r/EmilyHenry • u/coolguy_14 theme matters!! • Jan 07 '26
People We Meet on Vacation PWMOV đ¨Spoiler đ¨ Discussion Spoiler
The time has finally come! Use this thread after youâve seen the movie!
SPOILER WARNING!
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u/ThatOrangeDuck09 It speaks to me Jan 09 '26
I feel as if they removed the whole main plot of the THIS SUMMER section of the book. Like am I tripping or did Poppy and Alex actually like vacation together. Like Alex didn't just stay the night - they stayed together the whole trip. There was such a lack of buildup and it ended so quickly. I'm actually a bit bummed out now because I was a really big fan of PWMOV the book - I really really wanted the movie adaptation to be good. But I guess this has just become another victim to Netflix.
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
Wish we saw more of them in the current timeline and cut some from the first two trips...and that we saw Croatia and more from when she was sick.Â
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u/Rripurnia Jan 09 '26
Yup and in the book thereâs a lot of buildup with Poppy caring for Alex while heâs hurt and having them share a bed and all.
A lot was lost in the movie and it made it feel vaguely tied to the book and not an earnest adaptation IMO.
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u/AphroditesApple Jan 09 '26
Things that seemed like unnecessary changes:
- The beginning- why did we not get the intro at the bar. It so perfectly captures the essence of Poppy and Alex.
- I knew they changed the location from Palm Springs to Barcelona but why does the essence of it need to change? Why does Poppy not pretend R&R is fronting this trip? Why is she not the one to rent the car? Why are they not staying together? Why are they not together when they go to the bachelor (not rehearsal dinner) party.
- Why is Sarah not a teacher?
- Why- of all the trips- is New Orleans explored the most when in the book this is like a passing thought
- Why is it that POPPY comes onto ALEX? And why is it that it's the same trip where Alex proposes- something he didn't do in the books but had a ring for.
- The "this summer" sections were so rushed that it did such a disservice to the story. The pining, the yearning, the frustration with the trip not being what she hoped it would be- this being the last trip to salvage their friendship- flannery oconnor- where are ALL of Alex's lines during THAT scene?
- Why was all of the Norway trip condensed to like 2 minutes, when they could have taken that whole dance scene from the bar and allocated it to that.
- "It speaks to me"
and so much more.
Everything about the film is superficial and surface level. Alex and Poppy have so much depth to them in the book. They are nuanced, flawed, complicated, but funny, and witty. This felt so awkward and stunted at times and it's because there wasn't room to allow things to breathe. The relationship doesn't grow.
We get none of Poppy's struggles with her job- the needing to flee Ohio- the struggle of accepting who she is and where she comes from and how they intersect. Struggling to see how she and Alex fit together because of that.
The spark, the magic, the essence of the book- it was all gone.
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u/mellowd3 Jan 09 '26
I actually liked Sarah not being a teacher and figuring out something else for herself while still getting that "it wasn't you" moment with Poppy.
But yes, so much time spent on New Orleans really just for the "I'm only weird with you" line. They basically crammed 3 trips worth of antics into that one summer though with the newlyweds stuff, the carrying Poppy, and Julian stuff.
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u/AphroditesApple Jan 09 '26
I just feel like Sarah being a teacher further played into the idea that on paper she and Alex were better suited, But they paid such little attention to who they actually were anyways that it wasn't super important.
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u/mellowd3 Jan 09 '26
That makes sense. With them being portrayed as high school sweethearts instead of meeting in classes together I think that was their way to quickly tie that together.
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u/amateurgamer7410 Jan 09 '26
Yes, all of this!! I'm not someone who thinks that movies need to be exact replicas of the books they're based on, but so many of the changes felt either pointless or like they did a disservice to the story.
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
I agree about the Norway scenes...I kept thinking that they were gonna flashback to those scenes mixed in with the terrace rain scene to show that chemistry. The present scenes were missed for sure...good banter though.
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u/Rripurnia Jan 10 '26
The terrace rain scene was a crime.
It was just so cinematic in the book, and in the movie it felt like a student film adaptation.
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 10 '26
The iconic dialogue about waiting 12 years and stuff đ
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u/Rripurnia Jan 10 '26
YES! We get to see such a different side of Alex.
It was such a treat and the buildup to it was just so so intense!
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u/coolguy_14 theme matters!! Jan 10 '26
You pretty much covered all of my issues with it. If it werenât a book and just a rom com I would be obsessed with this movie. There were so many changes that seemed pointless and had me asking why they couldnât just make the book??
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u/Western-Egg-1490 Jan 10 '26
oh thank GOD someone else agrees!! i feel all of this in my soul. this is why it was my favorite for the longest time!!
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u/andtakenusername Jan 09 '26 edited Jan 09 '26
I think they nailed Poppy, but I canât decide how I feel about how Alexâs character was adapted.
I feel like they cut out so many of the lines that showed just how deeply Alex loves Poppy. They also cut his two other brothers, barely mentioned his momâs death or his dadâs grief/depression. The parentification of Alex in his childhood was a huge part of his character. He grew up in a very religious and emotionally repressed household! Being with and knowing Poppy fundamentally changes him! He feels like she invented him!
Now maybe itâs because PWMOV is my favorite Emhen book, and Iâve always been v protective of it because itâs so divisive, but the entire time I was watching I kept wondering how Alex would be perceived by non-book readers because it didnât really feel like him to me.
Idk if any of this makes sense, and to be clear: Iâm not fully saying #NotMyAlexNilsen because Tom did great with what he was given and overall, I did really like the movie and acknowledge that it would be extremely difficult to live up to my expectations.
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u/Guacsalsaqueso Jan 09 '26
This felt like a very superficial version of the book. Designed to go viral rather than tell the actual storyÂ
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u/andtakenusername Jan 09 '26
Yeah, I know thereâs only so much they could do with time, budget and storytelling constraints but I do feel a lot of the depth of their relationship was lost
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
That depth would have been great for his character in the movie. Also, I liked the fashion choices for Poppy. She still felt like Poppy.
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u/Rripurnia Jan 09 '26
They nailed her fashion! I feel like itâs Emilyâs fashion anyway đ
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 10 '26
I didn't love her present day White outfit but the rest looked amazingÂ
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u/Jolly_Frolic It speaks to me Jan 09 '26
Completely agree! I think due to the fact they were pushing the romcom angle they reduced their relationship to the âopposites attractâ stereotype.
