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Hello! Last week, I wrote my first movie review on HIVE ever - which was pretty much a lengthy rant on how bad He's All That was. While it is quite funny to write those and I like making sassy comments about something I consider bad, that's not all you will see here.

In fact, I don't expect to write many reviews as negative as that one. I am really easy when it comes to movies and I like them most of the time; whether they're cheesy, cringe or whatever else. In this one, I will be way more positive, as I'll be reviewing Marry Me. I wouldn't say it was a great movie per se, but it simply accomplishes what it sets out to do - and I think that's an important factor to recognize when talking about movies; not every movie aims to be Oscar-worthy.. Some can just be fairly pleasant to watch.

Before I move onto the review, I want to just quickly talk about how I'll make my reviews going forward. They will always be posted on Fridays, but I can't guarantee I'll do it every Friday - I will try to be fairly consistent though and do at least 2-3 a month. The reviews will be rather bite-sized. I am not aiming for a particular word count, but I'd expect something between 800-1200 words in most of them, with the usual style of Synopsis -> My opinion on the matter -> Whatever else I've noticed is special, whether that's actors, music, SFX, etc.

Of course, you may have noticed this one is posted on Saturday, instead of one of my travel posts - that is because I was too busy on Friday to write a satisfactory enough post!

Synopsis

Still image from the movie.

DISCLAIMER: There is a bunch of small spoilers here, that shouldn't matter at all as most of it happens within the beginning of the movie. I'm pretty sure that's normal as this is a synopsis, but I figured I'd still add this disclaimer.

The story begins by following two completely different characters. Kat Valdez (J Lo), a latino star who never made it all the way to being an award-winner has finally broke through, much in thanks to her partner - the chart topping Bastian, played by Maluma himself. They have planned a wedding in front of a huge audience, while performing their newest hit together - Marry Me. How fitting!

In parallel, the movie introduces us to Charlie Gilbert. He is a divorced guy, working as a math teacher - clearly passionate about his job in school. He lives with his daughter, although only half the time, as she spends the rest of her time with her mother. His daughter considers him rather boring - which is likely true from what we see. They end up going to the wedding/concert, both because he wants to be "cooler" in her eyes, as well as through nagging of his friend, Parker.

The two stories get tangled together through a series of (un)fortunate events: Kat (and the whole world) finds out that Bastian cheated on her and in a surge of emotions, seeing a random guy holding a "Marry Me" sign in the audience, she calls him out and ends up marrying him instead. That guy is Charlie.

Throughout the rest of the movie, we see their lives get more and more intertwined, as they try to navigate their very public relationship - first for Kat's PR, and later on also for love.

Personal Opinion

My long-lasting career as a movie reviewer on HIVE has not been full of positive reviews. In fact, 100% have been negative. All 1 of them. I will be changing that with Marry Me, as I already mentioned at the beginning - it is a good movie at what it's (I believe) trying to do!

First of all, it is extremely cheesy. I mean, the whole premise of two people meeting and MARRYING without even knowing each other is just impossible not to make cheesy. While this part of the movie is ridiculous, what happens after makes quite a bit of sense. The way that everyone has reacted to the whole situation (well, except marrying a complete stranger) seems fairly sensible.. Nothing to complain about there.

The dialogues are good. The way that characters interact with each other feels quite real and I like the character development, which is actually not that common - sadly - in this genre of movies. For the majority of the movie, it is enjoyable to watch the story develop. You know that feeling when you cringe so hard you feel like getting up and walking away for a bit? Just pausing the scene? That simply does not happen here.

I really enjoyed my time in the cinema. I did not have much expectations, but the movie exceeded them! If you want to just lay back and enjoy a movie that's not too heavy, has a cute story and is not exaggerating the simplest of things - go see this one!

The few gripes I have are mostly insignificant. While I said there's no exaggerating.. Towards the end, the kids at the math contest are acting quite ridiculous - come on, they are nerds, they wouldn't be THAT mean.. I hope. Another thing was that the usual "problem" moment happened a little late. I felt like if it was just a few scenes earlier, it would make much more sense, while this way it seemed slightly out of place for me.

Music

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While this is a romantic comedy-drama kind of movie, there was quite a bit of singing - like halfway to a musical. I am quite sure it was not everyone's cup of tea, I personally liked the songs that were a part of this movie. I am not that big of a fan of J Lo's music normally, but the songs in Marry Me were ones that I could vibe with easily.

Despite being a metalhead, I do have a soft side that listens to Reggaeton; whether while partying, or just to cool down every once in a while. In that guilty pleasure of mine, Maluma is my top choice and the music here delivers on what having Maluma in your movie with music promises. I was happy to hear the songs by him for sure!

What I liked the most about the music in this movie though was that it was not too much. I do not really like musicals, because it feels like every scene has a ridiculous reason to have someone sing and/or dance. Luckily, Marry Me has all the right songs in all the right places. They do not seem forced, they are inserted cleverly.. What's not to like?

Closing Words

So, overall - if you like chill movies, if you enjoy romantic comedy-dramas - watch Marry Me. I recommend it whole-heartedly, as something you can go see with your partner or a bunch of friends on an evening off from work. You can just lay back and be sure that you won't be too disturbed - it isn't a movie that makes you think too much, but it also does not make you cringe. It just makes you smile at times with how cute it can get.