Movie Review: The Half of It

This was movie #4/20 (#13 overall) that I watched for my 20 for 2020 Challenge. This movie was released on Netflix on May 1, 2020. Below is my spoiler-free discussion.

I really loved this movie. I thought it was so cute and well done. It has to be one of the best Netflix Original movies that I've seen. You can really see the care that was taken into creating this movie.

I don't think I have been this emotionally affected in a long time (if ever) by a movie that isn't super focused on the romance. Throughout the movie I just really loved the vibe and aesthetic. I thought it was beautifully shot. I thought the setting was really cool and unique. I've never seen a movie set in a similar setting. It had great music. I was pretty interested and invested the whole time. The pacing was good and I never felt bored or rushed. Obviously the representation is so great. I thought it felt like a classic indie movie with a modern and fresh twist. It had just the right amount of YA pretentiousness that it felt deep and meaningful, yet not annoying and try-hard.

I loved how everything tied together. They would mention details that seemed insignificant at the time that would come into play in a big way later either emotionally or just as a funny moment.

I completely thought that this must have been based off of a Young Adult book, but it wasn't! After the movie was over, I really wanted to go back and read the book. And that's when I discovered there was none. Part of the reason why I thought that this movie must have been based off of a book was because the vibe and dialogue just seemed like a John Green contemporary kind of YA book. Another reason was that the movie seemed like it was glossing over a lot of elements and plot lines that I assumed were in the (non-existent) book. Obviously in book to movie adaptations they can't fit everything in an eight hour book into a two hour movie, so they have to choose the most important parts. That's how it felt for this movie weirdly was that it felt like a lot of points were left out for time, or things were under-explained. That's pretty much my only complaint about the movie.

I loved this movie! I would definitely recommend people to watch it. It was super cute! I'd give this a 9/10. Have you seen this movie? I'd love to hear your thoughts down below!