Movie Review: Love Hurts

 

Michael's Movie Grade: C+

An enjoyable little action movie.

While this film has its flaws, it is short, sweet and to the point. At only 1 hour and 23 minutes, I never once felt bored nor did my attention ever drift. Even if I acknowledged that this movie could have been better, I was still entertained and sometimes that is enough. The film's protagonists may not be complex, but they are likable, and I enjoyed spending time with them. Ke Huy Quan may not be the most obvious star for an action movie but that is honestly what makes his character work here. The transformation between the type of geeky character we are used to seeing him play into a master assassin, also helps us fully believe both sides of this character (an enthusiastic realtor who is in love with his normal life, who's past as a killer has caught up with him). A more typical action star simply wouldn't have worked as well in this role. The villains are nothing we haven't seen before, but they do their job well as they are truly evil and feel like a threat. The action scenes are quite good with all the over-the-top R-rated violence that audiences want from a film like this. None of these action scenes felt realistic but that is part of their charm. 

The humor is honestly quite hit or miss. This movie tries to mix a lot of quirky comedy in with its typical action movie tropes. Sometimes this humor is quite funny and clever. However other times it seems to be trying too hard to be funny and falling flat instead. 

My main problem with this film though is the central romance. Despite being told many times that Ke Huy Quan and Ariana DeBose's characters are in love, there are virtually no romantic scenes showing it to us. Because of this, we have no emotional connection to this romance that should be the heart of the story. If we were allowed to see these two be in love instead of just being told that they are, this film's story would have worked much better. Also, on the topic of show don't tell, I found the inner monologues for both these characters to be forced and out of place here. 

This is far from a great film, but it does provide an enjoyable trip to the movies. Sometimes though that is all you want.