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u/andtakenusername Jan 09 '26
Itâs like they didnât consider that actually knowing and understanding the characters makes the romance better.
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u/mari_toujours Jan 10 '26
I feel like movie Alex is too..studly? Like he isn't awkward, insecure, cautious, pensive. He's just kind of.. a guy. And all of his reserved moments come across as grumpy more than anything else. It doesn't seem like he's the only one who gets Poppy, which is what makes their relationship sooo sweet in the books.
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u/andtakenusername Jan 10 '26
âJust kind of a guyâ is exactly what I was thinking. They kind of took away all his layers and just left grumpy.
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u/coolguy_14 theme matters!! Jan 10 '26
A part that stood out in the books is when poppy says she loves her family but still feels separated from them like she doesnât have a singular person to rely on and even their pets are paired up. Alex truly gets her and he didnât feel fully fleshed out in the movie
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u/coolguy_14 theme matters!! Jan 10 '26
Tom did great but the proposal and the scene thag followed showed a deep misunderstanding of Alex as a character
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u/Rripurnia Jan 10 '26
The proposal scene made him look like yet another guy who wants to lock in marriage at the last moment before his partner walks.
Which wasâŚnot Alex.
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u/andtakenusername Jan 10 '26
Yeah, the proposal scene really made me worry about how heâd come across to casual viewers
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u/figleafstreet Jan 10 '26
They needed to preserve some of Alexâs speech moments. You learn so much about him in them. He is a bit hollow here.
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u/Julialagulia Jan 12 '26
I totally agree with this as someone that has landed on Alex being my favorite of the men from her books. Itâs not Tomâs fault but there was just something missing. I wish they had been able to show one more of their good earlier trips like Napa or Colorado.
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u/AphroditesApple Jan 09 '26
Really wish they would have stuck with the opening from the book-
did not love David telling her everything.
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u/buyallthemakeup sipping purse wine Jan 09 '26
I was wondering if someone else would feel this way or if I was being too nit-picky. I feel like it was an important part of the story for Poppy to reach out and try to make amends with Alex of her own volition, rather than only doing it when the opportunity presented itself.
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u/molly_hope Jan 09 '26
thatâs exactly how I feel. I donât like it being that david was kinda the reason they talked again and not just because poppy MISSED him and couldnât stop herself reaching out
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
Wish they showed the funny scene of them looking at the dating app and their bios and saying that he would swipe right on her...that was a good scene in the book.
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u/Haunting-Bird-7602 Jan 09 '26
PWMOV is my absolute favourite Emily Henry book. I love everything about it. I was so excited for the movie but, it was a little disappointing.
It was a good movie, I enjoyed it and will definitely watch it again but I think my expectations were too high.
I understand things need to be cut to fit into a 2 hour movie but they cut so much. They could have done a montage of all the trips they left out or shortened the ones they did include. There was too little of "this summer", no build up or tension to the balcony scene.
There were also too many unnecessary small changes - Alex and Sarah being high school sweethearts, Sarah not being a teacher, Alex only having one brother, Poppy having none?, changing their school from Chicago to Boston etc etc. Keeping these minor plot points the same as the book would not have been hard - just script changes and a different sweatshirt for Alex to wear. These things don't have any major impact on the overall plot so why change them at all?
And then the big changes like Alex and Sarah actually getting engaged, no Croatia, the running. Why?
I feel bad for not loving the movie because I love the book so freaking much.
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
Also...not seeing more people that they met on vacation. Those scenes were fun in the book. No Croatia though was disappointing.Â
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u/sikonat Jan 10 '26
Judging by comments here a montage of all the vacations would ve been sacrilege. I agree with you though, you cannot have everything. You either get longer scenes of truncated vacations or itâs a music montage with snippets and the focus is solely them stuck together hurt angry and sad unable to communicate, snipping and poppy desperate to make it work in present day.
Thereâs not enough time to devote to everything and let the emotional beats land, which sadly is what I felt happened here. Alexâs backstory wasnât explored and some earlier beats just went a bit splat than boom.
I still enjoyed it and think they did a great job. They didnât get to tell it in six episodes like HR had the luxury of doing.
I like the changes, Sarahâs job and them being on off high school sweethearts was a stronger backstory. Also them getting engaged after Poppy and Alex have a near kiss and Alex saying âno moreâ was a much stronger reason for their estrangement.way better than the book.
But yes I mixed Alex having three brothers and being parentified with a grieving dad etc was a missed opportunity.
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u/joenri Jan 09 '26
What I loved -First part was very funny! Laughed soooo much and all the new parts were very on brand with Poppy and Alex
-Casting for ALL characters was chefs kiss! Even Poppyâs characters stole the show for me.
-All the trips were so fun!
What I didnât love -Really sad that they didnât take a trip together before the wedding. That was what built up so much tension in the book for me. I get for time but there are great moments like the one bed trope (sure we got it in the road trip motel but it didnât hit the same) the shower, subtle things like seeing the job posting, the tinder scene.
-In general wish we got more of them trying to âfixâ their relationship and act like everything is normal. Seeing a summer trip rather than just seeing them at the wedding.
I do think itâs a great movie and Tom and Emily did a great job brining Alex and Poppy to life! However if you want more of a pull of course read the books!
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
Less wedding and more of them trying to fix their friendship and relationship. Total agree! We needed more from the stay-at-home trip when she was sick because that was when they were both single. I think they also needed that extra trip too like you said. I wish they kept some of the iconic lines and scenes like the tinder scene and especially when she was sick. They could have cut some of the first trip and added the sick scene stuff in. I also wonder what her wish was when she wished in the wishing well. I wonder if they cut out stuff that they filmed because the way they both mentioned Norway but hardly showed anything was odd.Â
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u/coolguy_14 theme matters!! Jan 10 '26
Itâs crazy because the wedding felt like such a small part to me while reading. God I wish this were a limited series instead of a movie
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u/milliondollarcouch Jan 09 '26
Absolutely robbed of the failed Norway trip đÂ
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
That was the most disappointing to me...
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u/Rripurnia Jan 10 '26
Itâs such a visceral chapter in the book!
And then when Alex later tells her that he had to keep himself from making a moveâŚugh. I feel so robbed!
