Top 8 Movies That Gave Us Expectations in Life That Haven’t Panned Out

*Spoilers ahead*

1. High School Musical
   1. Why did I kind of think that people would sing in the cafeteria? I guess I knew growing up that it wasn’t going to actually be the same but the amazing performances in the theater, the cool experiences they had over the summer, the garden on the roof, and the high school love stories. 

2. 10 Things I Hate About You
   1. Why was I never serenaded like Kat Stratford? I got one song dedicated to me by a creepy guy in middle school, but I did not get anyone who looked like Patrick Verona, or, you know, sounded like Patrick Verona or was anything like PATRICK FREAKING VERONA.

3. Princess Diaries 2
   1. Does anything scream unrealistic expectations more than being told you’re a princess in high school and then having a man like Chris Pine sweep you off your feet and take you on horseback to a secluded area literally just to dance with you and then break up your arranged marriage which you need to be queen only to find out you can be queen on your own and get the guy? No? Didn’t think so.

4. To All the Boy’s I’ve Loved Before 
   1. Not that I’ve tried to write letters to my past crushes, but if I had I know that it would NOT pan out the way it did for Lara Jean. She was actually denied at first (that’s realistic!), but she was asked to be someone’s fake girlfriend. Guess what happens? The fake relationship blossoms into a real one! Also, the second movie shows John Ambrose fighting for Lara Jean and this is all because he got her letter. Does that mean if I write to a guy I liked in middle school, he’ll magically show up in my life again as an adult woman and try to win my heart? No, it doesn’t, unfortunately. 

5. 13 Going on 30
   1. While the love story between the two main characters (Matty and Jenna) is very appealing and could happen, the way it happens is incredibly unrealistic. Matty calls off his own wedding with another woman for Jenna, his middle school crush who he runs into after almost 20 years of not even speaking to her.

6. Legally Blonde
   1. Elle Woods, a Fashion Merchandising major at UCLA, drops her entire life to study for the LSAT to become a lawyer when her boyfriend breaks up with her unexpectedly. Not only is the manner and speed at which she was able to pass the LSAT unattainable, but the idea of her leaving her entire life behind for a guy that chose NOT to be with her is unrealistic and not a good message for audience members to see.

7. Sleepover 
   1. I had plenty of sleepovers growing up, but none of them ended with me dancing with the hot Homecoming king after sneaking out and doing an amazing scavenger hunt with my friends. Also, Steve Carrell wasn’t trying to get me in trouble as the town safety guy and I didn’t rearrange an Old Navy display window. I don’t know why I had some hope that in high school, or even late middle school, I would be able to sneak out and do some amazing adventure like this, but I did and I’m disappointed it didn’t happen. Am I too old to do a crazy scavenger hunt in college? (If I do, maybe I can write an article about it…)

8. Cinderella 
   1. Is there anything more adorable than Cinderella and Prince Charming dancing the night away to “So This is Love?” That movie is the OG false expectation creator simply by Prince Charming putting in THAT MUCH effort to find a girl he shared one, and I repeat, one dance with! Nowadays if a guy meets a girl and dances with her and decides he likes her, he tries to find her on social media and if he can’t he shrugs it off. But no matter what, I will still be making a wish with my heart when I’m fast asleep. 

• future
• life expectations
• movies
• romance