I thought I was going to hate this movie. Colleen Hoover isn’t known for good writing: her stories are problematic, dramatized and simple.
But “Regretting You” wasn’t any of those things…most of the time.
The movie centers around a family after two of the members die in a car accident. It shows the grief and guilt they feel about moving on, and the anger they feel about secrets that have been brought to the surface. Being a romance movie, the film also follows two parallel love stories.
From the very start of the movie, I felt like I was dropped into the middle of the story. “Regretting You” wastes no time introducing its characters in realistic dialogue. The family relationships feel real and complex, and you get a sense of who these people are right from the jump. The characters are grounded, and the choices they make throughout the movie make sense for who they are as characters.
The film’s main couples have great chemistry, and the buildups to their respective relationships feel realistic and organic. Their paths to finding each other are not linear or easy, which gives everything higher stakes without leaning into common romance movie tropes. The movie contained witty, comedic scenes, cutting through the more soapy, dramatic moments, making everything feel balanced.
Furthermore, the cinematography was gorgeous. The camera lingered in the same position as the characters moved, giving the film a unique feel, which differentiated it from other romance movies.
There were definitely some flaws to this movie, though. For one, the pacing seemed off. The opening half of the movie seemed to drag on forever, and then the second half seemed to go by too fast. Along with that, I didn’t love how the character Jonah (Dave Franco) was played; he seemed to only have one monotone facial expression the entire movie.
Ultimately, “Regretting You” is, to its core, a romance movie. It is certainly not a thought-provoking masterpiece, but it’s not supposed to be. It’s meant to be a fun, feel-good movie – and it does just that.