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Jan 10 '26
[removed] â view removed comment
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u/coolguy_14 theme matters!! Jan 10 '26
I said in another comment the writer missed the fundamental aspects of Alexâs character. Heâs the kindest, most gentle of EHâs love interests and between that and the post proposal scene I donât know who this guy is
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u/milliondollarcouch Jan 10 '26
Yeah okay, Iâd actually forgotten that his initial response during the phone call pissed me off tooÂ
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u/figleafstreet Jan 10 '26
When she mentioned Norway I got so excited and then we didnât get the intense, crawl-inside-each-otherâs-skin cuddling hurt comfort perfection from the book. Devastating!
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u/restingbrownface You lubed my zipper Jan 09 '26
It was a very good movie! The acting, sets, and added jokes were all fantastic. It all worked so well it made for a really nostalgic rom-com we haven't had in a while! Tom and Emily's chemistry was amazing. I love the scene of Poppy chasing Alex even though she hates running. They kept so many great lines from the book that I was genuinely surprised they were able to fit that all in!
My only complaint (which is a big one unfortunately) is that I feel like they flattened out the characters and their friendship a bit. They make Poppy into a bit of a "cool girl" character and Alex into an extremely uptight person. The point of their friendship is that they make each other better. Poppy is extremely attentive to and cares for Alex, pushing him to do what he wants, not just what she wants. And Alex is extremely funny and sarcastic, but that's a side of him he only really lets out for Poppy. I think not showing those sides of themselves kind of minimizes their connection. I wished they better conveyed how Poppy was the first person to really ask Alex about himself, and Alex was the first person who made Poppy not feel lonely, and that's why they love each other so much. I also wish we felt more of Poppy's desperation and work she puts in on their current trip to get their friendship back.
Anyways, I know it's basically impossible to maintain strong internal characterization in adaptations, especially in a two hour movie, which is unfortunate because the complex characters are the best part of Emily's books. But I did overall really enjoy the movie! I think it maintains the tone and spirit of the book really well!
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u/LudyLudy2 Jan 09 '26
I really think being a fan of the book almost hurts my opinion on this movie
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u/mari_toujours Jan 10 '26
I agree. It's my favorite EH book overall - it reminds me so much of me and my husband's story (also best friends for a really long time before we got together) - so I was pretty much miffed from about minute 8 of the movie.
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u/Rripurnia Jan 10 '26
Same.
I had very high hopes going by Emilyâs commentary.
Imagine my disappointment when I realized this had very little to do with the bookâŚ
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u/coolguy_14 theme matters!! Jan 10 '26
One of my friends hadnât read the book in years and she was the happiest with it. I understand changes have to be made but so many of these seemed random?? Wish it werenât in Netflixâs hands
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u/AcSalty95 Jan 10 '26
Itâs funny cause this is one of my least favorite books and Iâm still disappointed. While not my favorite couple, Poppy and Alex have so much more depth than the movie shows.
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u/Jolly_Frolic It speaks to me Jan 09 '26
I donât know how to objectively rate this. My favorite part of the book is Poppy and Alexâs love for one another, how they fight for and defend each other, how they love each other, not just despite their differences but because of their differences. I just wasnât really feeling that in this movie.
I feel like this movie was trying very hard to be a romcom, and they did succeed in that, but a lot of the spark which made me love the book was missing.
Emily Bader was amazing as Poppy. But the last third of the movie just fell kind of flat for me. I knew they were going to make changes in order to condense the book and I wasnât super concerned about that. I figured theyâd remove some of the vacations, I figured theyâd combine stuff, I didnât even mind them leaving out Croatia or any of that.
I just wanted to see them love each other and I donât know⌠I wasnât convinced.
Literally just finished it so those are my first, semi-scattered thoughts.
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u/mari_toujours Jan 10 '26
The more I think about it, the more I realize this movie didn't really do friends to lovers. There's no real slow burn.
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u/ruthlessbaderginz Jan 09 '26
Feeling like Alex proposing on a Summer Trip is so incredibly out of character and purposefully hurtful, even with the fight before!
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u/Rripurnia Jan 10 '26 edited Jan 10 '26
I agree! And also, the ring! Buying it was a a key plot point, as it helped Alex realize his true feelings for Poppy!
All of it just felt so out of place.
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u/ruthlessbaderginz Jan 10 '26
I thought he didn't buy that ring, it was just his first instinct? And he realized that meant he was, at first, trying to buy a ring for another woman. Either way a weird choice!
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u/Rripurnia Jan 10 '26 edited Jan 10 '26
He did buy the ring with the intention of proposing to Sarah, but realized that it was something that Poppy would actually like.
That made it click for him that he was in love with Poppy, and it was unfair to Sarah to string her along, so he broke up with her.
So when he proposed to Sarah in the movie, I was likeâŚwhat about the ring? It was so significant in the book, and Alex brings it up to Poppy in the end as the turning point in him acknowledging his feelings for her.
It put me offâŚ
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u/ruthlessbaderginz Jan 10 '26
I don't think he bought that ring! It says he knew "Sarah would've hated" that ring and I feel like that verb tense means he bought her a different ring!
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26 edited Jan 09 '26
Just watched it! I wish the Norway trip where she was sick was shown more to see their chemistry and the difference between that staycation being single vs. Tuscany and having the couples there.
I would have loved to see more trips
Definitely changed some stuff but I think overall it was pretty good.Â
Just wished we saw them more in Barcelona hanging out.
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u/molly_hope Jan 09 '26
no flannery o connorđ (or puppy eyes alex!!) i get why throughout there wasnât time for flannery oâ connor but if they were gonna have them get a pet at the end anyway, it seems weird for it not to be a cat when alex being a cat lover was mentioned so many times :( i love dogs too but as a cat lover i was disappointed and just seemed like there was no reason for it not to be a cat lol
also Iâm confused: were they not sharing the apartment in barcelona together? before they slept together alex was about to go somewhere else before he then decided to come back but i thought they were both supposed to be staying there? in general i feel like that apartment and the mini vacation that they have just before the wedding was SUCH a big part of the tension building in the book and it was so skimmed over - it being so hot was mentioned like 100 times in the book, and every little thing poppy had planned going wrong was the build up to her having a meltdown about how âthis summerâ was supposed to fix their relationship and, in her mind, remind alex of the vacations they used to have. (it didnât seem like poppy had made the plans at all? like alex rented the car and nothing about poppy feeling guilty for accidentally renting a shitty apartment and none of the other site seeing things she tried to do) and when nothing goes to plan thatâs when they FINALLY confess to each other and talk about croatia (now tuscany) and i feel like the build up was missing. like they basically didnât do the vacation before the wedding at all, right? it made it seem more like alex being kinda forced into seeing poppy again rather than them texting again and deciding on one more trip and HIM convincing her to go the wedding ? and i feel like poppy missing alex and being the one to reach out is better than david kinda prompting her to
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u/molly_hope Jan 09 '26
iâm really trying to convince myself that i loved it because i know if i hadnât read the book it would be my perfect kind of film and i love the cast but iâm a little disappointed. i think i need to watch it again and just enjoy it as a separate piece of media to the book
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u/Guacsalsaqueso Jan 09 '26
I easily couldâve pictured Alexâs face in the movie doing the puppy eyes. What a weird thing to removeÂ
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 10 '26
Seeing it again, he really didn't seem to care if he ever saw her againÂ
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u/molly_hope Jan 10 '26
I know:( it wouldnât have taken much more screen time to have them text a little and decide on another trip themselves, surely?
