The film is like an Instagram reel, shallow and superficial.
Starring: Sofia Carlson, Nicholas Galitzine, Chosen Jacobs, Anthony Ippolito
Although we have the youngest Spider-Man in the history of Marvel, we must now wrap our heads around the fact that Gen-Zs are taking over the film industry. Gone are the days where a film’s success will be determined by the names Clooney, Roberts or Pitt. In today’s popular films, we would be lucky to know one character in the film, and chances are the character we know is the parent. Yikes!
Back to the film. 'Purple Hearts' is an entirely Gen-Z cast with their type of lifestyle and dialogue to boot. So much so that in between the film, one is likely to ask themselves, “Who are these kids and where are their parents?” Alas! This young generation will do everything by themselves, live alone, earn a living and, it turns out, even get married without the need for parents or family.
Struggling singer Cassie runs into an old friend Frankie, who has joined the Marines. Frankie is at the bar where Cassie works with some people from his unit. Among them is the quiet type, Luke, who falls for Cassie instantly but is shot down. From the get-go, Cassie and Luke’s differences are evident from their opposing stances on the military. Cassie has diabetes and struggles to buy her insulin. She is also behind on her bills. Cassie’s mother, a nurse’s aide, is unable to fend for her either.
Cassie comes up with the fraudulent plan to marry Frankie for the medical benefits military spouses get. Frankie refuses because he is in love with his own girlfriend, whom he plans to marry when he turns 21. Luke, who is reminded of his debt to a drug dealer, is desperate enough to want to give the fake marriage a shot. Luke and Cassie get married and Frankie covers for them as their witness. Luke and Cassie are obliged to treat each other like a loving married couple under the watchful eyes of their fellow troops and the military police. When Luke is injured during his deployment, he ends up living with Cassie while he recovers but his hovering debt to the drug dealer threatens to expose everything.
The film is like an Instagram reel, shallow and superficial. There is no depth in the plot, the film jumps from sub-plot to sub-plot, playing the field and losing the audience in the process. The lead characters have no chemistry between them, making their love scenes cringey and hard to watch.
Although the film is a commercial success, it resonates more with a younger audience who like their stories bite-sized and their love stories quick and effortless.
Star rating: 2 stars