Starring Lucy Hale and Nat Wolff in the lead roles, the 204 romantic comedy film, Which Brings Me To You, delves into the idea that our existence and love life are a fusion of all our past experiences. Every single one of these experiences has a significant impact on us, especially in our romantic lives. Whether it is in a good or a bad way, however, is quite uncertain, but like all rom-com movies, Which Brings Me To You explores a rather hopeful outlook for the future. This movie unfolds with a balance of humor, heart, drama, self-discovery, and—er, cheese, painting an obvious picture of optimism. The kind of senseless romance you would watch after a heartbreak (scoff!).
Which Brings Me To You explores the intertwining stories of Jane and Will, who cross paths at a wedding. Following an instant connection, they decide to indulge in a seemingly meaningless sexual encounter in a coatroom, which goes wrong when Will second-guesses the whole encounter and prefers to talk first. Jane, feeling embarrassed, leaves the resort, making Will feel guilty for her humiliation. He persistently attempts to explain himself and convinces Jane to join him on a trauma-dumping journey. As they spend the next 24 hours together talking about their past relationships, the movie digs deeper into these experiences, their patterns, and the instances that led them to this point in time. This movie also navigates the complexities of modern love and, well, people in general.
Spoilers Ahead
What Happens On Will’s Journey With His Past Relationships?
Will, a commercial photographer by profession, meets Rachel at the wedding. After a brief conversation, they head to a coatroom for a casual hookup. An encounter Will ends abruptly, seemingly driven by certain resolutions he has made for himself. Will’s passion for photography was ignited during his high school romance with Jodi. Before leaving his hometown to go to university, he promises Jodi that he won’t forget about her, but when he comes home to surprise her, he discovers her with someone else, shattering the poor boy’s heart and setting the tone for Will’s future romantic endeavors.
The next relationship he finds himself in is with Eve, an older woman who works in New York. After meeting outside Will’s university, Eve unexpectedly gets intimate with him in his dorm room, following which she convinces him to skip his classes and accompany her to her apartment in New York. Will ends up in a relationship with this older woman, who reveals that she has fallen for him because he doesn’t see her through a judgmental lens. Will, on the other hand, finds himself intimidated by her needy nature, prompting him to leave her for good.
As a budding photographer on the art scene, Will frequently engages in a series of relationships until he meets Audrey, a struggling musician who moves in with him but it all ends in another failure in love. Audrey, however, later reveals that she is pregnant with Will’s child and has decided to raise the baby.
What Makes Him Interrupt His Hookup With Jane?
What becomes evident through Will’s romantic history is a recurring pattern where he pursues relationships following a hookup without delving into a deeper understanding of the other person beforehand. The common thread among the women in Will’s past is a sense of neediness, which has, in various ways, brought him down, which in turn has made him abandon his relationships. In his current state of mind, Will’s outlook on love has evolved, reflecting a need for a more meaningful connection beyond physical encounters, as now he has a 5-year-old child, which has brought about a sense of regret for not having been able to dedicate more time to his child. Following these experiences, he has resolved to change the way he pursues his relationships.
What Happens On Jane’s Journey With Her Past Relationships?
Jane is a freelance writer, researching an article for Vanity Fair, when she meets Will at the wedding, leading to their humiliating encounter. Similar to Will, she has had a series of romantic misadventures with men, which began when she was in high school with Michael, an emotionally unavailable mysterious boy who had a red ‘68 Mustang. While it was never a relationship, her association with this boy ended after he lost his father and broke up with her, starting her chain of disappointments.
In her senior year, she meets Elton, a fellow collegemate, and his words charm the young Jane. However, Elton suffers from a certain mental condition, which makes him doubt everyone around him. Following a reckless stunt in a drunk state at their university campus, he gets admitted into an institution, but Elton’s disregard for his condition prompts Jane to end their relationship as well. She pursues another relationship with Wallace, a shy professor at her university, whose work Jane absolutely adores. Wallace seems inept at social behavior, following a past of alcohol abuse, and impulsively jumps to further stages of their relationship. After a relapse into his alcohol addiction, he proposes to Jane, asking her to marry him. This prompts Jane to put an end to another relationship. It is revealed that following their breakup, Wallace passed away, for which Jane blamed herself for quite some time, refraining from meeting new people.
After a long time of avoiding dating new people, she meets Mark, a lawyer with a seemingly well-settled family. Even though Jane finds him boring, she is attracted to the prospect of being settled and sees it as a bargain for a happier life. However, her relationship with Mark ends after she sleeps with Mark’s brother. Because of her unfortunate roles in her past relationships, Jane loathes herself. In each instance, the men she has been involved with ultimately sought to be saved rather than actively working on self-improvement. This pattern has left Jane burdened with the aftermath of their actions.
Do Will And Jane End Up Together?
After spending the entire day delving into their past relationships and patterns, Will and Jane find themselves sharing a more intimate connection as they end up sleeping together. However, the aftermath of their encounter takes an unexpected turn when Jane learns about Juliet, Will’s 5-year-old daughter. This revelation infuriates Jane, as she realizes that Will has not been forthcoming about this significant detail about his life despite being asked about every other important relationship. In the heat of the moment, Jane decides to leave. Both Will and Jane take some time to reflect on their actions, contemplating the impact of their past behaviors on the budding connection between them. After a period of introspection, they independently realize that every previous relationship, with all its challenges, has uniquely led them to each other.
During Which Brings Me To You‘s ending, Will finally opens up about Juliet, explaining how his daughter reminds him of Jane. Importantly, he expresses his commitment to not running away from his responsibilities. Jane, on her part, confesses that she has never shared her fears or connected with anyone else in the way she has with Will. Despite the uncertainty of the future, she acknowledges that she values their connection immensely. Mutually deciding to take a leap of faith, regardless of the potential for success or failure, Will and Jane decide to figure things out together. Their understanding of each other’s complexities and a shared commitment to facing the challenges ahead create a foundation for a more genuine connection. The story takes a hopeful turn as they embrace the possibility of a future together.
