A new Colleen Hoover adaptation of the novel Regretting You is being showcased on the silver screen. The film is about a chaotic family in shambles after a sudden death and profound family betrayal. Please prepare your tissues and popcorn as I unpack the highlights of this sappy romance.
Warning: This article contains numerous spoilers of the film’s dramatic plot-lines.
- . Messy Affairs Amongst Family Members
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The main plot-line of Regretting You surrounds itself with Morgan, played by Allison Williams, a widowed mother processing the extramarital affair between her deceased sister Jenny (played by Willa Fitzgerald) and husband Chris (played by Scott Eastwood). The strong betrayal leads Morgan into a dark spiral of grief, while balancing the emotional rollercoaster of raising a teenager. The trope of a grieving woman being cheated on was interesting, but the movie failed to create authenticity that was palpable. The film feels generic in the way someone stereotypically expects grief to manifest in a woman. It did not dive into the complicated feelings of love and betrayal that exist when your sister has an affair with your husband. I never got any real closure or understanding of Morgan’s remembrance of her dead sister and husband. All I got was scenes of Morgan crying, bingeing reality TV shows, and being drunk.
- . Weird Modern Day Teenage Romance
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If the movie goal was to be romantic, I felt disgusted. The origin of the film’s quintessential teenage heartthrobs, Clara and Miller, was not ideal. Miller, played by Mason Thames, was flirting with Clara, played by Mckenna Grace, while he was in a relationship. The film’s attempt to romanticize a relationship being conceived from heartbreak, while at the same time conveying the effects of infidelity created in a marriage like Morgan’s, was utterly disorientating. As a viewer, the pathos of the characters are never clear since the film balances the trope of reconciling with betrayal and (seemingly) romanticizing the thrills of being the other woman. The film failed to achieve any real through-line between the juxtaposition of an early teenage romance and the death of a broken marriage.Â
- . Dave Franco’s Questionable Acting
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In Regretting You, Dave Franco’s character Jonah fails to bring any originality or range onto screen. Dave Franco mostly squints and wears glasses throughout the entire film as an attempt to be seen as serious and intellectual. He failed to show any unique qualities of the character’s persona. The majority of the audience’s understanding of the character came from his vague dialogue and crying scenes. There was a lack of physicality and substance to his contribution of the film’s tumultuous plot.
- . Scenes That Travel Back in Time to High School Years Make No Difference
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There were montages in the film that travel back in time when the characters, such as Morgan and Jonah, were in high school. I was puzzled why the characters looked exactly the same except for their different hairstyles. None of the characters looked like they were in high school, since all the actors are millennials.Â
- . True Love Exists Between Mother and Daughter
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My favorite part of the film is the relationship between Clara and Morgan. For the majority of the film, they are fighting with each other with some moments of brief affection. Though they always prevail to reconcile, even through loss. Clara and Morgan’s struggle to connect in a period of intense strife allows for the film to capture the hearts of audiences. Deeply, one wishes for mother and daughter to be united and achieve forgiveness, for their love not to become cynical, but rather be a refuge during a tumultuous period. Their relationship becomes the heartbeat of the film’s chaotic plotlines.
Overall, Regretting You serves as a comfort-watch when needing a movie with a predictable storyline. It captures viewers to the romantic woos of young love and the heartbreak of infidelity. Sometimes, I found myself laughing at the film’s absurdity, yet appalled at the emotional tribulation between Clara and Morgan. Regretting You may not be the best romantic drama to exist, but it serves to at least entertain audiences.Â