Romantic comedies on Netflix are a genre of their own. Here, a boy meets a girl, and after a little hardship in the middle of the movie, things fall into place, and they get a happy ending. The formula has remained largely unchanged since Notting Hill, when Julia Roberts’ starlet character fell in love with the dorky but charming Hugh Grant’s bookstore owner character. However, the audience still returns to romantic comedies simply because of the comforting feeling these movies bring us and also because of the celebration of love they so wholesomely display. Numa Perrier’s latest romantic comedy on Netflix follows this formula to a T and still manages to appeal to a wide audience. Starring Gabrielle Union and Keith Powers in the lead roles, the movie talks about a 40-year-old fashion designer who falls in love with a handsome young film studies graduate. Are Jenna and Eric able to overcome the problems that society has with their love and become each other’s The Perfect Find? Here’s a detailed review of this love story you shouldn’t miss:
Spoilers Ahead
What Happens In The Story?
Jenna Jones had been riding the waves of success for so long that she had forgotten what interviewing for a job felt like. She had a loving fiancé named Brian and worked as the top fashion designer in one of the leading organizations. Everything was going straight for this woman, until her 40s when things fell apart in a haze. Jenna was fired from her job, her relationship of 10 years with Brian ended sorely, and the internet wasted little time making bountiful memes about her Icarus-like crash. After spending almost a year in her parent’s home, Jenna was, in a way, pushed out to go find success once more in life, which brought her to Brooklyn.
Here, Jenna arrived at Darzine, an enterprise booming in fashion design founded and led by Darcy, a horribly narcissistic but tremendously passionate publishing mogul. From the get-go, we’re informed that Darcy and Jenna have an old history: Jenna got all the jobs Darcy wanted and also slept with Darcy’s boyfriend, although she actually didn’t know about their relationship. Jenna manages to land the job, and on the same night, at a party, she finds herself vigorously kissing a handsome young man named Eric. With the anger toward Brian fresh on her mind, Jenna had slipped for a moment but quickly regained her senses and walked out of the party. But lo and behold, Eric turned out to be the son of Darcy, and he was partnered up with Jenna by the mogul herself. The rest is rather predictable, but you don’t find any of the moments the two share as they slowly gravitate toward each other to be forced or cliched. Tasked with making Darzine a raging success, Jenna’s gray cells light up thanks to a little extra motivation from Eric when they find themselves alone, and the project The Perfect Find kicks off. The lovers successfully bring back fashion that was famous in the first half of the 20th century. Simultaneously, Jenna and Eric realize increasingly that they, too, are each other’s perfect finds, hence the name.
However, megalomaniac Darcy makes it clear to Jenna that there must not be anything more than a strict friendship between Jenna and her son, Eric, and Jenna does promise to have no distractions. The project is a massive hit, and celebrations are underway, although secretly, because Jenna still wants to keep their love under wraps. Eric, on the other hand, was ready to come out in the open with their relationship. He fails to understand that such a decision might adversely affect Jenna’s career, her professional standing, or her place in society, and the two end up having a fight at a children’s party. The next day, though, Jenna gathers all her courage and heads into Eric’s (and Darcy’s) place to get her boyfriend back, and they make up. Trouble ensues, however, when Darcy walks in to find her son and her employee, whom she doesn’t exactly hold in the highest regard, engaged in a compromising situation. Not only does Darcy badly insult Jenna, but she also terminates her immediately from Darzine, making her leave the apartment with her head hanging in shame. Was this the end of the road for Jenna and Eric, or will they find their way back to each other? Shall Darcy ever accept Jenna as her daughter-in-law, and will the fashion designer have her career back? All these questions are answered in Numa Perrier’s movie The Perfect Find, so go check it out today.
Review
As is the case with romantic comedies on Netflix, color and vibrancy are intricate themes of The Perfect Find to express the joys that lovers experience when their love is realized. Beautiful music keeps you entertained throughout, and the shot at the bridge where Jenna and Eric’s lips meet, is a perfect example of amazing cinematography. Similarly, the saddening moments or ones of tension are presented on a grayer scale, where the colors have seeped from the screen to present the emotions the protagonists experience. Overall, there’s not much, cinematography-wise, that won’t appeal to the audience; that much is certain.
The story itself, although based on the age-old formula, has a few refreshing elements when you consider the fact that it’s a young man in his 20s who falls in love with a 40-year-old woman, despite the taboos established by society. Jenna and Eric don’t deny their feelings for each other and cherish each other’s company, even if they can’t do it in public, and this is what makes their relationship one you start rooting for. Additionally, the dialogues are actually hilarious in some places, and you’ll find yourself laughing along with most of the jokes, not even aware of how simple they really are. This makes The Perfect Find a light-hearted romantic comedy that hooks the audience with jokes in the first half and some good acting and drama in the second. The flow of events, although predictable, keeps you hooked as you find yourself eager to discover what became of Eric and Jenna’s relationship because, by the second half, you want their relationship to succeed.
With that being said, The Perfect Find could use a little more influx of actual fashion design, as much as it used cinematography and moviemaking to highlight Eric’s profession. Granted, it’s a romantic comedy, but if a little more focus was put on Jenna’s profession, where she was shown designing dresses instead of making a movie, her credibility as a big-shot fashion designer would have been proven beyond question. Additionally, we don’t find out about Jenna’s life before she broke up with Brian or how she was fired from her previous job, so the audience has to start from a sudden point in her life. Although bits and pieces of information are provided throughout the runtime, a little more exposition could help explain the timeline better.
In conclusion, though, despite its handful of issues here and there, The Perfect Find is definitely a loveable romantic comedy that you should give a shot to this weekend. However, just make sure not to let the kids in because there are quite a few rather graphic scenes. With that out of the way, fire up Netflix and enjoy The Perfect Find because Sundays and romantic comedies are also the perfect match for each other.
