‘One True Loves’ Movie Adaptation Explores a Complicated Love Triangle
NY Times best-selling author Taylor Jenkins Reid’s popular romance novel comes to the big screen with Phillipa Soo and Simu Liu as the romantic leads.
(L to R) Phillipa Soo as Emma and Simu Liu as Sam in the romance/drama/comedy film, 'One True Loves,' a The Avenue release. Photo courtesy of The Avenue.
Is it possible to have two true loves? Find out on April 7th as ‘One True Loves’ opens in theaters. Directed by Andy Fickman, the movie is adapted from the romance novel of the same name.
What is the plot of ‘One True Loves?'
The story of ‘One True Loves’ follows Emma Blair (Phillipa Soo), who is living her perfect life, married to her high school sweetheart Jesse (Luke Bracey), and is working as a travel writer. On their one year wedding anniversary, Jesse leaves for a work trip and disappears following a helicopter crash. Heartbroken, she moves back home to be closer to her family. Years later, she finds love again and is engaged to her best friend, Sam (Simu Liu). Unexpectedly, she gets a call from Jesse who has been found. Now Emma has the difficult decision to decide who her true love is.
Who is in the cast of ‘One True Loves?'
‘One True Loves’ stars Phillipa Soo (Broadway’s ‘Hamilton’, ‘Shining Girls’) as Emma, Simu Liu (‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’) as Sam, and Luke Bracey (‘Hacksaw Ridge’) as Jesse. The film also stars Tom Everett Scott (‘Finding You’) as Emma’s brother-in-law Michael, and Michela Conlin (‘Bad Trip’) as Emma’s sister Marie.
Initial Thoughts
The rom-com is based on NY Times Best Selling author Taylor Jenkins Reid’s work, who also wrote the screenplay along with her husband. This helped the screen adaptation stay true to the book with little deviance. Phillipa Soo’s performance as Emma is so natural and relatable that you can’t help but fall in love with her and cry with her through her heartbreaks. The comedic moments were great to break up the more tense scenes but felt like it fell on Simu Liu’s shoulders to deliver most of those moments rather than having it more evenly distributed amongst the cast.
(L to R) Phillipa Soo as Emma and Simu Liu as Sam in the romance/drama/comedy film, 'One True Loves,' a The Avenue release. Photo courtesy of The Avenue.
Changes From The Book
With any book-to-screen adaptation, it’s natural to want to compare how much was changed from the source material. One of the biggest changes that book readers will notice from watching the trailer is Emma’s hair. In the book, Emma is known to rock a blonde pixie cut. The Emma in the film has long brown hair. Having read the book, one can understand the importance of that hairstyle. Though book fans might be disappointed to not see Emma in her signature pixie cut, rest assured that the core emotion of the story still carries out authentically.
Another small change from the book is Emma’s best friend, Olive, who is not in the movie. In the film, Sam assumes the role of being Emma’s best friend, giving them a basis for their history and connection. While I missed Olive’s quippy remarks, the change was not noticeable in the film.
Something that was a bit more jarring was the time jumps. The book jumps backward and forwards to tell the events of how Emma met Sam and Jesse, when the helicopter crashed, and when Emma finds out that Jesse has been rescued. While the time jump works well in the book, this structure did not translate well in the film. Those who may not have read the book before going into the film might find this a bit jarring and sudden, and at times, a bit excessive.
(L to R) Lauren Tom as Ashley, Michael O’Keefe as Colin, Phillipa Soo as Emma and Simu Liu as Sam in the romance/drama/comedy film, 'One True Loves,' a The Avenue release. Photo courtesy of The Avenue.
Cast Performance And Chemistry
As with any story with a complicated love triangle, the audience (and readers) will often choose a side to root for. While reading the book, it was hard to side with Sam or Jesse because while completely different, they both truly love Emma. Simu Liu and Luke Bracey’s performances as Sam and Jesse did not make it any easier to choose a side. It was great to see passages pull directly from the book and watch it play out on screen.
Simu Liu who plays Sam, is Emma’s fiance and a music teacher. We finally get to see Liu in a romantic lead role though it isn’t hard to picture given the actor’s charismatic nature. His chemistry with Phillipa Soo is very natural, and comforting to watch on screen. Being a music teacher in the film also allowed Liu to lean into his musicality. In fact, an original song entitled ‘Don’t’, written and performed by Liu plays during the end credit.
Luke Bracey is no stranger to romantic comedies, having starred in films like ‘Maybe I Do’ and ‘Holidate’. His character Jesse is fun-loving and adventurous. However, having gone through the traumatic events of surviving a helicopter crash and being lost at sea, Bracey’s performance was darker and emotionally raw.
The cast also includes Michaela Conlin as Emma’s sister Marie and Tom Everett Scott as Emma’s brother-in-law Michael. Marie has a huge part in helping Emma come out of her depression, and the back-and-forth between Phillipa Soo and Michaela was fun to watch. However, the movie did not give more time to dive into the relationship of the sisters, and at times it felt like Marie’s purpose was to only serve as Emma’s cheerleader rather than having more impact.
Phillipa Soo as Emma in the romance/drama/comedy film, 'One True Loves,' a The Avenue release. Photo courtesy of The Avenue.
Final Thoughts
It is not always easy to satisfy fans of the original material with book-to-screen adaptations, but ‘One True Loves’ makes it happen, despite the small changes. With Taylor Jenkins Reid penning the screenplay, she was able to convey the essential parts of the story with all the highs and lows one feels while reading the book.
‘One True Loves’ receives 7 out of 10 stars.
(L to R) Phillipa Soo as Emma and Luke Bracey as Jesse in the romance/drama/comedy film, 'One True Loves,' a The Avenue release.
Other Movies Similar to ‘One True Loves:’
- 'The Notebook' (2004)
- 'The Fault In Our Stars' (2012)
- 'Call Me By Your Name' (2017)
- 'Crazy Rich Asians' (2018)
- 'The Kissing Booth' (2018)
- 'Love, Simon' (2018)
- 'To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before' (2018)
- 'Five Feet Apart' (2019)
- 'Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings' (2021)
Where to Stream and Watch Online: 'One True Loves'
Buy Simu Liu Movies On Amazon
‘One True Loves’ is produced by Volition Media Partners, Gosdom Entertainment, Studio507, Blue Rider Pictures, Thomasville Pictures, SquareOne Productions, Oops Doughnuts Productions, Storybook Entertainment, El Ride Productions, I Think Productions, and Streamline Global, and will be in theaters on April 7, on digital April 14, and On-Demand on April 28.
