It’s only November, but I’m never one to
shy away from watching Christmas films
out of season (the first time I watched one
this year was early October), so I have no
qualms about writing a review on a new
Christmas film that was recently released
on Netflix. Starring Nina Dobrev (The
Vampire Diaries), Jimmy O. Yang (Crazy
Rich Asians) and Harry Shum Jr. (Glee,
Shadowhunters). Love Hard follows Natalie
(Dobrev), a writer from L.A. who thinks
she’s met her perfect match on a dating
app, only to learn that she’s been catfished
when she flies 3,000 miles to surprise him
for the holiday season.
I’d seen the film advertised on Netflix
before its release, but I’d nearly forgotten
about it when my best friend, who lives in
Spain, suggested we buddy-watch it – and
I’m so glad I said yes! Having loved Nina
Dobrev as Elena Gilbert on The Vampire
Diaries I was excited to see how she
portrayed this new character, unlucky
in love and somehow making a career
out of it.
Considering she’d had so little luck in
love, but hadn’t given up hope and was
still trying online dating, it was incredibly
wholesome watching her character fall
for this amazing person that she meets
online with whom she seems to have a lot
in common. There is an amazing sequence
early on in the film during which she’s
shown having an everlasting conversation
on the phone with Josh,
REVIEW
her gorgeous dream man, during which
she does a myriad of things while talking
with him. There’s one scene in particular
that I absolutely loved, in which they’re
shown side-by-side on top her bed covers,
as he reads a novel that her late mother
would read to her at night to help her
fall asleep; which I thought an excellent
example of screenwriting.
I felt for her therefore, when she travelled
all that way to surprise him, only to
discover that he wasn’t exactly who she
expected and was understandably upset
and annoyed by the deception and the
truth that she had been “catfished.”
Despite this fact, Natalie stays and
experiences Christmas with Josh’s family
– although his older brother (Shum Jr.)
doesn’t exactly take to her, and the movie
retains its wholesome element while
also taking on a comedic air that carries
through to the end.
What I love about the film is that it
combines romance and comedy with
wholesomeness, but also reinforces
the message that it’s always best to
be yourself.
