1945. Everybody Loves Somebody (2017)

Starring: Karla Souza, José María Yazpik, Ben O’Toole

Director: Catalina Aguilar Mastretta

Running Time: 102 mins

Everybody Loves Somebody (Todos queremos a alguien) is a Mexican film about a woman who has been successful in her career, but not so successful in her romantic life. One day, she convinces a co-worker to pretend to be her boyfriend and attend a family wedding, but complications ensue when her ex-boyfriend arrives on the scene.

Although it’s as generic as can be, this is a simple, sweet romantic comedy. With a whole host of very likable performances from its actors, and a generally light-hearted and upbeat atmosphere, it’s a pleasant watch throughout, even if it isn’t the most emotionally powerful or original film ever made.

Let’s start off on the lighter side of things, with the performances. Normally, a cheesy, formulaic rom-com story means that the actors have little chance to shine, but that’s not the case here. In general, all of the performers with either a lead or co-lead role put in very entertaining shows, ranging from the likable and often even surprisingly complex performance from Karla Souza, to the Rob Lowe-esque dashing ex played by José María Yazpik.

In that, while the film may not manage to do much with its screenplay, the performances bring it a well-needed level of professionalism and energy, and they alone make Everybody Loves Somebody a genuinely enjoyable watch for the most part.

Another big plus is that the film is fairly light-hearted throughout. Despite the odd moment of painfully cheesy romance that feels so, so forced, the majority of the movie is an entertaining comedy, and although I wouldn’t say it’s so good when it comes to big, hearty laughs, it’s still a consistenly enjoyable watch, and one that you really don’t have to think too hard about at any point, meaning you can sit back and relax from start to finish.

In general, the film feels pretty solid in most respects. It’s well-acted, bright, well-paced and sufficiently funny and entertaining to keep your interest from start to finish. However, none of that can hide the fact that it’s still a very formulaic romantic comedy that just doesn’t try hard enough to be different.

With a premise that’s in some ways comparable to the likes of Dan In Real Life, you’d expect there to be a good bit of romantic tension to go along with the central love triangle. However, that’s not the case, and the film fails to really get to grips with what should be a strongly emphasised central story.

We’ve seen that a generic romantic comedy story can work in the past, but only with good, deep character development to go along with it. Everybody Loves Somebody, on the other hand, is a film that just goes through the motions of the genre formula, and doesn’t provide anything other than a superficial, albeit pleasant and fairly enjoyable watch throughout, which is why I’m giving it a 7.1 overall.