The Romantic Movie Marathon

A new challenge, a new format for the newsletter, and a holiday romance for your weekend watching

Hey y’all,

Welcome to the new format for my newsletter! If you didn’t read my last letter, you may not know what I’m talking about it, but here’s the gist: I’m using Substack now. The fun thing about Substack is that it also post these letters, blog-like, on the web and that allows you to comment on them, like them, or share with a friend! I love those interactive options (Just take a peek at the bottom buttons to see what I’m talking about.)

But beyond the platform switch, I’m also revamping the style and content. I have a number of fun posts coming up in the next few weeks like my best books of the year list, new reading challenges for 2022, and my 2022 planner choices. But today, I wanted to bring you an early peek of something I’m looking forward to doing in 2022.

My Romantic Movie Marathon!

Yes, I write romance, but I realized recently that I rarely get a chance to watch romance on the screen. I live in a house of all dudes, so if movie night happens, they’re not picking rom coms. And I miss those kinds of stories. Plus, when I started googling “Best of” lists for inspiration, I saw that there are huge gaps in my romantic movie watchlist, particularly from the decades I didn’t grow up in. So that gave me an idea.

I’m a person who only gets things done if I put them on my To Do list or make a challenge out of it. That’s why I put fun things on my list too. Otherwise, I’d never have fun, lol.

So, for the next year, I want to go through those “Best of” lists I found, pull out the movies that look interesting, and watch them (along with new movies that come out.) Then, I’ll be reviewing them here and sharing them with you! Unlike my book reviews (where I only share the books I liked because…author karma), I’ll be giving all versions of my movie opinions—liked, loved, hated, wanted to stab the screen, etc.

I’ll also be looking forward to hearing your opinions if you watch or have watched any of them.

To kick us off, I have a movie that could get your holiday romance season started.

Though I’ll be reviewing movies from across the decades, this one is brand new.

Title: Love Hard

Release date: November 5, 2021

Where to Watch: Netflix

Starring: Nina Dobrev (from Vampire Diaries), Jimmy O. Yang, and Darren Barnet (from like everything Netflix makes? lol)

Official description from Netflix: After meeting her perfect match on a dating app, an LA writer learns she's been catfished when she flies 3,000 miles to surprise him for Christmas.

My description: Natalie writes columns about her bad dates (weirdly, the set up of this one has similar vibes to my next book lol) but then she starts chatting with Josh online (his photo is hot but he lives across the country.) She decides to surprise him for Christmas and finds out that he doesn’t look like guy on the left (Darren Barnet) but instead is actually the guy on the right (Jimmy O. Yang).

She’s furious at being catfished, but the real Josh’s family is so happy to see her and real Josh asks her to stay. In exchange, he’ll help her get Tag’s (guy from the photo) attention. Hijinks ensue.

My Review

1.     Is it actually a romance?

I’m asking this question because sometimes movies labeled “romances” don’t actually fit the romance reader definition of a romance, so I’ll be noting this in my reviews.

Yes, this is a romance.

2.     Romantic tropes

Mistaken Identity (via catfishing in this case), fake relationship, geek hero/beta hero, christmas romance, small town

3.     Sweet or steamy?

Sweet but not a Hallmark movie, there’s cursing

4.     Swoonworthy love interest?

Josh really grew on me and I understood his motivation for lying. He’s kind and endearing. But catfishing is still catfishing, so I’m not giving him the swoonworthy rating. I still liked him as a hero.

5.     Would I want to be friends with the main character?

I kind of want to be her best friend’s friend instead because she was hilarious, but Natalie’s character had some growing to do. By the end, I liked her.

6.  Favorite scenes:

There’s a great “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” duet with some creative (and much needed!) lyrics changes

A light-up baby Jesus is used as a weapon at one point

Not a scene, but the moment that you realize why the movie is called Love Hard (if you can’t figure it out, google it afterward. ;) )

7.     Would I rewatch?

I really enjoyed the experience and was pleasantly surprised. A lot of times new Christmas romance movies don’t live up to older ones, but I thought they did a really good job with this one. I could see myself rewatching it.

8.     Rating: 4.25 out of 5

So this weekend, maybe grab something festive to drink, curl up on the couch and give this one a try!

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On the RAD Reading podcast…

Don’t miss today’s episode where we’re talking about Fuzzy Sock Books - Reading for Comfort. We’re giving our best comfort read recs…and technology tried to kill me mid-episode, so tune in for that harrowing experience.

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That’s all I have for you today! Has anyone else watched Love Hard? Have you started watching or reading holiday-themed things yet? Do you have favorites you watch every year? I’d love to hear!

—Roni

*Book links are affiliate links (Amazon, Libro.fm, and/or Bookshop.org), which means I earn a small commission if you buy through my links. Also, I receive advanced listening copies of some audiobooks through Libro.fm’s Influencer program. However, all reviews and opinions are my own.