TO ALL THE BOYS: PS. I STILL LOVE YOU: Can’t Quite Recapture The Magic

Netflix has recently been killing it with their own films. Films such as Marriage Story and The Irishman were critically acclaimed and up for several Oscars and Netflix announced that the Adam Sandler-starring Murder Mystery was their most watched film last year. To All The Boys I Loved Before may not have been up for any Academy Awards but it was one of Netflix’s best original films. Featuring an incredibly talented and diverse cast, To All The Boys 1 was a sweet and delightful little gem.

Based on a trilogy of books, we’ve now got the first of two sequels on our hands. Lara Jean Covey is now Peter Kavinsky’s official girlfriend, but things are about to be shaken up in Lara Jean’s life when a chap called John Ambrose just happens to be volunteering at the same nursing home as Lara Jean. What a coincidence! John Ambrose was one of the five boys Lara Jean’s sister mailed Lara Jean’s old secret love letters to, revealing Lara Jean’s feelings towards them. Lara Jean struggles with her feelings for Peter as well as her ever-growing feelings for John Ambrose and she must decide which boy is perfect for her.

While To All The Boys 2 is equally adorable and pastel-coloured as its predecessor, it’s lost some magic this time around. What was shiny and new two years ago, feels now a little stale. The film can’t expand on the premise enough and while the cast is still to die for, this simply needed more meat on its bones.

A Cast To Die For

Lana Condor remains a highlight of the film. She perfectly captures Lara Jean’s awkwardness and insecurities without ever making her into a cartoonish teenager. There’s a sense of restriction to Condor’s acting; as if Lara Jean feels like a real woman, even if the script doesn’t allow for much inner life apart from boy trouble. It’s a beautifully vulnerable performance and one of the highlights of the film is how it deals with the pressure of having sex with a boy, who’s already experienced in that field.

Of the new recruits, Jordan Fisher is charming as John Ambrose and he has easy chemistry with Condor and while everything is very PG, very mellow, the infatuation is believable and palpable. The pair convincingly bring to life the butterflies you get in your stomach when you’re around your crush and the tenderness of a new friendship, how it often feels like an adventure on its own. Noah Centineo continues to be reliable as Peter Kavinsky and while he’s fine, in fact, he’s the definition of just fine, there seems to be very little competition between Peter and John Ambrose. This film highlights Peter’s douche-y side while paints John Ambrose in almost saint-like light, which takes some of the tension out of the film. Both boys feel almost like caricatures rather than real life, fleshed out people.

It’s also nice to see Ross Butler of 13 Reasons Why fame here, even if he has absolutely nothing to do. Once again, To All The Boys’ strength is featuring one of the most diverse casts seen on screen lately, without ever making it into a forced point. The film isn’t interested in drawing attention into its casting, making it all the more successful for it. And this cast truly is one of the best around.

The Mistakes It Makes

The biggest mistake To All The Boys 2 does is not revealing more of Lara Jean’s inner life. Her life, at least within the realm of the film, is only defined by the boys she is interested. Her best friend Chris barely has any screen time and when she does, she spends it talking about her new crush. Gone is also Margot, who was so vital as Lara Jean’s older sister who moves to Scotland. This feels like a particularly big blow in a sequel to a film that so intrinsically brought to life the changing dynamics of sisterhood. Lara Jean’s younger sister Kitty isn’t afforded much time either, but at least mean girl Gen is afforded a come back and also some character development and depth rather than staying a one-note villain of the story.

But who is Lara Jean Covey? What are her goals, her dreams, her fears? If we’re to believe To All The Boys 2, they all revolve around Peter and John Ambrose which can’t be true. Especially since the first film made a ton of effort to make Lara Jean a multidimensional and layered character. The sequel had the possibility of deepening our understanding of Lara Jean’s personality and identity, especially in relation to her Korean roots, but seems only interested in her relationship status.

To All The Boys 2: P.S I Still Love You – Yay or Nay?

When compared to the first film, this sequel feels like a missed opportunity. It had all the right ingredients for a great teen comedy sequel, but the end product is a shallow attempt at capturing the magic and success of the first film. It needed more girl power and family relations and less boy trouble to reach the highs of its predecessor, but this is a novel attempt at bringing the crew back and throwing Lara Jean in the deep end of the boy trouble pool.

To All The Boys 2: P.S. I Still Love You is not a bad film in any way, it’s perfectly enjoyable, funny and sweet and the cast turn in phenomenal performances again. It’s the waste potential that makes this one such a disappointment.

What did you think of the film? Is it a worthy sequel? Let us know in the comments!

To All The Boys 2: P.S. I Still Love You is now streaming on Netflix.