Art imitates life, and life imitates art. nearly along the way, someone study of distilling the substance of a relationship between two people into pictures, stories, and shows. They drilled it into our minds that there’s a certain way that two people fall in love with each other, and there are two ways it’s going to end. Either there’s going to be a “ happily ever after ” or a bifurcation. The finiteness of this kind of liar adulterated our idea( or, to be specific, my idea) of love and made the kidney and our lives commonplace and boring. But there’s further to it than a starting and an ending point. There are measureless possibilities, obstacles, and openings in the trip that’s life. And I'm so happy to report that that’s what “ Look Both Ways ” explores in endearing and uproarious ways.
Directed by Wanuri Kahiu and written by April Prosser, “ Look Both Ways ” starts with musketeers Natalie( Lili Reinhart) and Gabe( Danny Ramirez) mapping out the lives ahead of them. Natalie has a five-time plan in the profession of vitality. Gabe intends to take his career as a drummer in his band forward. And to celebrate the fact that they’re going to graduate, they partake in a one-night stage since they’ve always had passions for each other. On scale night, however, she finds herself in the restroom with her friend Cara( Aisha Dee), staying for her gestation test. And as the result arrives, the narrative breaks into two paths. In one reality, she doesn’t get pregnant and begins her five-time plan by moving to LA with Cara. In an alternate reality, she gets pregnant and restructures her five-time plan to raise the child with Gabe.
The USA witnessed the accumulative capsizing of revocation rights, thereby making revocation illegal in numerous countries. So, in this climate, it’s quite ballsy for a movie to come out and say that it’spro-choice and advocates for whatever the woman decides for herself. And that’s where the positive aspects of “ Look Both Ways ” begin. Prosser and Kahiu aren’t exorbitantly pessimistic about those who choose to have a baby right after they graduate from the council. They aren’t overwhelmingly positive in their depiction of the single life where one follows their dreams. They see life as a sinusoidal surge, replete with highs and lows. The frequency and duration of these highs and lows can vary from person to person. But they state that if someone is determined( and has a healthy smattering of honor), they’ll be suitable to regulate the frequency and duration of their highs and lows.
Now, Natalie is written as a person who's passionate about her work. She's kind, loving, and minding. She's veritably fascinating. And, to sound repetitious, she's incredibly determined to be stylish at her job as an aspiring animator. But “ Look Both Ways ” puts heavy emphasis on the people around her, i.e., Cara’s parents, Rick( Luke Wilson) and Tina( Andrea Savage), and, of course, her suckers, Jake( David Corenswet) and Gabe. Yes, like the defective person she is, Natalie occasionally takes these connections for granted. still, she does ultimately realize how important they're to her. As for Jake and Gabe, the way they conduct themselves, the way they treat Natalie( despite hitting some rough spots), and the way they're devoid of nearly any poisonous mannish particularity are aspirational. The folks are right. Men written by women are just better in every way.
It’s presumably why the love in “ Look Both Ways ” seems veritably organic. Yes, these are veritably seductive people falling in love with veritably seductive people in the most stereotyped ways possible because it’s eventually a movie. But the tenets that they live by and the way they express their love or their compunctions about each other are so common across genders, races, and countries that it’s hard not to find it relatable. The same goes for comedy. The jokes don’t bring the movie to a halt. They're written into the character, and the casting is so perfect that it flows in the most natural way possible. The only issues that I do have with the film are the pacing, Lucy’s( Nia Long) “ tough love, ” and the fact that Netflix( which is notorious for its treatment of animators) is presenting a movie about animators. You can ease into the pacing, but the other two are insupportable.
The overall look and sense of “ Look Both Ways ” is simplistic and inviting. The music by Drum & Lace and Ian Hultquist is cozy. The cinematography by Alan Caudillo, the editing by Brad Leach, the art direction by Christy Gray, and the product design by Keith Brian Burns is effective in terms of showing the two realities and the colorful phases of Natalie’s life. Colin Wilkes’s costume design is so fantastic that if I could’ve pulled off everything that the characters in the movie wear and tear, I would have. The entire cast is excellent. Luke Wilson and Andrea Savage have some of the strip and utmost huggable moments. Danny Ramirez and David Corenswet are similar dreamboats that you won’t mind cooking over them throughout the film. Aisha Dee nails Cara’s unique blend of empathy and cheek. But at the end of the day, Lili Reinhart takes the cutlet. The range she showcases is astounding, as she truly makes you feel that you’ve been on a rollercoaster lift with Natalie.
In conclusion, “ Look Both Ways ” works as a rom-com because you get to lose yourself in a world filled with conventionally seductive people going about their lives. Wanuri Kahiu and co. are apprehensive of the kidney morals. So, they play into it. But it also works as a kidney-bending rom-com that makes us question the description of love in our lives. It asks us to not see a relationship as a set of variables but as a trip with further than two possibilities. There’s a lot of intriguing commentary about vitality that everyone( especially the directors over at Netflix) should hear too. The cast is excellent, and Lili Reinhart is just stylish. And since all this praise is coming from someone pessimistic about love, you can be damn sure that it’s worth a watch.