Movie Review: Kissing Booth (no spoilers)

Movie Title: The Kissing Booth

Directed by:  Vince Marcello

Movie Company: Netflix

Notable Stars: Molly Ringwald, Joey King
Watch it: Netflix
Get the book here!

What's it about?

The Kissing Booth is the story of two best friends, Elle and Lee as they make their way though another year of high school and find love. The hard part comes when Elle realizes that her affections lie with the last person Lee would ever accept as her love interest! With her friendship with Lee on the lie, will she choose the boy of her dreams or the friendship of a lifetime? 

What's did I think about it?

I'm not even going to try to hide it, I'm a sucker for a good rom-com! They are my favorites! So when I decided to waste time watching this particular title in hopes of putting off the dishes for just a little bit longer, I wasn't expecting much. The trailer looked promising, but that's what tailors are intended for, right? But, in this case, the trailer didn't lie!

My biggest complaint is the end. I felt like there were just too many questions unanswered and, while it does give the viewer the opportunity to fill the holes in to create the perfect scenario for their taste, I wanted answers! I was invested! I needed all of the ends tied up, I wanted to see it all, I wanted a solid end, which is exactly what I didn't get. 

However, I was impressed with the story. While the story itself is not original, the movie didn't feel like every other I-have-the-most-amazing-relationship-with-my-best-friend-but-I'm-falling-for-the-one-person-they-would-never-be-ok-with-and-now-I-have-to-choose I've experienced. The characters were fun, cute, funny and real. It was hard not to fall in love with them! And the connection between the characters were believable with out trying.

While many stories have referenced a magical list of rules that two or more characters created in the past to produce the most amazing relationship, I often find that their rules are a little silly. I mean, yea, some of them make sense but then there's always that one or two that are ridiculous and almost impossible to keep in whatever situation the character find themselves in, forcing the conflict even though it kind of feels silly. Well, Elle and Lee are not those friends. They do have a list of rules, all of which kind of strike me as rules for friendship we should all hold ourselves up to. They are rules like, always keep each other's secrets and if you can't tell your best friend what you are doing, you probably shouldn't be doing it. They also have rules like always be happy for your best friend's successes and always forgive your best friend if they give you ice cream. Ok, so maybe the last one isn't genius, but then they have that other rule. The one that says, family members of your best friend are off limits. Ooops! That one's the hard one!

I love how, even though Elle tries, she finds her self falling victim to a crush she's had for a while. There is something organic about the way the families are so close, the kids growing up together and their parents like family, leaving the kids to pretty much know everything about each other, the good, the bad, the best moments and the worse and the bond that that creates. I love that their relationship kind of rides this thin line of "you're like adopted family to me" and "I think i love you" along the way, bouncing back and forth a little as they go until they can't help but to confess how they feel about one another. 

I also liked the struggle the ensued when Elle finds herself torn between Lee and Noah, struggling to define which love is the most important to her, which relationship is the most meaningful, desperate to find a balance, yet realizing that she can't do it alone. In order for her to find that balance, she needs Lee and Noah to be on board, which they weren't.

In addition, i liked that Elle and Lee were both finding love, not just one or the other. It helped to pull the struggle away from the idea that one was jealous of the other, but that their struggles were about something far deeper. It wasn't about, "I love you, why are you with that person?!" or "You have someone but I don't and I can't deal!" but the conflict circled around real concerns and things that a real friend would fight about.

Lastly, and this may not come out to make much sense as I'm trying to avoid spoilers, but there is a great conversation toward the end where both Elle and Lee are really honest with one another about how they feel, but it's not quite as you may expect. I loved that they could be honest with each other and just say it because they felt it needed to be said!

In the end, I don't think I had a favorite character, they were all pretty cool, nor did I really have a favorite part. I think the story over all was good and I'm hoping to get my hands on the book some day to read that, too!

What would I rate this?

I would rate this movie a....

4 out of 5 lips!

So, there's my first impressions of the Netflix original The Kissing Booth! Now that I've shared my thoughts with you, tell me your thoughts! Did you like it? What was your favorite part?