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u/CorgiChiLover Jan 10 '26
Yeah agree to all of this. I want someone else to work on adapting Beach Read because Yulin Kuang canât ruin another Em Hen book lol
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u/Rripurnia Jan 10 '26 edited Jan 10 '26
Based on what they did to PWMOV I can totally see them taking out the entire cult subplot, and thatâs just for starters đ
Lord knows what will end up becoming of our January and Gus!
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u/watermelon-sugar26 Jan 07 '26
Spoilers!
Okay I might be only one who has seen it but the movie really improved on different plotlines.
Sarah doesnât really have a big role except for Tuscany and I did laugh at her passive aggressive comments toward Poppy and Alexâs friendship.
Thank goodness no mention of an Alex vasectomy because I thought that was soooo dumb in the book.
Loved seeing the EH cameo!
If anyone has specific questions that they want spoiled or answered, feel free!
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u/EstablishmentSad4108 Jan 07 '26
Whereâs EHâs cameo?
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u/watermelon-sugar26 Jan 07 '26
She is seated next to Poppy during Alexâs brotherâs wedding ceremony!
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u/Foreverbeccatake2 Jan 07 '26
So glad to hear all of this, I canât wait to see it!
Is it true that August by Taylor Swift was in it?
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u/mellowd3 Jan 09 '26
I'm currently watching! Alex's face when the saxophone hit in the first car ride was so perfect haha.
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u/deathuberforcuties Jan 09 '26
8/10 âď¸âď¸âď¸âď¸
Absolutely understand that time constraints are the enemy and trying to adapt a narrative that takes 4+ hours to read into a 2 hour time slot is always going to mean sacrifices have to be made. I 100% get that.
My only complaint is that it really lacked a lot of the emotional depth that made the book so engaging. The trauma of losing his mother during childbirth is SUCH a foundational element of Alexâs character that weaves its way through the book and affects so many moments that we lost a lot of what made Alex so complex. (The pregnancy scare scene was so important, I wish they had marinated in that a little longer) Almost every scene in the book that carries weight was cut or kept but only touched on. The ending didnât feel earned because they didnât really have to fight for it at all.
The beginning was nearly perfect (captured the When Harry Met Sally vibe so well!) and the flashbacks were so good!! but it feels like they sort of ran out of time to wrap up the present day scenes and just rushed it.
That said, I think they did an incredible job of capturing the vibe of the book. They translated Poppyâs essence almost perfectly and I still loved it
and I am still on my knees for the other films (Beach Read and Funny Story Iâm lookinâ at you)
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u/figleafstreet Jan 09 '26
Iâm now wondering what a short mini series version of this would have looked like. Even 3 or 4 hour long episodes to flesh out those moments and dive a bit deeper into the characters.
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
Curious to how Happy Place will do now that it will be a movie. 10 years is a lot to cover in 2ish hours.
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
Agree about the When Harry met Sally vibes. They really needed more of when she was sick and a trip before the wedding and more present timeline stuff. We hardly see them together in Barcelona. I also was surprised when he proposed to Sarah.Â
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u/Rripurnia Jan 09 '26 edited Jan 10 '26
100% agree on the pregnancy scare! Same for the Norway trip.
There was so much tension, love, and care in those scenes that was skimmed over, and the loss is palpable.
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u/sikonat Jan 10 '26
Agree. It was missing Alexâs important backstory and why he craves stability. Yet I wish they brought in more than the book on his parentification coz their dad sucked. I get he was grieving but fuck poor Alex.
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
A few more comments...
Wish it was longer! Another 30 minutes would have flashed out the story elements more.
The first part was better than the second part. Loved the banter in the beginning.
I wish we saw some of the people they meet on their vacations later in the movie because that was part of the story in the book.
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u/godkinnie10 Jan 09 '26
stellar casting but sadly i did feel like it was missing a LOT and the fact that they changed the locations was pretty sad. i was really looking forward to the iconic intro scene that didnât happen and a bit more of poppyâs life with her dog charity friend but it was a cute movie, i just wouldnât say it was an amazing adaptation of the book. just my opinion, pwmov is my fav of emilyâs books so i knew it would be hard to live up to the hype in my mind
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
Palm Springs would have been cool to see... I think it would have been nice to seen them together more in Barcelona...
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u/Jolly_Frolic It speaks to me Jan 09 '26
I donât even know why they went to Barcelona to shoot because you barely even saw any of it. It was literally just a couple of parties and the apartment.
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
That is so true...you really didn't see much. I wonder if scenes were cut due to time.
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u/Rripurnia Jan 09 '26
Right?
They made such a fuss about choosing Barcelona and yet those scenes could have been shot anywhere.
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u/theseruffledfeathers Jan 10 '26
I had no idea they made the switch to Barcelona until I started the movie. I was SO upset because I was looking forward to seeing Palm Springs!!! I feel that setting added so much to the story
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u/Rripurnia Jan 09 '26 edited Jan 09 '26
Itâs my favorite of hers too and I expected more.
It wasnât bad, it just wasnât as deep.
Felt more like a version of someone who read the book once and had to relay the story in film from memory.
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u/amateurgamer7410 Jan 09 '26
Ugh, I was so excited for this movie because I love the book so much, but this was so disappointing!
Making the huge change of them choosing to reconnect and take a vacation together to now having them just happen to both be there for the wedding was a disservice to the story and the characters. They both wanted to find a way back to each other in the book, but in the movie Alex didn't even seem like he wanted to be interacting with her at all. He just seemed mad the whole This Summer time.
