The Kissing Booth 2
Starring: Joey King, Jacob Elordi, Joel Courtney, Taylor Zakhar Perez
Directed By: Vince Marcello
Rated: PG-13
We may be staring into a seemingly endless abyss of delayed theatrical openings, including Tenet, Wonder Woman 84, and Black Widow. Still, there is one constant during the age of COVID that we can count on. That is the sub-par Netflix original rom-com. In July, the big release was The Kissing Booth 2, the highly anticipated sequel to The Kissing Booth. You’re sitting there reading this thinking to yourself, “Was this a movie that warranted a sequel?” No, it did not. But Netflix knew they could get viewers with this, and it has just been announced that there will be a third installment of The Kissing Booth franchise. Some are fans of The Lord of the Rings; others choose The Kissing Booth as their trilogy of choice.
I find The Kissing Booth to be hilariously cheesy entertainment. It’s a fun movie to watch with friends and laugh at its unrealistic depiction of high school life. So that’s just what I did for The Kissing Booth 2, skyped with a friend and got ready for the riveting continuation of this Netflix classic.
Picking up where the original left off, Elle (Joey King) is about to enter her senior year of high school with her best friend Lee (Joel Courtney). You may recall that the two BFF’s have an absurdly long list of “friendship rules” that they follow, ranging from the major life decisions like “must attend the same college” to the oddly specific “always make a wish on the Thanksgiving turkey wishbone.” Elle is still trying to maintain a long-distance relationship with Lee’s older brother Noah (Jacob Elordi, who clearly does not want to be in this movie.) He is a freshman at Harvard, even though he seems to show very little interest in academics. Elle wonders if she and Noah can make it through the trials of a long-distance relationship. When dreamy new student Marco shows up, they will be put to the test.
At 2 hours and 12 minutes, The Kissing Booth 2 is about ready to compete with Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman for extended movie runtime in a Netflix original. This is seriously way too long for a romantic comedy with a pretty basic plot. Several scenes could easily be cut down to keep this around 100 minutes. There are so many plot lines and characters in the story that it feels overstuffed. While the first movie revolved around the concept of the kissing booth, the sequel throws it in as an afterthought at the end so it can keep it in the title. The biggest problem with this movie is the script. There are so many moments that make you wonder how any rational person would react the same way these characters do. There’s a plotline involving Noah becoming friends with Chloe, a fellow Harvard student. Chloe is his only female friend, which makes Elle extremely jealous. This entire plotline is quite ironic because Elle only hangs out with guys at school. It’s okay for her to have all guy friends, but Noah can’t be friends with one girl?
Probably rule number 107 in Elle and Lee’s friendship handbook
“If one’s sibling is cheating on you at Harvard, you must publically denounce them as a family member and declare loyalty to your best friend.”
I’ve seen so much negativity recently towards Joey King’s performance in both The Kissing Booth 1 and 2 to the point where people bully her as an actress. Everyone needs to keep in mind that these are movies marketed for teens. Of course, they are cheesy. Her character is awkward and over-the-top, but she is not a bad actress. Anyone who doubts her talent should watch The Act and dial down the negativity. The point of these movies is lighthearted entertainment. Let’s not get carried away with being hurtful and rude to the performers.
Joel Courtney is the goofy best friend who wants to be supportive of Elle even if it endangers his new relationship. It’s a bit odd that Lee and Noah share almost no lines with each other throughout the whole movie despite being brothers. In the one scene, they do share with each other, you’d never guess that the two are related. You know what? I bet that is Lee and Elle’s friendship Rule #57
”When an older sibling goes off to college and makes a female friend, do not speak to him at Thanksgiving.”
Jacob Elordi comes in and out of the film since his character is so busy being studious at Harvard. (I’m kind of obsessed with the way everyone gets into Harvard in these movies like it’s so easy.) Between the Kissing Booth and Euphoria, Elordi has the controlling boyfriend role on lock. Noah in The Kissing Booth is much less terrifying than Nate in Euphoria, but he’s still raising some red flags for concerning behavior. Like a specific scene where he calls Elle’s high school and poses as her dad because she won’t answer his texts in class. Noah, by some miracle you were accepted into Harvard, go read a textbook.
It’s new character Marco, played by Taylor Perez that turns this teen romance into a love triangle. Honestly, Marco seems like the perfect guy. He’s kind, courteous, and signs up for every single activity that Elle ropes him into, including a dance competition. If there’s one thing I’ve learned from The Kissing Booth (soon to be trilogy), it’s that Noah would NEVER do that for Elle. Alas, this is a Netflix rom-com, and only one man can win over her heart in the end.
The Kissing Booth 2 is a cliche and cheesy romance movie. It gets way too complicated with too many plot lines and characters thrown in for a premise that could be much more simplified. However, if you want some mindless entertainment that’s sure to make you laugh due to its ridiculous script, you may want to give it a shot!
My Rating: 5/10