After Ever Happy is the fourth instalment in the popular film series, After. These films (that were Wattpad stories turned into books), follow the romantic relationship between Hardin Scott and Tessa Young, the films’ protagonists. This story, however, is not a simple one. The narrative is littered with strife as Tessa and Hardin navigate the ups and downs of modern relationships.
From now on, there will be spoilers for the fourth film, After Ever Happy, so if you don’t want things spoiled, stop reading here.
This movie follows the tumultuous end to the third instalment, After We Fell, where we find out that Hardin’s father, Ken, is not actually his biological father. It is instead, family friend, Christian Vance. This obviously leaves shockwaves for both the characters and the audience. Whilst family relationships are a massive part of this film, what is really a point of discussion is the toxic relationship that Tessa and Hardin are in with each other.
What is a toxic relationship?
A toxic relationship is one that is either physically, mentally or emotionally abusive. This type of relationship is not always romantic, but due to the close intimacy required for romantic relationships, it is in these types of relationships that toxicity is more likely to occur. Relationships such as this can cause individuals to feel unsupported and demeaned. Toxic relationships do tend to follow a negative decline, meaning that the relationship gets worse as time goes on.
Tessa and Hardin’s relationship
The origins of Tessa and Hardin’s relationship are far from ideal. Their romance begins due to a bet made between Hardin and his friends, in which he makes a bet to elicit a relationship with Tessa (and in the books convinces her to sleep with him). Obviously, the nature of starting a relationship in this way is not something that should be glorified or romanticised at all. This is After’s first faux pas.
As their relationship continues, they both act volatile and obsessive with the other, with examples including distrust over coworkers, excessive alcohol consumption, and lack of communication.
After Ever Happy
In a quick, spoiler heavy summary of the fourth instalment, after finding the news of his actual parentage, Hardin sets his childhood home on fire. Both Tessa and Hardin proceed to drive away from the scene to a remote area where Hardin ends his relationship with Tessa. He then goes to a party in London where Tessa unexpectedly turns up and asks him to leave. He in response is mean to her, and then she proceeds to smash a bottle at his feet saying, “you’re not the only one who gets to break things”, and “I’m not letting you get away with being a coward again”. This ends their relationship ‘for good’, and Tessa returns to America.
Upon returning home, she discovers her deceased father in her bathroom (drug overdose) and is obviously traumatised by the experience. Hardin travels to America, having heard that Tessa’s father has died, and pays for his funeral, without Tessa knowing. Hardin wants to try again with their relationship, but Tessa doesn’t. They continue to stay broken up, and Tessa finds out she is infertile. Separately, Hardin goes to group therapy for his issues, whilst Tessa moves to New York with her best friend, Landon. Five months pass, and Hardin visits, somewhat seeming to pick up where they left off. However, Tessa finds Hardin’s ‘soon-to-be-published’ book and they fight about it, as she did not give her consent to be in the story. The film ends with Tessa going undercover to listen to Hardin read his book at a book reading.
Is it bad to romanticise toxic relationships?
Yes.
This film is full of behaviours from both Tessa and Hardin that do not constitute a healthy, loving relationship. Instead, they belittle, attack, and hide things from each other. This kind of relationship is obviously one that should not be romanticised or glorified. But, in After Ever Happy, I argue that they are not glamorising it in this film too much. Firstly, they break up very early on in the film, which reveals some self awareness that they do know when to call it quits. This is evident both in the growth of the characters, in the franchise, and society as a whole. The film ends with Hardin and Tessa not being back together, but rather as Hardin in therapy and becoming reformed – that is what they are attempting to romanticise instead.
In some ways, the effort it takes to make positive changes when you are stuck in a difficult situation is one of the real takeaways from this movie. The cut down on sex scenes for this fourth installment, is indicative of the progress that Hardin and Tessa are making, that their relationship is developing from one of physical attraction to one of emotional intimacy. Despite this, the toxicity in their relationship, that began from a place of lies, is a clear red flag. It is unacceptable to treat another person, one you supposedly love, in such a way.
However, the film, and Tessa and Hardin’s journey, is not one to be used as a role model, or for their relationship to be idealised. Rather, it should be taken as a learning experience for the audience. These films do well to consider mature themes such as infertility, drug use, divorce etc, and provide imperfect responses from the characters, which shows their humanity and relatability. This series, however, does need to do better to reprimand their characters for their toxic behaviours, and make it even clearer the dangers of relationships like this, in an effort to promote healthy, loving, and respectful relationships for their audience.