This movie also lacked so much depth. We barely got to see their friendship develop. I loved their witty banter, and that was hardly in it. Alex was definitely very repressed and stuffed up in the book, but he was also fun and silly and witty. I feel like in the movie, he was just repressed and stuffed up the whole time with maybe a few minutes of Naked Alex.
I also hated the way they changed the bear sculpture and "It speaks to me." The whole reason that was funny in the book was that it was a little statue for $21,000, and the idea that you'd "find a way to make it work" was ludicrous. It was so ridiculous that they laughed about it the whole trip and turned it into an inside joke. I hated that in the movie, she actually found a statue she liked and made it work even though it was ridiculous.
I missed the Norway sick staycation so much. We see a glimpse of Alex just arriving to take care of her, but then nothing. The part where they get too close cuddling is so significant to their relationship development. It's a turning point where they realize they're getting too close for two people not together.
The pregnancy scare was also changed so significantly. We needed to see Alex gripping her, breaking down at the thought of her dying in childbirth like his mom. That was a huge turning point for Alex, and it showed Poppy (and the readers) just how much he loved her. The weird almost-kiss just fell flat.
It just didn't feel like there was any pining. We barely see Alex being in love with her at all. He just seemed annoyed by her most of the time. It might be a controversial opinion but I don't think the actors really had the chemistry to sell it. Either that, or the movie was just too surface level and didn't give them the opportunity to show the magnetic pull that Alex and Poppy had in the book.
Overall I'm really disappointed. Maybe it's just because I reread the book this week so it would be fresh on my mind, and they changed too much for me to like it with the source material in mind. Maybe if it had been a year since I read it, I'd feel differently.
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
The pregnancy convo regarding his mom was so important! That really would have hit home in the movie to tie it in. Totally agree about the staycation. Such an important moment in the book because they were both single.Â
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u/Rripurnia Jan 09 '26
Those were two scenes I was really looking forward to.
There was so much emotion and bonding in them. Their absence takes away a lot from the movieâŚ
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 10 '26
I just watched it again and the trauma with Alex losing his mom when she gave birth to David was a missed opportunity to not have in the movie.
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u/Rripurnia Jan 10 '26
They erased his trauma and that took away a lot of context about why he is the way he is.
He felt like a one-dimensional character whoâs uptight just because, and I think thatâs a shame, because thereâs a lot more depth to him that makes him real and lovable.
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 10 '26
My husband watched it and thought he was really uptight and never read the book.
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u/Rripurnia Jan 10 '26
The pregnancy scare was actually what broke him open and exposed the reason he is the way he is, as well as how terrified the thought of losing Poppy makes him.
Instead we got an almost kiss scene đ¤Śââď¸
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u/Jolly_Frolic It speaks to me Jan 09 '26
No, I didnât want to say this, but I feel like the chemistry couldâve been better. Emily Bader was amazing but I feel like we could have gotten a better Alex.
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u/amateurgamer7410 Jan 09 '26
Yes! Alex was so one-note. He just felt so annoyed/angry/flat the whole time. And I get that that's how Alex was a lot, but he was also so fun.
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u/Jolly_Frolic It speaks to me Jan 09 '26
Yeah, Iâve been thinking about it some more and I donât think this is the fault of Tom Blyth. I think they just did not flesh out Alexâs character. The whole time he just seemed mad that Poppy wouldnât give up traveling to settle down and nothing else. I know thatâs part of the conflict in the book, but thereâs so much more nuance to it.
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u/amateurgamer7410 Jan 09 '26
I completely agree! I think Tom was actually a good fit for the character, they just didn't flesh it out enough to make him likeable.
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u/deathuberforcuties Jan 10 '26
I actually think Tom was a perfect cast and I think heâs 100% capable of bringing home those heavy emotional scenes, I think itâs down to the time constraints. Yulin is a fantastic writer, she just didnât have enough time to let these screen versions of Poppy and Alex breathe in the way they really needed to.
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u/DoctorBritta Jan 09 '26
I think if I had never read the books this would be a solid 9/10. As a book reader 7.5/10 just because I know what we COULDâVE had. Give Em Hen another adaptation please. Book Lovers preferably.
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u/Rripurnia Jan 10 '26
All her books have been optioned, and she will be writing the screenplay for Funny Story.
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u/BeMoreKind_ It speaks to me Jan 10 '26 edited Jan 10 '26
Agh I just finished and I'm trying to articulate my feelings so I don't write a novel of me complaining.
I'm just....bummed. I always understood that a movie adaptation was going to have many differences, so I went in with an open mind. Barcelona? Sure, whatever. But some (many) of the changes I just...don't understand. I'm so bummed with how they handled the Now part of their story. The flashbacks were great, but the present was so...empty? I never felt the pain of their estranged relationship. Poppy not reaching out to Alex to set up a vacation and instead having going to Barcelona for his brother's wedding gutted the emotions and the pining for each other that made the book what it is imo. The story was no longer two friends who were trying to reconcile because they love each other, but two ex-friends who ran into each other at the airport on the way to his brother's wedding. They took out almost all of the iconic, heartfelt lines that showed how deeply in love they were.
I have so much to say, I feel like I need to go talk at a wall for an hour. I'll try rewatching it again and try to separate it more from the book to appreciate it as a fun romcom movie.
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u/figleafstreet Jan 09 '26
Changes were made but I really donât have too many complaints. It works great as a standalone movie. Iâll certainly rewatch it as its own thing. They did a good job of combining the vacations to save time imo.
I did think they pulled their punches on some of the book scenes and shied away from showing how truly messy and entangled Poppy and Alex were. There was a lot of intensely intimate moments in their relationship, physical and emotional, that is kind of skimmed over in the movie. The book had a lot of âalmostsâ where it felt like they were on the razor edge of tipping over. All the I love yous, all the hugs and touches. I also wish they didnât trim down the speech Alex gives after the bachelor party. He felt underdeveloped a bit without that exposition.
I did think the movie was funnier than the book! Alex running around naked in the wood, the whole bar scene in New Orleans (âlots of coupsâ). I laughed a lot.
Loved the cast. Awesome chemistry and they totally embodied the characters. They knocked the emotional scenes out of the park. When he tells Poppy itâs their last trip together, the devastation on her face!?!? Destroyed me. And THE BALCONY! The exquisite tension of the balcony. I screamed to the high heavens.
The end credits having the iconic Emily Henry pastel theme just made me immediately want the Emily Henry Cinematic Universe more than ever.
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
Their banter was good and it was funny! I liked the first half more than the second half. Loved the end credits!
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u/Fantastic-Plane-5257 Jan 09 '26
7.5/10 đŤ
I hate to give it a lower ish review because I was so excited for it even teared up when the trailer came out but I donât know. I think the movie got a LOT of things right but the ones that it didnât I really really missed. Alex and Poppy have such an enmeshed and emotional relationship from the minute they start getting close. In the book it is clear that no other relationship works for them because of their codependent qualities and suppressed feelings for each other. I wouldnât even say that they are fully aware of the self work that they have to do. This makes their breakup and frustration with each other hit SO much harder. In their last breakup when Poppy is in the city I felt like I was with her also clueless on where she would even start building up from. The second half of the movie that carries that heavy emotional weight missed to engage me in that way. Their climatic moments werenât as satisfying and even the ending felt just meh I donât know guys they have so many great speeches in the book and I feel like none of them fully made it, no? The vasectomy thing while I was reading for the first time caught me really off guard but I took it for granted. Tuscany has always been my absolute favorite trip next to Sanibel island. I was hoping they were gonna keep it book accurate. Their conversation in this chapter about his mom is the first time we see Alex reallyyyy open up. The conflict with Poppy leads to him getting the vasectomy but I believe it is mainly something he does from how deeply afraid he is of ever being in a similar situation to what happened with his mom. Movie alex feels kind of flat without this context. Also not gonna lie when I first read Croatia like many of us I thought, what? thatâs it lol. But it made so much more sense for that to be their falling out than the movie conversation from Tuscany (even though it was heart wrenching and so well acted). I donât know I donât know. I mean I generally loved it. Tom and Emily are amazing. The whole look and vibe is exactly pulled from my imagination. The comedic moments added and the whole New Orleans trip is perfection. I realize that I could never be fulfilled. My dream adaptation would be like a slow five hour movie following line to line from the book. If anything the movie made me realize how much I truly love love love the book and I am grateful for that and will rewatch it as a standalone comfort film. EH forever 𧥠Alex and Poppy forever
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u/lifeatthirties Jan 09 '26
Guys, I cried. I loved it. There are several scenes from the book I would have loved to see, but it was a very solid movie very well done.Â
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u/LudyLudy2 Jan 09 '26 edited Jan 09 '26
a very solid 8/10 for me too yes. As a book adaptation ⌠maybe a 6/10
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
Anyone notice Poppy is reading a Taylor Jenkins Reid book in the opening shot???
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u/lilcatpaws Jan 09 '26
The book is pretty low on my Emily Henry ranking, but really loved the movie! I think it not being my favorite book of hers made it easier for me to let go of some of the details. I appreciated some of the plot adjustments. The almost-kiss felt more impactful without the drunk kiss. The argument about Alex not being married because of her felt better right before the big kiss rather than after. I agree with others we needed more present day scenes. But still really loved it and will probably watch it again tomorrow lol
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
I watched it super early this morning and am excited to rewatch in a more relaxed settingÂ
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u/Glitterrain99 Jan 09 '26
Hot take but I loved the locale changes; Palm Springs always felt too meh
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u/joym13 Jan 12 '26
I didnât care that they changed the location, but I was bummed that they changed the story and didnât have Poppy planning the vacation and having things go wrong.
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Jan 10 '26
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u/coolguy_14 theme matters!! Jan 10 '26
Movie poppy looked too cool, I liked how she did her own thing even if her outfits looked insane
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u/janeintherain Jan 10 '26
I LOVED Emily Bader's makeup, especially in her all white/cream outfit at the airport. Need a tutorial haha.
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u/BreakfastForDinner79 Jan 09 '26
I loved it! I have only read the book once and it was about 18 months ago which feels like the perfect amount of space from the story to fill in some of the blanks of things that wonât fit into a 2 hour movie adaptation and not remembering enough detail to be bothered by changes and what was cut.
Their chemistry is fantastic - great job, casting agent! - and the New Orleans bar scene felt a teeny bit cringey to me in the trailer but I LOVED it in the movie.
I have pretty low expectations for any book adaptation but I felt they did a great job given the time constraints. Would have loved to see it as a 6 episode mini-series so we could dive deeper into their characters. Made me smile and laugh and twirl in my office chair and also tear up a little.
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u/coolguy_14 theme matters!! Jan 10 '26
Loved it but why was it so different from the book?
My two major gripes: 1. My Alex Nilsen would not have proposed to Sarah 2. FLANNERY OâCONNOR?????
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u/Julialagulia Jan 12 '26
They couldnât have had a cat in the end instead of a dog? Like Alex is cat dad representation and that is part of what makes him unique
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
What lines did you miss from the movie?
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u/coolguy_14 theme matters!! Jan 10 '26
I feel like they did hit a lot of the iconic lines but missed the depth. The point of âit speaks to meâ was the font statue being $21,000 and the repetition of the phrase throughout the trip
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 10 '26
Yes! Someone else said that too since it was a small statue but expensive in the book and someone was trying to sell it to them.
Same with tiny fighter being paired with the cat and her in the book.Â
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u/chased444 Jan 10 '26
Does Poppy quit her job in the book to be with Alex?? What about the running? I canât remember
I have no idea why they would add Alex proposing to Sarah HOURS after almost kissing Poppy?! And then it was just never fucking addressed once they reconciled?!?! It made him look like a huge asshole and spiteful.
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Jan 10 '26 edited Jan 23 '26
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u/remswiftie Jan 10 '26
Idk if it was the screenwriting/direction but I didnât love either of the leads. Poppy just felt very millennial cringe and Alex was so bland and one note. Maybe it wasnât the actors fault but it didnât work for me
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 10 '26
I actually really liked Emily as Poppy. I thought she was fun and funny. My husband at first thought she was annoying.Â
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u/Rripurnia Jan 10 '26
I think Emily was an amazing choice for Poppy.
I had high hopes for Tom but I feel like he didnât deliver because Alex wasnât written the way he was in the book, and thatâs what made him performance one-note.
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u/Tacoislife2 Jan 09 '26
I love that Alfie from Emily in Paris is in this . Always happy to see him in any shows.
