Film Review - Finding Emily
Images courtesy of Universal Pictures.
No one does a romcom quite like the Brits. Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001), Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994) and Love Actually (2003) are just a few of the British films we’ve witnessed become classics over the years. Enter Finding Emily, advertising itself as a new British romcom ‘from the producers of Bridget Jones’s Diary and Love Actually’, and naturally, expectations are very high when in such good company.
Owen (Spike Fearn) is an aspiring musician who works as a sound engineer at a university campus bar. Whilst working one night, he meets a mysterious and beautiful girl dressed as a fairy. They share an instant spark and spend the night talking and dancing, and when she and her friends have to leave, she gives him her number and name; Emily. When Owen, totally enamoured, messages his dream girl the next day, he discovers that the number is a digit short and doesn’t work. With only her name to go by, he tries to find her and meets a different Emily (Angourie Rice), not the one he is looking for. This Emily is a psychology student and romantic cynic, writing a thesis on love being a state of psychosis and a disservice to human evolution. She agrees to help him find his Emily, while also (without his knowledge) studying him as an ideal subject for her thesis. As their search grows, it becomes a campus-wide frenzy, and Owen tries everything to find his Emily, from emailing every single Emily enrolled at the university to appearing on a student podcast and performing a love song he wrote. He and Rice’s Emily also grow closer, which causes complications for both of their own original ambitions.
Finding Emily is an instantly charming affair, from the moment we meet Fearn’s Owen. A character deeply fixated on a random girl he met one night could have easily come off as creepy and offputting (though the film does comically address this when female students label Owen as a predator), but instead, he’s completely endearing. Despite his obvious delusions, he has the truest and most pure of intentions, making it impossible not to root for him. This should be a breakout role for Fearn, whose performance is wonderfully complimented by Rice’s Emily. She brings the charisma, playfulness and energy that any romcom leading lady should deliver, and together, they are a joy to watch. The film itself has the reminiscent feel of the old-school British romcoms previously mentioned - particularly in its style of humour - but still manages to feel current thanks to an effective implementation of modern satire. When Gen Z humour and culture are infused into contemporary films, it can often backfire and come across as cringeworthy, however Finding Emily manages to find the sweet spot and remain self aware, usingGen Z devices to drive the story forward, as Owen’s quest spreads across social media. The chaos he and Emily cause across campus is definitely the funnest part of the film, because while the ending is obviously predictable, there are so many surprising and heartfelt moments along the way.
Finding Emily definitely has the potential to become the next British romcom classic for the new generation.
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Finding Emily is screening in cinemas now. For tickets and more info, click here.