My Thoughts on Always Be My Maybe

Romantic comedies have been in pretty good shape over the last while, gradually being brought back into the mainstream. And you know what? That's a really good thing to see, especially because most of them have been good, and a lot of them have been more diverse and progressive. Pleasingly, Always Be My Maybe continues that standard of quality rom-coms, even if it's not as strong as some of the others we've been getting. It stars Ali Wong and Randall Park as two people who've always belonged together but haven't seen each other in years, until they're finally, surprisingly, reunited. The movie really benefits from their performances, Wong bringing both great snark and great heart to her celebrity chef, and Park making his sarcastic everyman funny and loveable. Their chemistry together is fantastic, and always believable. It's the best thing here, because even though the plot really isn't that great (just guess if they end up together or not), it kind of doesn't matter when you're following leads this charming. Yeah, it's as predictable as you can get in a romantic comedy, but it's definitely an enjoyable time, so that's kind of alright

Always Be My Maybe is decent, but there's a sequence in the middle of the film that's just.... breathtaking. That's right, I'm talking about Keanu. God damn. Reeves. Generally it's a little cringe worthy when people play themselves, but seeing him just completely send himself up is just a delight. He makes every word count, and his brief appearance definitely makes the film stand out. He gets some gloriously over the top dialogue ("a residual cheque from my hit movie Speed"), and he's clearly having a blast, and as a result, I had one too

Overall, Always Be My Maybe is alright. It's cute, occasionally quite funny, but not fantastic. The story is pretty predictable, with the inevitable third act fight before they get together again, and we haven't really seen anything here that we haven't already, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy it. The chemistry between the leads is fantastic, and the sweet moments are genuinely quite heartwarming, and the ending with the new restaurant is really, really sweet. It's not revolutionary, but it's a solid rom-com, and a pretty pleasant watch