Why Can't My Life Be a Rom Com? (2023 TV Movie) User Reviews

It's extremely predictable in every way.

[trinaboice · 6/10 · 27 October 2023]

IN A NUTSHELL: After years of bad boyfriends, Eliza decides to follow the rules of dating from a 50-year-old self-help book about how to marry a rich man.

The film was written by Rob Lotterstein, and directed by Rich Newey.

TIPS FOR PARENTS: A single woman talks about living with various boyfriends who don't help pay rent.

A women's friend tells her to trap a rich man by taking off her bathing suit top and pretending she was drowning in the water.

Another thing the woman's friend tells her to do is buy an expensive dress, wear it, and then return it to the store the next day. Tip: talk to your kids about unethical friends.

Unmarried couples sleep together (we see some action but no nudity) Some profanity

THEMES: One of the characters says the most important thing is how we treat other people.

Friendship Ambition Love Romance Money and power Hard work Going after your true passion

THINGS I LIKED: John Hughes movies of the 1980s had all the charm and quirk a romantic comedy should have. This new rom-com pays homage to the Hughes formula and tropes. I love movies that reference other movies. Yeah, I'm that kind of a nerd.

The young cast includes Em Haine as the leading lady, along with Sofia Munoz, Aren Buchholz, Markian Tarasiuk, and Byron Lawson. I hadn't seen any of them in anything before.

I love movies that also reference books. In this case, it's a how-to book that doesn't exist in real life, although there are plenty of actual books on the same topic.

Young women today will be able to relate to some of the characters in this film.

Things move quickly, so the 2-hour movie flies by.

There is some cute humor.

We get to see character growth in the two young women who are featured in the story.

We get to spend time at a beautiful location and with the rich and beautiful people.

THINGS I DIDN'T LIKE: The studio kept changing the title of this. One title was "Why Can't I Be Molly Ringwald?" I hate that "modern" young women think that being a feminist means they can be a tramp and use men.

It's extremely predictable in every way.

As a mom, I have a lot of issues with how both of the young women behaved.

The film itself is pretty straightforward with no unique camerawork or direction.

Cute enough modern retelling on My Fair Lady

[djaeger06 · 7/10 · 10 July 2023]

Main protagonist Eliza follows along with a retro book to find the rich husband of her dreams, but finds she's out of place in his world. Most of the story was generally predictable and I felt the nods to 80s rom coms, John Hughes tropes, and Eliza Doolittle a la Pygmalion and My Fair Lady. Nothing hugely transformative, but a fun lightweight summer made for tv movie!

I really enjoyed the scenes where they called out problematic behavior in old movies from the 80s and how that would never stand now.

The lead actresses had a pretty good rapport with each other (one slightly snarky, one more by the rules and friendly), but supposed romantic chemistry was lacking between most of the pairings (but maybe that's some of the point). All in all, it was cute and I especially liked the locations, sets, and costumes!

lower budget rom-com

[SnoopyStyle · 5/10 · 23 September 2023]

Eliza Sloane (Em Haine) has a boyfriend and expects a promotion. She loses her job. Her boyfriend dumps her. Her best friend Sofia Munoz (Cecilia Deacon) gives her a worn-out book called "A Guide to Marrying Rich". They're 26 and going to the Hamptons to find rich husbands. Eliza likes towel boy Doug (Wern Lee) working at the club. Sofia redirects her to Rich Hawthorne (Markian Tarasiuk) while Sofia's crush John Fuller (Roraigh Falkner) is his best friend. The girls get diner waitressing jobs where cook Ryan (Aren Buchholz) starts flirting with Sofia.

It's a lower budget rom-com. The general outline of such a movie is here. The actors are mostly second tier. They're fine for who they are. These are pretty people. Their comedic chops are limited. There are a few fleeting moments of humor, but they are exceedingly fleeting. This is basically younger Hallmark and cheaper. The lower budget does present a problem when it is supposed to be in high society.

A rom com missing the com

[beammeup-29554 · 2/10 · 25 March 2023]

Cringe worthy was the first thing to come to mind. The writing is pretty bad, full of cliches and tired plot points. How many coincidence's can someone stomach and stay interested in the film. The cinematography, lighting and locations are fine. The editing is uneven at best and the sound track feels really cheap. The acting is certainly not A list. The casting is another big problem, Eliza is clearly miscast and is not very believable in multiple (if not most) situations. I kept waiting for something actually funny to actually happen. The supposed tension from the competing romances is contrived and predictable. It only takes about twenty minutes into the film to have it all figured. This movie is in my opinion a waste of time.

Loved the 80's movie references, but the lead is no Molly Ringwald and this is not a John Hughes film.

[cgvsluis · 4/10 · 15 March 2023]

This is the story of Eliza Sloane, who like all fans of John Hughes' 1980's films, lives her life like she is Molly Ringwald. Unfortunately, just when she thinks she is going to get a promotion...she gets fired and her boyfriend breaks up with her. Her best friend Sophia has the solution...they are going to move to the Hamptons for the summer and follow this 1980's book, How to Marry A Millionaire. Luckily, Sophia is a model with looks to match...but Eliza, I am not sure why Rich Hawthorne pays any attention to her when she fakes a cramp in standing water on the beach. Thankfully she also meets Doug...seemingly awkward Doug, who becomes the real best friend and Ducky like character for the film.

As a huge John Hughes fan, I enjoyed all of the references and the discussion around his films...even though I was sadden to hear about additional cancellations that I was unaware of. :( This is what really kept me in the film through all of the awkward moments, but I image there are a lot of people who won't be able to get beyond them.

I liked the work ethic of Doug and at the end of the day I appreciated that Rich didn't get ugly...but the whole story is beyond far fetched!

Should be called "why can't I have good hair"

[nataliedsharp · 2/10 · 21 January 2024]

Main actresses hair reminded me of Oliver Twist; it was so distracting in every scene. Her hair was so stringy and greasy at her roots, and just... limp. Why on earth was she casted as the Lead? Not believable.

The movie had so much potential but unfortunately did not hit the mark at every possible turn. Disjointed acting, weird posing from actors in scenes, flimsy audio, horrible script. The "rom" is strong and apparent but there is no "com" to be found. Stale banter and goofy background music was their solution for comedy.

The setting and lighting were done really well, so there's the silver lining.

Just fun

[evanhackel · 9/10 · 12 August 2023]

I have no expectations, fun, mindless movie. Very predictable plot, but I didn't mind. Quite a few funny scenes, I would watch this movie again. If you're looking just to relax and chill out, this is a good movie to watch.

I don't want to give away the movie, but there is a very interesting twist at the end.

I have no expectations, fun, mindless movie. Very predictable plot, but I didn't mind. Quite a few funny scenes, I would watch this movie again. If you're looking just to relax and chill out, this is a good movie to watch.

I don't want to give away the movie, but there is a very interesting twist at the end.