The Half of It

Movie Review

The Half of It is a Netflix movie about a queer Asian-American teenager in a middle-of-nowhere town. It is a romantic comedy, but it sets a more serious tone in its delivery and writing. Ellie Chu, the main character, is someone who purposefully keeps to herself at school and does not have any friends, despite the fact that she is witty, funny, and has the confidence to stand up for herself. Her priorities are to help her dad, and she ends up repressing a lot of her feelings. In the story, she meets a boy in her school named Paul, who wants her to help him write a love letter, and their growing friendship kicks off the plot-line and evolves into a messy sort of love triangle. The movie is very refreshing and original. It’s still a bit rare for me to see an Asian American female as a lead in a romantic comedy, and even rarer still for that character to be queer. I am a sucker for heteronormative love stories, but it’s refreshing to see a story that puts a twist on the “boy meets girl” cliches.

My favorite part of this movie is the friendship that develops between Ellie & Paul. It’s so wholesome and sweet! As beautiful as Aster is, I honestly can care less about her character, and while watching, I almost wished she could have gone away. But without her, there would have been no fuel to help Ellie & Paul’s friendship grow, so I guess she’s allowed to stay. Emotionally, this film makes me feel warm and fuzzy. As the plot was progressing, I was really worried about the moment when all the secrets would be revealed and everything would fall apart (as all romcoms tend to have). However, when this moment happened, it was a bit cliche, but it wasn’t overly depressing. And in a way, it was almost funny! I think the jokes and the humor in this movie are very well-placed, and I found myself chuckling a lot.

The Half of It is a fun and heartwarming show for people of all ages. I wouldn’t rank it in my top 10, but for a rom-com, I think it hits all the right emotions.