The day before Valentine’s Day is the perfect time for a cheesy romantic Netflix original. Peter Kavinsky (Noah Centineo) and Lara Jean Covey’s (Lana Condor) love story continues in the movie “To All The Boys: P.S. I Still Love You.”
The original movie, “To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before,” received dazzling ratings online, scoring a 97% on Rotten Tomatoes. However, the sequel did not perform as well, receiving 74%.
After watching it myself, I did indeed see a few gaps in the storyline of the second movie, while I was a big fan of the first one. One loose end that should have been tied up towards the end of the movie was regarding the kiss between John Ambrose (Jordan Fisher) and Lara Jean.
After they had a magical moment at Bellview, a retirement home where they volunteer, Lara Jean realizes her true feelings for Peter. However, the movie rushes to an end after Lara Jean and Peter tell each other how they feel and do not address Lara Jean’s relationship with John Ambrose after their kiss. The viewer was left wondering if John Ambrose was angry with Lara Jean, or if they were able to remain friends after their shared moment.
In addition, the second movie was less about the love letters, which was the crux of the first. When John Ambrose gave Lara Jean her letter back so she could see how in love with him she used to be, it is never addressed if he gets it back. They made a deal that she would read it and give it back to him after, because he was so flattered by it.
However, after they discuss how Lara Jean was embarrassed and did not want to give it back, John Ambrose insists. They never discuss the letter again, so the reader assumes Lara Jean kept the love letter and did not give it back to him. However, this allowed for some confusion.
Another loose end that left the audience slightly confused at the end of the movie was the relationship between Lara Jean’s father (John Corbett) and their neighbor Trina (Sarayu Blue). After Trina jokingly explains to Lara Jean how she knew her little sister Kitty (Anna Cathcart) wrote a Valentine’s Day love letter to her from her father, the audience assumes that the father will end up being with her.
With his daughters on board and his feelings for her being quite evident, the viewers assume they are in love. However, between family dinners and other encounters with Trina, the audience is still unsure if the father ended up dating her. It was a minor character relationship, but still one that should be more clear.
Lastly, the movie took a surprise turn when the audience discovers how Lara Jean and Gen (Emilija Baranac) used to be best friends in middle school. They shared a moment in the treehouse when they displayed their friendship bracelets they planted in a time capsule from a few years prior. This friendship was extremely surprising as Lara Jean and Gen were almost enemies throughout both movies. They fail to explain where their friendship went wrong and why they were not as close anymore. Granted, their separate relationships with Peter allowed for a rift in their friendship. But, before that it is unclear why they were not as close friends.
Audiences in the target age of 13-18 love sappy, romantic movies, especially around Feb. 14. However, it is safe to say that the majority of fans of the first movie were slightly let down by the sequel to this series. It was an entertaining movie, nonetheless, one that I enjoyed watching it. However, it left me questioning multiple plot points, wondering about the abruptness of its ending.
