The highly-anticipated film adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s novel “It Ends with Us” opened in theaters on August 9, 2024.
Since its premiere, the film has sparked much controversy, much of which revolves around distasteful marketing and supposed cast conflicts. Social media is in a frenzy, with frantic updates about behind-the-scenes drama.
No one, however, seems to be talking about the movie itself. So, here’s my review:
Watching “It Ends with Us,” I was unable to keep my attention focused on the story or its characters’ arcs. Rather, the poorly executed technical aspects of the film continuously drew me away from the screen, instead prompting frequent remarks on the distasteful choices projected in front of me.
Although it is perhaps the most important factor in a film’s credibility, the dialogue in “It Ends with Us” was so poorly written that dramatic moments became difficult to take seriously. The tone of the script was far from appropriate, making light of and skewing the reality of the film’s theme. Many lines seemed unprompted and out of place in scenes that would have otherwise been very meaningful.
My next complaint is the costumes. The costume designer’s vision for this story is unclear, as the choices seemed purposefully bizarre. Shocking colors, odd combinations and way too many patterns distracted from the scene at hand. Out of touch with the arc of the story, it seemed as though the costumes were characters of their own (and not in a good way).
Lastly, the soundtrack was the most jarring aspect of the film, as the choices had nothing to do with the tone or evolution of the story, but rather stuck out as mere opportunities to name-drop. Lana Del Ray, Taylor Swift, Cigarettes After Sex, Birdy and Lewis Capaldi are just a few of the major contributions, but not one of them made sense in the story. Further, the volume and lack of transition into each song made the whole film seem like a mere trailer for “It Ends with Us,” a series of snapshots projected in time with a popular song.
Overall, the behind-the-scenes controversy of “It Ends with Us” has done less to dilute the message of the story than the sheer lack of skill in the filmmaking itself. A film tackling such a sensitive topic as “It Ends with Us” must be done 10x better than this to make any kind of real impact.
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