To All The Boys: P.S I Still Love You – a sequel that will have you in tears

4/5 Stars

The long-awaited Netflix hit, To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before: P.S I Still Love You, has finally been released after two years, and it’s a real tear-jerker!
Let me start by saying I love the marketing behind this film. A film about love two days before Valentine’s Day? Michael Fimognari, the director, certainly knows how to maximise viewership.

The film heavily focuses on events around Valentine’s Day, which is perfect for their teenager target audience. Or if you’re like me, someone in their early 20’s who is a sucker for the rom-com genre.

The opening scene was well shot, it features the main character, Lara-Jean ecstatic as she dances around her room to music, mirroring a famous scene from The Babysitters Club perfectly.

Right off the bat, the film puts you in a happy, easy and uplifted mood.

I was very impressed with the camera angles and soundtrack throughout the film, and each scene featured a different soundtrack which seemed to fit the mood.
It was all very well put together.

The narration during the story is something I have been a fan of since the first film. It isn’t overly done, and the actress can express how her character is feeling at specific points during the film—an element which only works for individual movies in this day and age.

One aspect I thought was a major plus compared to the first film was their inclusion of more Korean culture. K-pop girl band BLACKPINK’s song Let’s Kill This Love made a hype-building appearance, and the addition of Hanbok, traditional Korean dresses, and a Korean New Year food montage, really brought the multi-culturalism home.

It’s hard to pick out a favourite scene from the film, but the top contender would have to be when Lara-Jean gives back the necklace to Peter.

The emotion conveyed in this scene is heartbreaking, as the necklace was given to her at the start of the film as a Valentine’s Day present, but taken away towards the end when they’ve broken up.

This scene does an amazing job with pulling your heartstrings and gives close reference to the heartbreak that both characters feel.

And finally, the ending. While I was happy that they got back together after all of the emotion and drama, I was also let down because it was your cliché, rom-com fairytale ending. I would have liked something spontaneous to conclude the film.

Much like the first film, the main characters broke up near the end of the film and then got back together at the very end — a recurring theme which did not put any spin on the outcome whatsoever.

Overall, despite having many flaws, I am still a massive fan of the franchise.

I agree that the film could have been better, and it did not top its prequel, but it certainly is a tear-jerker.

You get a sense of relief when you find out that the main characters have finally got past all of the drama, and there are no loose ends anymore.

Will there be another film to follow this up? I think so. In the last scene, Lara-Jean says, “This is our story, and we’re still at the beginning.”

I believe we will see another film very soon.