Arts

‘Your Place or Mine’ lacks charm vital for rom-com

Demi Sasson '25, Paper Sports Editor|February 17, 2023

Released on Feb. 10, “Your Place or Mine” lacked the attention-grabbing component of a good time-worthy romantic comedy film.

I’m a sucker for romantic comedies. Every time I watch Kat perform her iconic poem in “10 Things I Hate About You,” it brings me closer to the edge of my seat than the last. Harry’s love confession for Sally at the New Year’s Eve party never fails to bring a smile to my face, something “Your Place or Mine” failed to do.

Reese Witherspoon’s character (Debbie) couldn’t crack a joke for the life of her and the entire cinematography felt like it was straight out of an advertisement. Unlike “10 Things I Hate About You” and “When Harry Met Sally,” this movie lacked charm and enjoyable characters that are necessary for a good rom-com.

“Your Place or Mine” was released Feb. 10 to Netflix. The film got an extremely disappointing 33% on the Tomatometer. Despite this fact the movie stands at number one on Netflix’s top 10 list.

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A lot more was expected from screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna, especially after “27 Dresses,” but her character certainly put the “Debbie” in Debbie downer.

— Demi Sasson '25

Debbie (Witherspoon), is an intensely organized divorced mom, who decided to ditch her dream of being a book editor in hopes of supporting her kid in a more “practical” way. To fulfill this bland life, she enrolls in an accounting course across the country from her Los Angeles home, coincidentally in New York, where her best friend Peter (Ashton Kutcher) lives. Peter, a carefree type of guy, slept with Debbie 20 years ago at the beginning of their friendship.

A lot more was expected from screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna, especially after “27 Dresses,” but her character certainly put the “Debbie” in Debbie downer. Slate reviewer Heather Schwedel was also unmoved by Witherspoon’s character.

“The most interesting thing about her is that she’s being accused of Munchausen by proxy for being such an overprotective mother,” Schwedel said.

Although I understand her character was intended to contrast Peter, there was no chemistry between the characters. Mainly because they only spoke to each other once in person in the film, all other conversations being over the phone; it all felt very unnatural.

Not only was the chemistry unnatural, the lighting was, too. According to Mack Sennett Studios, accurate lighting within the cinematography of a movie sets the mood, while bad lighting does just the opposite. The lighting in “Your Place or Mine” seemed to have had a very strong white light shining for the majority of the film, which didn’t at all match the vibe of the film. It felt like I was walking into a pharmacy at 12 a.m. with the blinding lights.

This could also be why the build-up to their love confessions was almost non-existent, even more, disappointing than the scene itself. Compared to Kat’s poem and Harry’s confession, this movie felt like a Valentine’s Day card: bland and predictable.

Overall, if someone had shown me a clip from this film compared to an ad for the newest eczema remedy, I’m not sure I would be able to tell the difference.