With Valentine's Day around the corner, you're probably trawling the best streaming services for something romantic to watch. Stop wasting your time and boot up Prime Video, because the best modern rom-com (which even non-romance viewers will like) is on there.
I'm talking about a 2022 movie made by Amazon called I Want You Back (which, in the US at least, is free to watch on Prime Video under the Freevee brand). Far too few people have even heard about this movie, despite its glowing 87% critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Our romantic leads in the movie are the wonderful comedy actors Jenny Slate and Charlie Day. They play two strangers who are dumped by their respective partners, and then have a fortuitous meeting when they're both heartbroken.
This isn't your average romance where they learn to give love a second chance after hurt, though. No; in I Want You Back they hatch a scheme to break up the others' exes' new relationships, to force them back into their arms.
What ensues is just-under-two-hours of scheming and commiserating, as they try to stop their exes' happiness, but also slowly character growth as they learn to be happy in their own skin and address the issues they were dumped in the first place.
I'm not a fan of the generic rom-coms that get dumped onto streaming services by the bucketload, but I loved I Want You Back. It's that most heartfelt and earnest of romance movie in which the eventual coupling isn't an all-but-guaranteed end of a character arc, but a reward for the characters learning and growing in themselves. In short it's a character drama about two people who just so happen to find love as a reward for their personal growth.
It can be wickedly dark at times, like when Slate's Emma tries to break up Day's Peter's exes new relationship by initiating an ill-advised threesome with her and her new man, or when Peter takes drugs with Emma's ex in a night that swiftly goes downhill. That's why I say it's great for non-romance fans, as there's enough comedy for it to stand on its own. The eventual revelation of the scheming, during a romantic wedding, goes about as poorly as you'd imagine. And instead of the film copping out by throwing out a generic happy ending, there are real consequences for the characters.
But in the end it's a lot more honest about relationships than other rom-coms; people make mistakes and can do silly things when they're upset. Peter and Emma are no exceptions.
The best part of I Want You Back is how well it combines the aforementioned romantic drama with real comedy, and as some of the best comedy actors in the biz, Day and Slate are really great. They're joined by a solid cast including Gina Rodriguez, Scott Eastwood, Manny Jacinto and Clark Backo.
Rom-coms that appeal to non-rom-com fans have been enjoying a golden age recently; first there was I Want You Back in 2022 and then a year later we saw No Hard Feelings in 2023 and Anyone But You in 2023/4 (depending on where you live). Notably these latter two were studio movies, and I Want You Back is a rare example of a streaming rom-com that's any good. I'm hoping 2025 brings a belter too!
So if you're looking for a great Valentine's Day watch this year, particularly if you're in a couple with one person who wants romance and one who doesn't, I Want You Back is a great pick.
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