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The classical romantic comedy has been dead for about a decade. Since the release of, let's say, The Proposal, the genre has spent quite a bit of time lounging around the opium dens of streaming services and the Hallmark channel, occasionally belching out projects that either rise into the stratosphere, hooked to a baffling high concept, or sink to the floor, weighed down by unmotivated tropes and clichés. Amazon Prime's newest entry into the rom-com genre, My Fake Boyfriend, somehow manages to somehow do both of those things, bouncing wildly from floor to ceiling in a chaotic cacophony.
The film follows Andrew (Keiynan Lonsdale, who mainstream audiences probably know best from his appearance in the gay teen rom-com Love, Simon), a stunt man/fight choreographer who is on-again-off-again dating Instagram famous soap opera actor Nico (Marcus Rosner). After their tenth consecutive breakup, his weirdo graphic designer best friend Jake (Dylan Sprouse) - who is dating Andrew's other BFF Kelly (Sarah Hyland) decides to deepfake a boyfriend for him named Cristiano (Jaden Goetz) and use that as a wedge between Andrew and Nico.
This works, for some reason, and allows Andrew the space to remove himself from Nico's toxic thrall. However, at the same time, he begins to fall for sexy local restaurateur Rafi (Samer Salem). Obviously the fake boyfriend needs to go at some point, but Jake becomes dangerously attached to his fake online persona and struggles to let him go.
The thing that is probably most intriguing about My Fake Boyfriend is the fact that the best friend character is given such a robust arc and so much of the narrative momentum is driven by his feelings and decisions. That is by far its best break from the traditional rom-com formula. I'd say it was its only break from the formula, but having a gay lead unfortunately does qualify it for one more.
Otherwise, the film follows the exact beats that any reasonably seasoned viewer might expect, down to the extremely granular trope of "character who doesn't talk finally breaking his silence to deliver a pep talk." This isn't a sin in and of itself, and I wouldn't say it ruined the film in any particular way. But it doesn't seek to do much beyond delivering tropes in a satisfactory manner, hanging its comic tone off the back of a reasonably charming hangout vibe rather than satisfying joke writing.
Unfortunately, the over-the-top AI boyfriend plot isn't appropriately mined for comic value, instead treated like any other generic obstacle for our sexy main couple to get together. The one time it has anything remotely trenchant or satirical to say about the situation is a visual gag about product placement that comes very late in the game and is somewhat undermined by the fact that the scene takes place in the Buzzfeed offices (Buzzfeed Studios produced the film, so this was either a cost-saving measure or a baffling bit of cross-promotion, but either way it makes the joke feel far more hypocritical than it can sustain).
One thing I always like to give one of these straight-to-VOD films points for is having any sort of stylistic eye whatsoever. Director Rose Troche has graduated from television, and her framing of the comedy unfortunately doesn't stray from that more small screen-friendly approach. However, there is a certain aesthetic sensibility in the editing and presentation of graphic elements in the early going that remains consistent throughout the film. It's not doing anything groundbreaking (if anything, it's doing the same sub-Edgar Wright thing that digital filmmakers have been leaning on for some time), but it helps the pacing feel fresh and exuberant.
Overall, it isn't torture to spend 90 minutes and change in the company of this movie. It's not exactly an exciting prospect for anyone who's not specifically interested in seeking out gay takes on classics genres, but it's very much a film that can be thrown on while you're folding laundry and deliver a perfectly un-extraordinary afternoon.
Brennan Klein is a millennial who knows way more about 80's slasher movies than he has any right to. He's a former host of the Attack of the Queerwolf podcast and a current senior movie/TV news writer at Screen Rant. You can find his other reviews on his blog Popcorn Culture. Follow him on Twitter or Letterboxd, if you feel like it.
The film follows Andrew (Keiynan Lonsdale, who mainstream audiences probably know best from his appearance in the gay teen rom-com Love, Simon), a stunt man/fight choreographer who is on-again-off-again dating Instagram famous soap opera actor Nico (Marcus Rosner). After their tenth consecutive breakup, his weirdo graphic designer best friend Jake (Dylan Sprouse) - who is dating Andrew's other BFF Kelly (Sarah Hyland) decides to deepfake a boyfriend for him named Cristiano (Jaden Goetz) and use that as a wedge between Andrew and Nico.
This works, for some reason, and allows Andrew the space to remove himself from Nico's toxic thrall. However, at the same time, he begins to fall for sexy local restaurateur Rafi (Samer Salem). Obviously the fake boyfriend needs to go at some point, but Jake becomes dangerously attached to his fake online persona and struggles to let him go.
The thing that is probably most intriguing about My Fake Boyfriend is the fact that the best friend character is given such a robust arc and so much of the narrative momentum is driven by his feelings and decisions. That is by far its best break from the traditional rom-com formula. I'd say it was its only break from the formula, but having a gay lead unfortunately does qualify it for one more.
Otherwise, the film follows the exact beats that any reasonably seasoned viewer might expect, down to the extremely granular trope of "character who doesn't talk finally breaking his silence to deliver a pep talk." This isn't a sin in and of itself, and I wouldn't say it ruined the film in any particular way. But it doesn't seek to do much beyond delivering tropes in a satisfactory manner, hanging its comic tone off the back of a reasonably charming hangout vibe rather than satisfying joke writing.
Unfortunately, the over-the-top AI boyfriend plot isn't appropriately mined for comic value, instead treated like any other generic obstacle for our sexy main couple to get together. The one time it has anything remotely trenchant or satirical to say about the situation is a visual gag about product placement that comes very late in the game and is somewhat undermined by the fact that the scene takes place in the Buzzfeed offices (Buzzfeed Studios produced the film, so this was either a cost-saving measure or a baffling bit of cross-promotion, but either way it makes the joke feel far more hypocritical than it can sustain).
One thing I always like to give one of these straight-to-VOD films points for is having any sort of stylistic eye whatsoever. Director Rose Troche has graduated from television, and her framing of the comedy unfortunately doesn't stray from that more small screen-friendly approach. However, there is a certain aesthetic sensibility in the editing and presentation of graphic elements in the early going that remains consistent throughout the film. It's not doing anything groundbreaking (if anything, it's doing the same sub-Edgar Wright thing that digital filmmakers have been leaning on for some time), but it helps the pacing feel fresh and exuberant.
Overall, it isn't torture to spend 90 minutes and change in the company of this movie. It's not exactly an exciting prospect for anyone who's not specifically interested in seeking out gay takes on classics genres, but it's very much a film that can be thrown on while you're folding laundry and deliver a perfectly un-extraordinary afternoon.
Brennan Klein is a millennial who knows way more about 80's slasher movies than he has any right to. He's a former host of the Attack of the Queerwolf podcast and a current senior movie/TV news writer at Screen Rant. You can find his other reviews on his blog Popcorn Culture. Follow him on Twitter or Letterboxd, if you feel like it.
Categories: romcoms
