The Perfect Date (Netflix)
Noah Centineo is so precious! I’ve really thought he was the cutest thing since I watched “To All the Boys I’ve Loved” and “Sierra Burgess is a Loser” on Netflix… both very cute watches by the way.
Noah is definitely a crowd favorite for Netflix which is exciting to me. I’m definitely intrigued about his path forward and how he’s going to blow up in the next few years. In this film he steps out from being the supporting arm candy and becomes the main arm candy, LOL. I will say he has a type when it comes to casting, but he plays the smooth dorky boy crush so well… can you blame him?
I’m a sucker for teenage rom-coms, I definitely equate it to how I used to dream of finding my high school or college sweetheart. Needless to say that wasn’t a thing for me, but watching movies with those fairy tale endings are always fun, right? The Perfect Date definitely delivers in its promise to be another cheesy love story about a kid who struggles to understand himself while mindlessly falling in love with a girl he never even imagined being friends with. Brooks is like most high school students I knew, trying to get into college with no idea what the actual purpose was, BUT it looks good on your resume! Trying to fulfill a dream deemed acceptable by society he crosses paths with Celia who gives him the idea of creating a male dating app that resembles build a bear to raise money for a lifestyle he’s not even sure he truly wants. Of course his world is compromised when he loses focus on what’s important and his priorities fall out of wack, but of course, like most uplifting teenage movies, he gets his act together, wins the girl, and accepts himself for who he is.
Was it an A-1 movie? No, but was is a nice watch? Definitely. I love sitting back and appreciating a movie that doesn’t require too much intellectual dissecting and pulls on the heart strings of love to lead us to such a satisfying ending advocating for puppy love and going after your real dreams. I found the sense of satisfaction watching this movie that I found reading and watching the “Divergent” series, “Hunger Games” and both movies I mentioned at the beginning of this review.
Brooks reminded e of a few guys I’ve met in both high school and college oblivious to clues and hints we leave as girls that are interested. I related to his unknown love interest Celia all the way until the end of the movie; her personality is really the flare that kept the movie going. It’s true what they say, behind every man is the great woman that got him there. From the idiotic idea of his male dating app, that was a little on the gigolo side, all the way to his interview to get into Yale that he aced for all the wrong reasons… look we can help you guys by giving you the tools to succeed but we can’t make you use them the proper way. The fact to hold on to is that we know you don’t always get it right the first time, but we love you anyway. Celia was not here for the nonsense, and I thought I was unique for my strange cynical yet sarcastic personality, go figure. Celia’s determination to push the edge made me feel better about not jumping into something just because people think I should, but rather enjoying life in my own way and at my own time. However, she did not run from the feelings she developed for Brooks and didn’t let that dictate how to moved forward and healed from his stupidity.
I know you’ve heard the phrase “sometimes you don’t know what you have until it’s gone”? I’ve learned that happens a lot more than I appreciate with people, guys in particular, in regards to my presence in their life. The fact of the matter is, you can’t make anybody understand your influence on their life, sometimes they need to experience not having you to appreciate everything that you’re worth. That’s actually a huge take away from this movie. If they LEAVE, let them GO! Focus on yourself, the less energy you put into being sad over somebody that either didn’t deserve or doesn’t suck up his pride to get you back means something better is coming anyway. If I could insert a hair flip here I would!
Celia gave me life just being peaceful in who she was, bad dancer and all, and Brooks LOVED it. Your self-love shines so much brighter than any you receive from anybody else on this earth. Preserve your truth, who you are and your peace, and God will literally handle the rest.
Be D.O.P.E. Black Girls!
Release Date: April 12, 2019
Where I watched: Netflix