On Friday, I spent my time in my dorm room watching Christmas movies and crocheting because it is what makes me feel happy inside. I decided to give the number 1 trending movie on Netflix a try, because it was Christmas themed, romancey and looked pretty cheesy. To my surprise I actually really loved it.
The basic premise is this: a girl has a horrible disastrous love life so instead of dwelling in overall sadness and loneliness, she turns bad dates into her job. She writes articles about her bad dates and makes money off of it. This time, the editor wants Natalie, the girl with a bad love life, to find another guy to go on a date with. To her surprise, she finds what seems to be the “perfect” guy. He texts her, “I wish I could spend Christmas with you,” and she took it as a sign to go fly out to Lake Placid, New York to pursue the “love of her life.” Once she arrives, a shocking surprise is in store for her.
The reason I love this movie so much is because at the beginning it practically admits that it will be cheesy. This movie is something we all have but also haven’t seen before. “Love Hard” combines the cult classic Hallmark movie feel with a new age tinge to it. I like how Natalie discovers that maybe for once she needs to be honest, instead of focusing on everyone else’s lies. She truly grows into a better person throughout the movie, recognizing her wrongs and rights, and learns how to fix herself. Of course there are those bad jokes that reoccur, but it kind of gives the movie a full circle moment.
I also love how the movie has a more diverse cast. To have a non-white person as one of the main characters is something that should have always been happening, but unfortunately it hasn’t for a long time. To my surprise, I noticed that there were no stereotypical Asian remarks from what I remember. It seems like the “token” Asian was always framed as the funny nerdy one, but not this time. These steps are the kind of steps that have been needed to be taken, and I am pleased that Netflix actually did not make any stereotypical remarks from what I noticed. As a white person, I have privilege to see white people as main characters on the screen, all of them having a diverse backstory, none of them like the other. However, people of color rarely get to see this. Asian people time and time again have to watch the stereotypical nerdy funny side character with a purely racist accent. There are so many other stereotypes I could name that movies portray. These stereotypes are completely incorrect and unfair. During “Love Hard” I noticed that I did not sit there and think that something was problematic and turn it off. The directors, actors and screenwriters took the steps to break those stereotypical barriers and it is something we as humanity have been needing to see for a long time.
“Love Hard” has a great plot, diverse and unique characters, and will give you the warm fuzzies you have been craving. It is a wonderful movie to cuddle up next to your dog, cat, significant other, or family while drinking hot cocoa and absorbing the Christmas Spirit. I genuinely suggest that you should watch this movie if you want to see something inside but also outside of the box as well. Much praise for “Love Hard”.