Movie Review: 'Love, Rosie', Starring Lily Collins and Sam Claflin 

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Lily Collins and Sam Claflin have natural chemistry in 'Love, Rosie.'

In a world where most romance films wind up looking so much alike that it\'s hard to remember which one is which, Love, Rosie isn\'t necessarily original, but it does what many other films of its genre don\'t do: develop characters and make it more than just about the romance itself. The film has the main relationship anchor the film and the decisions made by each of the characters take front and center. So the final product ends up being a sweet, charming, and down-to-earth romance that has just the right amount of its genre elements but takes a slightly different route to get to its predictable ending.

The film starts off at a wedding before taking us back 12 years to where everything started for Rosie (

Lily Collins) and Alex (Sam Claflin), who are the best of friends. It\'s Rosie\'s 18th birthday party and she\'s completely drunk, so remembering that she and Alex kissed is a complete blank space in her head. Regardless, they\'re all set to go to the dance together, but after they both reluctantly release each other in order to go with other people to the dance, one night changes everything for them. Their decisions from then on are never well-timed and they\'re always just missing each other. But will they always remain friends or eventually turn into something more?

This film is wonderfully charismatic, charming, and full of sweet little touches that make it more than satisfying, which is really hard to do in this genre just because everything feels so recycled a lot of the time. The film, which is based on Cecilia Ahern\'s book Where Rainbows End (she also authored P.S. I Love You), is familiar, but has its own unique flavor and energy that it\'s really hard not to fall in love with it. Equally lovable are the characters, whose personalities and life decisions aren\'t forced just to create drama. They each come into their own very naturally, as does the story, developing at a moderate pace that doesn\'t rush the romance and takes its time to really flesh out everything surrounding it.

Lily Collins finally gets to shine in a role that actually highlights her abilities rather than leaves her with a meatless role like ones she\'s had in the past. Finally showing off her potential, Collins gives her character a sense of maturity and the ability to make hard decisions when it seems like there is no other course of action. Sam Claflin equally gets to stretch his acting in a new role outside of playing Finnick Odair in The Hunger Games series. Claflin is sweet and low-key in his role. He isn\'t like the usual leading man in this kind of film. There\'s something kind and genuine about him and not arrogant and he isn\'t trying to overtly charm every woman. He and Collins have believable chemistry and suit each other well.

Love, Rosie is wonderfully done without being over-the-top. Hell, there aren\'t even any grand speeches that either of the character has to monologue! It\'s heart-warming, the lead characters have great chemistry, and it\'s a movie anyone can enjoy because it\'s not overly sappy, mixing romance with the ups and downs of life in a well-balanced way. Nothing is particularly forced, the romance and life decisions they make flow from one scene to the next very well and keep the film from ever being boring. And what\'s even better is that the film is also about tough decisions and how these decisions (and one night) can alter everything you once knew. A sweet and well-told story with solid performances.

Mae Abdulbaki is a DC-based entertainment writer. She grew up with an addiction to movies and TV and loves to speak in pop culture references. Other works include articles written for InfoBarrel.com where two of her works were in the featured section. You can contact her by email at mae.abdulbaki@gmail.com or on Twitter @MaeAbdu.

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