With Valentine’s Day comes romance, gifts, and spending time with one’s significant other. Unfortunately, every year Hollywood exploits this holiday with a variety of poor romantic films to draw in audiences nationwide. “Endless Love,” starring Gabriella Wilde, Alex Pettyfer, and Bruce Greenwood was no exception to this rule.
Directed by Shana Feste, “Endless Love” tells the story of Jade Butterfield (Wilde), a young girl who drastically alters her lifestyle upon meeting David (Pettyfer), a charismatic teen with a troubled past.
As their relationship develops, the two lovers are tested as Jade’s father (Greenwood), continuously attempts to tear the two apart.
As I entered the doors of Regal Cinemas in Dickson City, I knew by the horde of young teenagers swarming the ticket booth that I was in for a unique movie experience.
In the nearly sold-out theater, as the opening credits rolled and the young stars appeared on screen, I could hear the synchronized swoon of young girls throughout the theater. I’m not kidding.
One of the biggest hurdles the film fails to overcome is the story’s own characters. On one hand, you have David, the 18-year-old misunderstood teen who only believes in finding his one true love, of course. On the other you have Jade, a shy, hard-working student with an upcoming internship.
Within 5 minutes of meeting one another for the first time, Jade experiences a complete turnaround. From introverted studious teenager to a flirty and promiscuous young woman, Jade’s sporadic and unwarranted transformation completely cocontradicts her entire character’s foundation prior to meeting David.
Another consistent downfall throughout the movie is the poor story development. Case in point, as two teens who graduated from the same class, the protagonists somehow manage to have never interacted before in their lives. Moreover, the two characters fall completely in love over a mere week, just days after graduation.
Hands down, the worst aspect of “Endless Love” is the unnecessary abundance of romantic clichés. From start to finish, there is an excess of cheesy drama, plot points, and dialogue that prevent the movie from ever being taken seriously.
I’m giving “Endless Love” 2/5 kernels.