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When going into both reading and watching It Ends With Us, it wasn’t lost on me that while millions of folks adore the book, it has its critics too, and that notion was always at the forefront of my mind. This story is a tricky one. It’s one of love and adoration, but it’s also about the cycle of abuse and generational trauma. It’s a tough balancing act to pull off, and while there are so many elements of this film starring Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni and Brandon Sklenar that work, it’s hard to fully know if they balanced all of this successfully.
It Ends With Us
Release Date: August 9, 2024
Directed By: Justin Baldoni
Written By: Christy Hall
Starring: Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni, Brandon Sklenar, Isabela Ferrer, Alex Neustaedter, Jenny Slate and Hasan Minhaj
Rating: PG-13 for domestic violence, sexual content and some strong language
Runtime: 130 minutes
It Ends With Us, directed by Justin Baldoni, is an adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel that follows a florist named Lily Bloom (Blake Lively) as she falls in love with a neurosurgeon named Ryle (Baldoni). The movie turns dark, though when Ryle hits Lily, and as the film progresses, she works to break the cycle and get out of the abusive relationship.
Part of how she does that is by seeking the help of Atlas (Brandon Sklenar), who was her first love when they were teenagers and whom she randomly runs into not long after she starts dating Ryle. The film also flashes between the present where Lily is opening a flower shop and dating Ryle and when she was a teen falling for Atlas and witnessing her parent’s abusive relationship.
The story is empowering in a lot of ways as Lively’s character courageously works to leave her partner. But it’s a challenging balance mixing romance and dark drama successfully.
For better and for worse, It Ends With Us is a faithful adaptation of the book.
Going into It Ends With Us, I was fresh off reading Hoover’s book (as well as its sequel It Starts With Us), and I was curious about how different the film would be. I was thrilled discovering the faithfulness of the adaptation. I didn’t know how they could meaningfully change the story in a way that would make sense, and I was hoping they’d keep everything about Lily’s story intact.
While there are some clear differences between the book and movie versions of It Ends With Us (like the name of Atlas’ restaurant, for example), it almost feels like a 1:1 adaptation, meaning it hits all the same beats as the novel. As someone who enjoyed reading this story first, I appreciate that they did this for the film.
Overall, that feels like a good thing, though it can’t be ignored that this film’s source material comes with baggage. It’s been praised and criticized for its depiction of domestic violence, and there’s a history of issues surrounding the book being marketed as a romance, among other things. That couldn’t be ignored while watching the movie.
I was thinking a lot about whether Lily’s story was being romanticized, and I was wondering how people would feel about the way domestic violence was shown on screen. Based on the response the film has gotten, reactions are mixed, which tracks considering the history the book it’s based on has. How someone feels about the book is probably how they’ll feel about the movie. For me, that means viewing this film with a lens that doesn’t leave out both the good and bad of the source material.
Blake Lively fully embodies Lilly Bloom, and the supporting cast is solid.
The best thing about It Ends With Us is its cast. That expertly execute their roles bringing Lily and Ryle to life.
Lively specifically plays Lily with a great deal of love, and you can tell she adores the florist. She also creates a distinct energy for her character that is both tough and gentle and meshs perfectly with her performance. This role is a lot to take on. Lily Bloom goes through the highest of highs and lowest of lows as she opens her flower shop, falls in love, and tragically handles an abusive relationship.
Baldoni and Brandon Sklenar, who plays older Atlas, similarly bring Colleen Hoover’s vision to life. Baldoni has the effortless charm and good looks Ryle is supposed to have, however, he’s also terrifying in the dangerous moments with Lily. The actpr balances the two sides of his character well, and it helps clarify why Lily chose to stay with him after the first incident of violence.
On the flip side, Sklenar’s natural charm explodes off the screen as he reunited with his first love, and the actor plays his moments with Lively with the same gentle yet strong demeanor Atlas has in the book.
The entire cast felt like they were made for these roles. Take even newcomer Isabela Ferrer, for example – who portrays Young Lily. Not only does she have a striking resemblance to Blake Livley, but she plays out Lily’s romance with Young Atlas with the whimsey and caution needed to amplify the meaning of them seeing each other again years later.
It’s in It Ends With Us’ tone where the film falters.
While the cast’s performances are great, issues arise when you consider the tone of the film.
On one hand, it’s a rom-com… sort of. At the start of Lily’s romance with Ryle and throughout her entire relationship with Atlas, you can feel the passion and happiness. For example, the scene where Lily and Ryle meet, you can sense that passion. Then, when she sees Atlas for the first time, the butterflies are basically flying off the screen. In a lot of ways, this movie is romantic, and it should be, but it also needs to balance itself with the serious side of its story.
When the film turns dark and Ryle gets violent, it’s jarring. I get that that’s supposed to be the case. However, before that happens, it’s hard to pick up on signals of the turn, and it feels like it comes out of nowhere. In the book, there are subtle red flags that signify Ryle’s bad behavior and the abusive relationship history of Lily’s mother too, making domestic violence and how its handled a prime piece of the story. All of that is downplayed in the movie, as her mom’s story has significantly less screentime and Ryle’s red flags aren’t as clear.
I’ve always interpreted It Ends With Us as a drama over anything else. So, having it feel like a happy-go-lucky rom-com in a lot of moments isn’t a choice I love.
There’s a lot to unpack with It Ends With Us, and everyone’s opinion on it will likely be wildly different, but all things considered, it’s a solid adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel.