Anyone But You

"Some cupids kill with arrows, and some with traps."

"That was good. I like that."

"I just made it up."

Bea (Sweeney) and Ben (Powell) meet cute at a coffee shop.  They spend the rest of the day together, but a misunderstanding the next morning drives them apart.  They hope to never see each other again, but are forced to interact again when Bea's sister Halle (Robinson) begins dating Ben's old friend Claudia (Shipp), who is the sister of his best friend Pete (GaTa).

Claudia and Halle decide to get married in Australia.  They invite their closest family and friends to stay at the Australian home of Claudia and Pete's parents Roger (Brown) and Carol (Hurd).  Bea and Ben's bickering frustrates everyone else and threatens to ruin the wedding.  Further complicating things, Ben's ex Margaret (Fraser), who is Claudia and Pete's cousin, is also in the wedding and brought her new boyfriend Beau (Davidson) along.  And Bea's well-meaning parents, Leo (Mulroney) and Innie (Griffiths), invited her ex-fiance, Jonathan (Barnet) to the wedding.  With their family and friends trying to set them up, Bea and Ben declare a truce and pretend to be an item.  Can they survive the wedding and get what they really want?

The story is loosely based on William Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing."  Quotes from the play, along with some character names, are incorporated in the film - both the dialog and background (such as store names, etc).

The Good:

Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell have believable chemistry.  The setting is beautiful, as is the cast.

The Bad:

It could be better... there are unnecessary moments and the use of language and nudity doesn't add anything to the story.

Other Comments:

-At the end of the film, the cast sings "Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield - which is charming.

-It is an entertaining film, but doesn't hold up to great romantic comedies or well-done Shakespeare adaptations.  I enjoyed the film, but don't need to see it again.

Anyone But You (2023) 103 minutes

Rating: R for language throughout, sexual content and brief graphic nudity

Director: Will Gluck

Starring: Sydney Sweeney as Bea

Glen Powell as Ben

Alexandra Shipp as Claudia

GaTa as Pete

Hadley Robinson as Halle

Michelle Hurd as Carol

Dermot Mulroney as Leo

Darren Barnet as Jonathan

Bryan Brown as Roger

Rachel Griffiths as Innie

Charlee Fraser as Margaret

Joe Davidson as Beau