Ever since I watched Rebel Wilson in Bridesmaids and the Pitch Perfect franchise, I have always waited for her new box office projects. Who wouldn’t love her and her Aussie accent? She can sing, she can dance, she can act, she’s gorgeous –you couldn’t ask for more.
Plus, her great chemistry on-screen with Adam DeVine made you totally ship them with each other (at least on-screen). This is the reason why I’m so excited when I read the news that Rebel and Adam are having their own movies as the leads in Isn’t It Romantic.
(Because all of us low-key hoped they’d have their own spinoff in Pitch Perfect).
Isn’t It Romantic promises a different take on your usual romantic comedies, having Rebel to play the enigmatic yet timid Natalie, a pushover firm architect that got mugged by a man snatching her bag. She fought back and managed to defend herself, but as she was about to escape, she hits a think steel foundation that threw her into a Rom-com alternative universe when she woke up.
[Now, if you haven’t watched the movie, please proceed with caution because there are MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD].
While Isn’t It Romantic attempted to critique the nature of romantic comedies, particularly those from the 80s and 90s, the movie is sending a confusing message to its audience. One one hand, it may come across as a film that criticizes the nature of rom-coms, but on the other hand, it is appears to be a reaffirmation of the things Natalie hated about rom-coms.
Isn’t It Romantic opens with the young Natalie watching a rom-com film Pretty Woman and her mom told her that rom-coms are BS. Next thing we know, she grew up hating the movies she watched when she was young. The whole treatment of the film reminds the viewers of rom-coms like How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days and 10 Things I Hate About You.
This film is a feel-good film with a satirical attempt to critique the genre. It’s a comedic film that pokes fun on rom-com stereotypes that may get people thinking about the formulaic tropes of the genre. Add Adam DeVine, Priyanka Chopra, and Liam Hemsworth into the mix and you’re in for an all-out laugh adventure.
Meta-irony on Isn’t It Romantic
While Rebel Wilson’s Natalie remarks almost everything she notices as rom-com element, her character still succumbs to living the rom-com life in the alternate universe she was in. Who wouldn’t love to have a super rich, sweet and handsome millionaire with an Aussie accent sweep you off your feet? Natalie might hate the very nature of romantic comedies, but in the end, she still settled to have her life be like a romantic comedy. And she did this in the guise of her truly accepting herself which I find abrupt and unnatural.
At the end of the film, it made me wonder. What is it really trying to accomplish? Because after watching I felt slightly robbed, mainly because I expected the film to be an actual criticism and satirical remark about the genre.
The film ended in an elevator scene that Natalie accepts that rom-coms aren’t really bad after all since her life is like a rom-com and she is contented with what has happened with her life. She’s got a lovelife, she was being appreciated and successful at her career, and she got great friends who are there to support her.
If the film really tries to critique the genre, I guess it would have been more powerful if Natalie did not end up with anyone. For me, the strength of this film is the ironic situation Natalie was in. She hates rom-coms but she her life became one. If it’s trying to critique the genre, might as well go beyond what the genre formula you know.
It could have sent a powerful message that even her good life after she realized she loves Josh will not make them end up together. Perhaps, because Josh got tired of asking her out, or she may love him, but she puts her career a priority first.
At the end of the day…
I still enjoyed the film. It is the kind of film that I will watch when I want to unwind and just watch a feel-good rom-com on a holiday. Isn’t It Romantic may have slightly let me down, but I still enjoyed it anyway.
With the great ensemble, beautiful cinematography, and groovy musical numbers, I guess Isn’t It Romantic is a 7/10 for me.
Which parts of Isn’t It Romantic did you like? Share them with me in the comments!
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Tiffsy Chronicles 
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