In the world of film there is the accepted saying that “the book is always better”, which means that films are often lesser forms of the stories told in the books they are adapted. However, there are exceptions to this rule and the recent adaptation of The love hypothesis is an example of this. Perhaps this is helped by the fact that the novel in question is Reylo. star wars Fan fiction to begin with, but I enjoyed this movie more than the novel.
I have read two of author Ali Hazelwood’s novels and had the same problem with both books. She’s too worried about her characters not being problematic that they come off as fake and the dialogue feels like the therapy is coded and inauthentic. In The love hypothesis The characters are entering into a fake dating contract, but virtually all of the conversations seem to have been pre-approved by the character’s psychiatrists rather than the clumsy, awkward way humans actually talk.
I’m not saying I don’t want respect and consent to exist, but I also don’t want to read a romance about robots that always say the right thing at the right time. This is particularly true for Hazelwood’s characters who are college-age young people or, in this case, graduate students. like i said The love hypothesis gets a bit of a pass because it started out as Reylo fan fiction, so it wasn’t meant to be a serious novel, but when multiple books have the same problem, it’s a turn-off.
Anyway, back to the movie… in the Sarah Rothschild adaptation, directed by Claire Scanlon, they take the story from the novel and minimize the therapy talk by making it part of the nerdy scientists’ flirtatious banter. It also helps that they have two leads, Tom Bateman and Lili Reinhart, who have incredible chemistry together. I also appreciate the little nods to Reylo in the direction (having Adam dressed all in black, the way he walks, enters a room, the music that plays at certain moments is a lot of fun).
The plot is, of course, ridiculous, but I have to admit that I love the fake dating theme. It almost always works for me. Also the grumpy boy and the sunny girl is another favorite trope (and a favorite in almost all of the Hazelwood novels). The movie runs about 30 minutes longer than it needs to (I really think these types of rom-coms are better at the 80-90 minute mark, but maybe that’s what I’ve gotten used to with formula Hallmark movies?)
That said, if you like romantic comedies with witty banter between leads with good chemistry, you’ll fall in love. The love hypothesis. Surely if you liked the book you will love this movie. It’s a little spicy like the book, so be careful, but it’s also a good sexy and fun time.