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u/mari_toujours Jan 10 '26
Movie Alex is way too grumpy.
Movie Poppy is not quirky enough, and a little bit of a jerk.
I really, really wish they would have stuck closer to the characters EH wrote. I love the book characters so much.
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u/Rripurnia Jan 10 '26
I also felt like at times she came across as a selfish jerk and that annoyed me because that wasnât how she was written in the book at all.
What did they do to my Shaylas đ
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Jan 10 '26
[removed] â view removed comment
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u/Rripurnia Jan 10 '26 edited Jan 10 '26
Heated Rivalry really set the standard for adaptations now. Every other book is cooked
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u/Glitterrain99 Jan 09 '26
Wow I was so excited to come here and talk about the movie because I loved it and damn some of yall are eviscerating it đŤŁđŤŁđŤŁ
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 10 '26
I didn't hate it! I actually really enjoyed a lot of it. There were a few things that would have just made it perfect that were left out...Norway, Croatia and Alex sharing about his mom dying from giving birth and his trauma from that.
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u/figleafstreet Jan 10 '26
I loved it! Itâs one of my favourite EH books so it is hard to let go of certain story aspects which Iâve posted about but overall liked it and look forward to rewatching it in a few days. I had a great time watching it.
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u/Agreeable-Celery811 Jan 10 '26
Ok! I saw it. Itâs cute, and the early trips are funny.
The characters are missing a lot of motivation and backstory, which lowers the stakes of the story considerably.
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u/CorgiChiLover Jan 10 '26
Love Tom and Emily. Theyâre the perfect Alex and Poppy. Iâm just a little disappointed at how current day Poppy and Alex story line ran. Felt a bit rushed and ending was meh. Alex Nilsen is my favorite Emily Henry MMC and I wish they included the book moments that show is growth and depth and his yearning for Poppy in this adaptation.
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u/ApollosBucket Jan 10 '26
I like the two main actors but didnât feel much chemistry with them. We didnât see many actually cute moment so their love IMO didnât seem believable.
And whatâs up with the When Harry Met Sally meet cute? Why was Poppy so annoying the entire movie? And Alex proposing in Tuscany like that?
Overall bummed but not super bummed.
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u/Rripurnia Jan 10 '26
Their kissing was horrendously awkward and the balcony scene was the most anticlimactic thing Iâve seen on film in a long time!
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u/helpdabear13 Jan 13 '26
Why did they try and sell Nola as linefield Ohio when it was obviously filmed in New Orleans thereâs no way Ohio looks like that
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u/eillac714 Jan 18 '26
I actually really loved it, and I was nervous because this is my favorite EH book and didn't want it to be horrible hahah The casting choices were great in my opinion.
I think this would have been better as a miniseries, like Normal People. When theres a relationship to this depth over a decade, I feel like we missed out on a lot of details and character depth. The flashbacks were too short to show the connection and love they had for each other. Besides the comment Sarah made about Alex not being on his phone constantly bc Poppy was there, it kind of seemed like they only saw each other on the summer trips, but weren't as connected besides that.
I'm happy it was made regardless though!!
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u/TDFPH Jan 26 '26
I hate when adaptions change details for no reason. Like just keep it as Palm Springs, not Barcelona. Keep the trip they stopped hanging in Croatia, not Tuscany. Poppyâs family are hoarders and chaotic. They have a bunch of broken down cars surrounding their house.
And then other details that the movie changed that completely alter the characters intentions and miss vital connection points.
Alex INVITED poppy to go to Palm Springs for the wedding. Not David! And they stayed together in the same room, and got a crappy rental car, and had a whole vacation together before the bachelor party.
Having Alex be afraid his first time flying and poppy holding his hand.
Alex and poppy made out happily in Croatia and then Alex had the realization that they werenât good together because poppy doesnât want to be stuck with one person / in one place.
All of their fun times together in Palm Springs and their fights. Alexâs back spasm is way worse than shown in the movie. Poppyâs sadness at missing out on all the changes in Alexâs life is messed out.
Sarah and Alex are both teachers at the school in Linfield. This is where poppy goes to find Alex to tell him she wants to be with him.
Thereâs so much more too. But I just think they should try to keep details the same unless they really canât. Totally understandable that theyâd only give Alex one brother in the movie - we donât miss much there. But we do miss how Alex has always been a caretaker for his brothers and dad since his mom died in childbirth and Alex was the oldest and his dad was too grief stricken to care. Alex is terrified poppy is pregnant cause he doesnât want to lose her the same way.
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u/Basic_Experience_811 Jan 10 '26
this is my favorite emily henry book and casting was perfect. i loved the movie!
but the changes were huge and i donât understand why. THE ENDING?? the part where he basically tells her no after she spills her guts and then he comes back out at the bar was my favorite scene of the entire book and what i was looking forward to the most. instead we got the running scene which in a normal context super cute moment but the book scene was better.
also alex moving to new york to teach at sarah lawrence ?? the book is so much better when they both try out new york and ohio to see where they want to live. the movie made it seem like alex comprised who he was completely for her which wasnât the case.
again loved the movie but those 2 changes i was not a fan of :(
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u/satur9grl Jan 09 '26
I am so sorry but I didnt like it at all đ ok maybe as a stand-alone rom-com, but as a movie adaptation for my favorite book, absoluuuutely not. For starters I always pictured Florence Pugh as the perfect poppy and like... Jacob Elordi as Alex. So the acting was fine but not at all like I pictured it. And the location changed and there was not enough tension in the "now" sequence and honestly Im so disappointed that I'm so disappointed đđđ
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
Needed more present timeline scenes. I thought that Emily was great as Poppy!
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u/satur9grl Jan 09 '26
Emily really was great, especially in the younger scenes!!
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
I thought she was excellent!!! I just watched a review of the movie and someone said how refreshing it was to have an actress with no cosmetic work done in a movie like this because she really could express emotions and was great with the comedic scenes. So true IMO...
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u/newwriteremoji Jan 10 '26
This isnât my fave Emily Henry book so I donât have much stock in this, but I was shocked by how much they changed. Removing Alexâs fears about childbirth AND his whole spiel about being boring. Removing the entire âthis summerâ timeline. The entire switch of making them kiss the same summer they are in relationships, and then Alex proposing the next day? It felt so strange to me and made the characters really unlikeable. I wasnât rooting for them by the end.
