‘Hello, Goodbye, and Everything In Between’ revolves around soon-to-graduate high school teens Aidan and Clare who decide to make the most of the 10 months left before they go off to college and break up before any hassles. The rom-com movie is streaming on Netflix.
Story
Clare is an ambitious high school senior who thinks she is risk-averse and dove headfirst into her textbooks as a result of the constant moving she experienced as a child as a result of her parent’s divorce.
She is determined not to let boyfriends or friendships take her attention away from earning a great future at a reputable college.
But fate had other plans when she is dragged to a Halloween party by her bestie Stella and she meets Aidan. Both catch a vibe and encounter this undeniable chemistry between them.
They trade jokes and flirty conversations, about their respective futures, and at the end of the night before saying goodbye, Clare, out of the blue blurts out she is not looking for a boyfriend, and Aidan is taken back.
After hearing Clare’s side of the story, Aidan tries to amend her foolproof, airtight contract for her future and proposes they make the following year the most memorable and they break up the night before they head off to college.
Thus, a breakup pact comes into the picture and both spend the following 10 months together.
As the end draws nearer, both have second thoughts about their pact, with Aidan having belief Clare might change her mind but Clare is determined not to take the high school to college with her.
Performances
Jordan Fisher, with his charming smile and witty jokes, does moderate justice to the character of Aidan. While his efforts are admirable for the emotional part of the role, he succeeds more in being the romantic and perfect boyfriend every girl dreams of having.
Talia Ryder is cute and charming and ambitious and brings out the essence of the character Clare perfectly. Though the character lacked emotions as compared to Aidan and Ryder, she still turns out to be captivating and engaging with her performance.
Positives
The soundtrack is the biggest plus of the movie. Certain songs blend in well with the situation, and the background score distracts the audience from the less performed scenes.
The scene that is most memorable is when Aidan arrives at the top of their final day together, he comes bearing flowers. “Lilies?” Clare asks. “It’s the flower of funerals,” he responds. It’s still a perfect line that conveys his humour and his heart.
Negatives
As the title suggests, the story is told in chapters. The structure works — starting at their first “hello” and quickly shuffling to their prolonged “goodbye,” which manages to show us “everything in between” via a cute framing device in which Aidan recreates all of their firsts. The “everything in between” is completely rushed giving the audience very little time to witness what made their relationship.
The film ends on a cliffhanger, or a dead-end if you may. It is not clear whether Clare changed her mind about their relationship and they figure things out in the end. Though the ending suggests they get to talking again and things might turn up, the ending still baffles audiences.
The film also fails to address teen issues such as parental pressure, dreams, and hopes. Such things have been addressed in other films in a better manner while this film gives very less screen time to the same.
Verdict
If you are the kind of person who loves happy endings in teen rom-coms, this is not the movie for you. On the other hand, if you are open to exploring the new reality of teen relationships, ‘Hello, Goodbye, and Everything In Between’ can be a good watch. Overall, the film has strong characters with the reality of young love and can be considered a one-time watch.
Rating: 2.5/5
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