Anyone But You Review: Not Quite A "Romance Renaissance".

With Shakespeare’s play Much Ado About Nothing scaffolding the plot of Anyone But You, the last thing you’d expect is for the film to fall flat. However, that’s exactly how I’d describe it– flat. That isn’t to discredit the performances of Sydney Sweeney and Glenn Powell, but it seems that even the great literary genius couldn’t save this film from itself. 

Beneath the film’s risqué marketing campaigns that capitalised on the aesthetic compatibility of Euphoria’s Sydney Sweeney and Top Gun’s Glenn Powell, there’s a potent emptiness and glib feel to the film; that no amount of robust muscular statures, slapstick humour, or R-rated scenes can compensate for. 

Directed by Will Buck who brought you the likes of Friends with Benefits and Easy-A, Anyone But You centres around two Boston natives: Bea (Sydney Sweeney), a charismatic law student unsure as to whether she truly wants to study law, and Ben (Glenn Powell) a cocky yet sentimental finance “bro” with an uncanny resemblance to the viral Gigachad meme. After a memorable night together, Bea attempts a no-muss no-fuss early morning exit that she later regrets. She then returns to Ben’s apartment, only to overhear him referring to her as “a disaster” to his friend Pete (played by rapper GaTa). Of course, this was just his infantile attempt to dissipate the embarrassment brought on by Bea’s distasteful French exit. Nonetheless, this hits Bea where it hurts, and thus begins the feud between the pair. 

The two coincidentally meet sometime later, only to find out that they’ll both be attending the wedding of Bea’s sister and Ben’s best friend, in a destination wedding: Sydney Australia. From here, ensues a formulaic enemies-to-lovers storyline; one that involves raunchy physical humour, a huntsman spider copping a feel, and a beefcake Aussie surfer hellbent on showing the audience every crevice of his body, foreskin included! Despite being joyfully modern, the whole movie screams early 2000s American Pie. 

Anyone But You had the potential of kickstarting the “rom-com renaissance” (Sweeny calls the film on the Tonight Show) but fell short of that title. The film has instead landed somewhere amongst the countless romantic comedies that have faded from public memory. The script was contrived, and the acting from secondary characters was so uninspiring that it was difficult to appreciate the undeniable chemistry between the two leads. Scenes consisting of only Glenn and Sydney were infectiously charming, and the film would have been much stronger if the plot revolved around the two in the inner city of Boston.

The beginning of the film had a 2014 romantic comedy feel to it (think That Awkward Moment or Two Night Stand) that, if continued in the direction of an inner city modern love story, could have allowed for more intimate environments that showcased the alluring chemistry between Sydney and Glenn. But that’s just my personal opinion.

In an industry saturated with multi-million dollar blockbusters flexing over-the-top CGI, and convoluted plots that require a 40-minute video-essay breakdown, this rom-com is a refreshing (albeit mildly entertaining) reminder that there is a market for feel-good romance movies in 2024. The film boasts an audience score of 87% on Rotten Tomatoes, and did surprisingly well at the box-office grossing over $151 million, despite only having a $25 million budget. 

Anyone But You may not be destined for a spot in the rom-com hall-of-fame, but it is a topical example that feel-good chick flicks will always have a place on the big screen. So, despite its shortcomings, if you’re a fan of the genre you’ll be in for a treat as it adheres to all the trademarks of a typical, easy-to-watch, romantic comedy.

#tvandfilm #AnyoneButYou #SydneySweeney #GlennPowell