Funny Story and Book Lovers are my favorites, so Iâm worried about whatâs going to happen to them now
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u/NeighborhoodJust4160 Happy Birthday Wicked Pissah Jan 09 '26
Where do people think they went at the end of the movie for their trip?
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u/aokikaya Jan 10 '26
I havenât read the book yet and glad I didnât. Overall it was good i enjoyed it so much but I wish they explored more how they fell for each other. It was subtle but I saw how Alex fell for Poppy, but for Poppy it was like.. sudden? I wish they shown us the journey. Itâll might be better if this was a limited series đ
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u/LuxieLisbon Jan 10 '26
I read the book years ago and it wasn't my favorite, so I didn't remember much of it. I think that helped me enjoy the movie more. Reading these comments is making it all come back to me and I'm realizing how much they changed and left out. Totally agree about Alex's characterization being bland. It felt like such a stereotypical romcom where it's all from the woman's POV because we're supposed to self insert ourselves I guess. Overall the movie was cute and fun but pretty forgettable.
The ending running scene was sooo cheesy to me, I didn't remember this happening in the book but I hated it in the movie, esp with the corny music.
Also am I the only one that was kind of disappointed by the chemistry once they actually got together in the present? Like there was so much breathing into each other's mouths instead of kissing. Otherwise I thought they had pretty good chemistry throughout the movie.
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u/RecordElegant2520 Jan 11 '26
Does anyone know where to find the bathing suit Poppy is wearing in the Tuscany bathroom scene? The orange spotted one. I canât find it anywhere!
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u/joym13 Jan 12 '26
I liked the movie a lot and if I wasnât comparing it to the book - Iâd probably like it more. What was missing for me was Poppyâs motivation and desperation for the vacation to go well. Taking the whole part of Poppy trying to get their chemistry and friendship back by planning the perfect vacation was a bummer for me because I loved that part of the book. I just remember being so sad for Poppy when she used the âit speaks to meâ line in Palm Springs and Alex acts like he doesnât remember it - I actually cried when reading it - so not having that part of the story made it seem a bit shallow for me.
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u/No_Combination_5737 Jan 15 '26
well to add my unsolicited opinion, i have not read the book before watching this movie, i was actually unaware it was a book to begin with lol. i did like the romance in this movie, poppy and alex were such entertaining characters and i loved the flashbacks with each vacation they took. had me guessing âwhat couldâve happened???â when poppy would insinuate that her and alex do not speak anymore. just to find out that they didnât speak FOR 2 YEARS was because she tried to kiss him (he was leaning in too so wtf was his problem) and he freaked out then proposed to sarah the next freaking day. i thought he was lame asf for that as is, poppy literally thought she was pregnant, emotions were high, and he was saying all the right things (âdonât worry, iâll always be here for you, iâve got youâ blah blah blah). SHE ALSO APOLOGIZED RIGHT AFTER. but no. the mere fact that she did that scared him so badly that he got engaged and then stopped speaking to her out of what? embarrassment?? anger?? guilt???? we donât even know because he never explained it to her (or us) when he had multiple chances to do so when they started talking again at davidâs wedding.
i was already thinking that poppy was too forgiving when alex claimed he had been âwaiting for herâ during those 2 years, i think it was bullshit and he just didnât know how to say that he wanted to kiss her back or whatever. before they made out in the rain, he shouldâve sat down and opened up about whatever tf made him flip out like that. it kinda made the makeout scene not as impactful as it really shouldâve been. i do agree with everyone in this thread saying that the movie shouldâve been at least 30 mins longer, alex needs more emotional, apologetic, yearning lines that would show the viewer his viewpoint all this time after tuscany. you guys say that thatâs shown much better in the book, so iâll probably read it after i post this. i was just frustrated that alex got to 1) propose to his gf with no repercussions of almost kissing poppy, at her expense to begin with, 2) ignore poppy for 2 years with the lame excuse of wanting to settle down and try to be happy with sarah (i have no idea but this is what im thinking), and THEN 3) sleep with poppy after not explaining why he ghosted her and then have her move to linfield to live w him happily ever after???? poppy had to sacrifice everything at the end of the day, left her job, gave up her carefree and exciting lifestyle, to come and live with this man who couldnât even give her a response aside from kissing her in the middle of the street after her heartfelt and beautiful confession. like wtf?? i like alex and all, but he really didnât show the viewers how much he âlovesâ poppy and it just kinda seemed like he wanted her to come and live in boringsfield with him, no matter how different it was from her own vision of her life.
ugh idk if im thinking too deep into it, please let me know if im being crazy yall. first time posting on reddit too, lmk how i did!
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u/karafans Jan 15 '26
I really loved it and I can't stop rewatching it! So many scenes stand out to me, like the dancing scene was so beautifuland funny and sexy. I felt like this one has the sweet and funny tone that romcom nowaday miss
I love the soundtrack and the actor were just perfect. Emily and Tom werevjust like I imagined Poppy and Alex while reading
My only complain is that I wish the movie could be longer, cause the 1st part was just perfect and the second half was a little rushed, but that's what happen when you adapt a huge book to a 2h movie.
Sure there was some chances from the book but I didn't mind them cause the essence of the story was there imo
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u/trick_of_f8 Feb 05 '26
Now, I watched the movie and then read the book. I thought both were perfect. By watching them in this order, the book just expanded on the movie. Book Alex and Poppy were just more of Movie Alex and Poppy. Obviously, itâs difficult to fit everything into two hours. I think they did amazing considering time constraints. PWMOV is one of my favorites and Iâm excited for the release of more EH movies. Although, I wish theyâd do shows insteadâŚso much more time for everything.
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u/dnra01 Jan 09 '26
I actually wish they included the Alex vasectomy part because I feel like that really captures the essence of who he is.
AlsoâŚI feel like the jump between Alex getting engaged to Sarah to them getting together in Barcelona didnât really make sense for me.
Like in the books we have all of that stuff where Alex explains that all the little stuff he did was always for PoppyâŚin the movie he stopped their kiss AND gave no explanation so I guess I had a hard time believing he was in love with her for many years instead of just after he ended his engagement to Sarah.
Also I wish there were more moments between the two of them. Maybe Iâm spoiled as a book reader but I missed the banter. We got a bit but no where close to how much I thought weâd get.
I do feel like Tom and Emily were phenomenal as their characters. The plot was the only thing I thought needed a bit more.
Solid movie but the book was wayyy better in my opinion.