20s Movie Review - Look Both Ways

Director: Wanuri Kahiu
Genre: Drama/ Comedy/ Romance
Runtime: 110 minutes
Year: 2022
Starring: Lili Reinhart, Danny Ramirez, Aisha Dee, David Corenswet, Luke Wilson, Andrea Savage

Description: On the even of her college graduation, Natalie’s (Lili Reinhart) diverges into parallel realities: one in which she becomes pregnant and remains in her hometown to raise her child and another in which she moves to L.A. to pursue her dream career.

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2023 MOVIE CHALLENGE
WEEK 7: A ROMANTIC MOVIE
 
Review: Natalie has a tight five-year plan outlining her career to conquer the animation world. But she she suffers from nasea after sex with her best friend Gabe, the fear of pregnancy throws that plan into disarray. In the bathroom where she takes a pregnancy test, her life spits into two timelines: one in which she is indeed pregnant and decides to keep the child and one in which she is not pregnant and she is going to follow her plan to move to L.A. and become an animator.

“Look Both Ways” is a fun film that makes it all too clear that life cannot be planned that easy. It is nice to see that both timelines get a fair amount of screen time and one is not clearly placed above the other. At the same time, not all scenes feel equally urgent and there are some very large time jumps. Thus, the script is not as tight as it could have been and also makes you wonder if this concept would not work better in a series.

What I liked most is that the makers never force one of the two stories on you. One is not better than the other, because both timelines have their ups and downs and their good and bad moments. And I really liked Lili Reinhart in her role.

The film also paints a somewhat fatalistic picture by implicitly stating that you will end up where you are supposed to be anyway. Five-year plan or not, you are simply a plaything of fate. In contrast, the idea that hard work always gets you where you need to be in the end easily fits into the image of makeable happiness that is very short-sighted. But if you don't dwell too much on such matters, Look Both Ways is an entertaining film that doesn't get boring especially with thanks to the infectious acting of the expressive Lili Reinhart and warm Danny Ramirez.

“Look Both Ways” is a fun and entertaining film, that is not overly romantic because that is not the focus. Natalie’s journey is, and I really enjoyed that. The two separate stories are nothing groundbreaking, but I really loved the concept of the two timelines.

Rating: 3/ 5