To All the Boys: Always and Forever

Following up a forgettable sequel to a surprisingly good rom-com, "To All the Boys: Always and Forever" ends the trilogy on a flawed but very solid note.

2018’s To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before was a surprisingly fun addition to Netflix’s originals. Its popularity and positive critical backing, while warranted, felt like it came out of nowhere, especially a few months after Netflix’s own The Kissing Booth made people second guess whether the company cared about quality rom-coms or not. While it’s not a groundbreaking film, it felt like a breath of fresh air that plays creatively with the subgenre’s tropes as well as creating a genuinely cute relationship between Lana Condor’s Lara Jean and Noah Centineo’s Peter Kavinsky. I remember watching it as a date and being caught off-guard by how fun, engaging, and visually appealing the film was, even going so far as to thinking about a rewatch in the future. As a standalone film, I’d still recommend it as a phenomenal date film almost three years later. 

However, it’s not a standalone film anymore. Almost immediately, Netflix jumped onto the bandwagon and announced a sequel in development, making a lot of people (including myself) realize that the cute, modern take on a rom-com was actually based off of a trilogy of books. It wasn’t until the middle of 2020 that Netflix released To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You, a forgettable sequel that honestly feels like it waters down the best elements of the first film as well as pushing a love triangle that feels worthless in the long run. It’s not an awful film but it definitely made it feel like there was very little that could be expanded on after the first film. Thankfully, the finale to the trilogy, To All the Boys: Always and Forever, proves that to not be the case. 

To All the Boys: Always and Forever starts with Lara Jean in Korea right before her senior year of high school, reflecting on her relationship with Peter as college applications are slowly updating. In her mind, she imagines a perfect life for them that starts with both of them going to Stanford. However, once her senior year starts, surprising college revelations as well as a senior trip to New York leads to Lara Jean reconsidering that plan, worrying that these new paths for the future could lead to a rift between Peter that can never be fixed. Will she force herself down the path she’s been planning for months? Or will she let herself discover new avenues that could ultimately lead to the end of her relationship with Peter? 

When I watched the trailer for the film, I initially got worried that it was going towards the second film’s decision to drag out easily avoidable conflict instead of having a genuine, relatable issue that engages the audience. When I discovered it was the latter, I sighed with relief. To All the Boys: Always and Forever does a really good job of invoking the fear and excitement surrounding a teenager post-high school. Watching Lara Jean slowly fall in love with her options is just as captivating as her worry surrounding her relationship with Peter, knowing full well what’s best for her while also understanding what long distance can do to a relationship. Should she go this new route? Should she risk possibly stunting her growth for the sake of a plan that’ll probably not turn out how she’s imagining? The film contemplates both in a very engaging way.

While any adult watching the film might scoff at how silly this whole premise seems (I certainly did at times), I think its core demographic will really benefit from seeing a healthy relationship deal with distance, change, and the importance of finding oneself when given the opportunity. Unlike the second film, both Lara Jean and Peter feel like they’re growing authentically to the point where both characters have great moments that feel like the perfect send-off after the first film. It certainly helps that the chemistry between Lana Condor and Noah Centineo has not faded in the slightest, capturing romantic moments well as well as the serious ones that stem from their families, futures, etc. It’s also nice to see returning characters such as John Corbett’s Mr. Covey (Lara Jean’s dad) and Sarayu Blue’s Trina (Lara Jean’s stepmom-to-be who was just a neighbor in the previous film) get more time to give great advice as well as be fun characters that accentuate a really solid ensemble. 

Speaking of Trina, one of the film’s biggest issues is how quickly it’ll wrap up certain plotlines. Throughout the film, there are minor plotlines that pop up such as Margot (Lara Jean’s older sister) feeling like Trina is “erasing their mom” from the house, Peter’s reluctance to have a relationship with his absentee father (surprising played by Henry Thomas), Lara Jean’s frustration with Margot wanting her to go to NYU, and so on. While I personally believe that the film could make any one of these more interesting, they ultimately end up getting solved a few scenes later with very little development or with a line of dialogue that feels a tad rushed. Besides that, my other gripes consist of the pacing being a tad slow in the middle, the characters Chris and Kitty being a bit too obnoxious at times, and the film overall feeling like a step up from the sequel narratively but just a tad short from being as good as the first film. 

With that said though, To All the Boys: Always and Forever is a delightful finale to the trilogy. While I think anyone could watch the first film and feel content without delving into the sequels, fans of the first two films will get a fun, adorable film that gives Lara Jean and Peter wonderful closure as well as putting a more mature spin on a narrative that could have easily been schlocky, melodramatic, and even toxic. It’s not a must-see but it is a delightful film to watch on Valentine’s Day. While the second film soured my feelings towards a future installment, I’m glad To All the Boys: Always and Forever was a nice surprise. While the middle film will give me some hesitation for recommending the trilogy in the future, I’m glad that the finale solidifies the rom-com trilogy as one that’s flawed but worthwhile for fans of the subgenre.