze but focused on hot men. The male vs female gaze is the difference between Suicide Squad and Birds of Prey. They're both focused on the attractiveness of the same character, but they come from entirely different angles.
@Eleonora Lorenzet yes! This is always the example that I give for the female gaze lol
@hecallsmeprincess06 The difference is that (this kind of) men represent women as how they want them to be, and men as how they want themsleves to be.
Was looking for this comment - thank you 🙌
this movie looks like it's full of the MALE gaze. and once again, men are confused by what that means lol the female gaze can apply to male characters as well, but they're not just half naked muscled guys they're men real women would actually find attractive. some say Thor vs Loki (MCU) is a good example of male/female gaze.
Yes! Noah half naked is still male gaze. Mr Darcy hand twitch scene in Pride and Prejudice: totally female gaze.
Jacob Elordi legitimately is a fantastic actor, who plays these douchebags really well, and he's also followed in Robert Pattinsons footsteps of subtly hating his own movie(s). I'd love to see him in other roles some day
You guys are amazing! Thank you so much for your work!
You should def. do more shorts of your reacts, they are just precious :D
I have enjoyed hearing your insights on different movie couples, and I am curious to know what the two of you would think of the couple from “The Proposal.” Thank you both for all of your advice and humor.
Thanks for making such amazing videos, I always learned a lot from them. Please react to the film flipped 2010!!! The story and the characters relationship are so lovely.
Totally my thoughts!!! When I watched this I couldn't believe people who thought this was romantic. Thank you!!!
Y'all are doing the Lord's work. I think it is crucially important to call out the toxic and abusive things in these movies, which are more insidious than a lot folks realize. Movies like this not only romanticize abuse, they normalize it. Then many of the young people who watch these kinds of movies, idealize them instead of critique them. It is so important to have a space like this, where everything that is not okay gets called out.
Also, even before you said a man wrote and directed it, I knew.
Also the kidnapping ones
True. Think about the Note book. I am so glad they watched that one too!
Thank you for voicing everything wrong with this movie and so many others!
Like what Alan said, "Vince, f*** you!"
Made worse by being based off a story a 15 y/o wrote, so a man saw a showing that the "bullying is love" narrative was took to heart by someone and thought "I'll use it but with as many semi nude shots as I can get away with"
The main lead is genuinely so amazing. She took what she had and ran with it even if it was absolute garbage. That takes genuine skill!
Love what you say about wanting to see a film where the relationship is built on friendship. Would love to see you do friends with benefits. It's got enough USE YOUR WORDS moments to yell at, but some good friendship and family stuff I think you'll like
I really enjoy watching Jacob Elordi in “Two Hearts”
It definitely redeems him from this movie.
i must have left that comment already when i was watching your twilight stuff. As a recovering falling for the pretty bad boy girl, this is hitting so close to home, and having the two of you reflect it so perfectly is healing!! I have left these relationships behind long time ago and had therapy and so on. but dear god.. i wish youtube and your channel would have existed 15 years ago!
You guys should do a series of movies involving illness. 50/50 is one of my favorite movies and I would love to see you react to it.
the "he's so hot and so miserable" clip gets a laugh out of me every time
You guys are such a brilliant comic duo :)
And I love your Lord of the Rings place name posters in the background. They're all film locations in New Zealand 😃
I’m having a flashback to high school where I (5’2” as an adult) had a crush on a guy who was 6’5”. One of my friends drew a picture of us dancing at homecoming, where I was smaller than his feet and his body disappeared into the clouds.
Man this is surreal. Seeing The Kissing Booth advertised to me heavily on Wattpad years ago. Then the movie coming out so quickly after it shot up to a high rank on Wattpad. Now seeing the movie reviewed here, on another social media site that I frequent. This story has really come full circle in my life. And makes me depressed that I started writing a book that long ago and have failed to finish it still.
I'm three minutes in and already convinced that the pair of you going, "Yeah, but that's not love." while you can faintly hear Foreigner in the background is iconic.
I was 16 when this came out and really liked it but I did see the problems with Noah and the bully. But by the end I was swayed because it was fun to watch, I’m glad I can see it again with a better perspective now thanks cinema therapy :D
I just feel the need to add that characters of opposite sex being friends and staying friends is a positive and necessary message. It is much bigger than the character just being a "nice guy". She should definetly end up with somebody else other than Noah but not with him
True but why'd they make them so toxic still
True that's why the "Friendzone" is such a misogynistic toxic concept. It basically says as a man having a platonic friendship with a women which is not sexual at all, is an absolutely worthless waist of time, so better manipulative her/just pretend to be a friend/make her feel guilty, to get what you actually want, which is s*x. That's why it's good when friendships in Movies/Shows between women and men get portrayed as worthy, okay and normal. Elle shouldn't end up Noah since he's a toxic controlling jerk, and not with her male best friend either.
Yeah! Particularly straight characters of the opposite sex. There is the "gay guy friend" trope but that still sends the message that you can't be real loving platonic friends with someone with a sexual orientation toward your gender.
The apple box rant had me in absolute stitches, I had I had to go back and watch it again 😂
I think it's a bit short-sighted to say teenage life is so much about looks. As a teenager I was just as able to fall in love with guys who don't conform to traditional beauty standards (my first boyfriend was one) as I am now, as a grown woman.
the fact that later in the movie when lee sees that elle has hurt her head his first thought is asking his brother what he did HIS OWN BROTHER THINKS THAT WAY OF HIM
Are you guys going to do falcon and the winter soldier? I would love to hear not only if the therapy is good or believable and also just about the relationships and Bucky and Sam as individual characters and John Walker. I feel like three are loads of things to react to and the filmmaking has plenty of things to talk about in my opinion because it feels different from other Marcel movies. Like when they just stay in a dripping water when Lemar is tied up I think that is really interesting
I first watched this before I fully understood myself and had the words but thank you Alan and Johnathan for putting into words.... everything I hated about this movie. There were some good moments but they did Not outweigh the rest of the movie
My theory is that on top of guys conditioning women to bend to their will and think it's cute is that it plays into women's insecurities. When you feel really unattractive, a hot guy obsessing over you to the point of toxicity is actually a nice feeling. It's an overcorrection. I'd have fantasies like that myself when I was younger and when I inevitably got assaulted and raped (date style) I ended up feeling like I was "asking for it" even when I wasn't. Just another complicated layer of rape culture.
i remember watching this movie and HATING it while my mom actually enjoyed? not only that but other girls my age were going crazy over it and i felt like “am i the only one seeing all this shit?” i was so mad and still am because so many girls end up in abuse relationships because movies like this romanticize and normalize his behavior like is something great and that we should be thankful for when is actually so problematic and toxic it’s frustrating to see people falling for it!!!!
OH MY GOD I just now realized why so many of these "romantic movies" are so toxic, they equate lust with romance! U guys really opened my eyes, it makes so much more sense now 😭 kissing booth, after, 365 days (in every extreme way possible), 50 shades, etc. All os those man are 'attractive' and one night stand material, but definitely not significant other material. But that wouldnt make for an interesting story
"That's not cute. That's not cute, Elle!!" That should be the movie title
I love this the reactions are funnier than the movie "I'm in love with a man in the sky.... Here's an armpit" 😂