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Anyone But You
Movie

Anyone But You

2023 • Comedy, Romance

Woke Score
5
out of 10

Plot

After an amazing first date, Bea and Ben's fiery attraction turns ice-cold--until they find themselves unexpectedly reunited at a wedding in Australia. So they do what any two mature adults would do: pretend to be a couple.

Overall Series Review

The movie is a romantic comedy loosely based on Shakespeare's 'Much Ado About Nothing.' It centers on a destination wedding in Australia where two sparring leads, Bea and Ben, pretend to be a couple to manage their respective personal and family pressures. The core narrative focuses on classic rom-com tropes: miscommunication, personal emotional baggage, and an eventual realization of true love between a man and a woman. The film is notable for making the actual wedding a same-sex union between supporting characters, presenting this as the primary example of an 'idyllic' relationship. The morality is entirely secular, championing premarital sex and prioritizing individual emotional fulfillment over traditional standards. Character motivations are driven by personal hang-ups and familial expectations rather than any political or social commentary.

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics3/10

The main couple consists of two white leads. The supporting cast, however, is notably diverse, including Black and Asian actors in prominent roles without a direct correlation to the plot's central romantic conflict. The narrative is not concerned with lecturing on systemic oppression or privilege. Characters are judged primarily on their emotional maturity and relational flaws, not immutable characteristics.

Oikophobia2/10

The plot is an adaptation of a classic Western play by Shakespeare. The setting is a glamorous, affluent destination wedding in Australia. The narrative contains no criticism or vilification of Western civilization, home culture, or ancestors. The focus remains on modern, personal relationship dynamics and miscommunications.

Feminism4/10

The female lead, Bea, is not depicted as a 'Girl Boss' but is flawed, having dropped out of law school and being emotionally adrift. The male lead, Ben, is also flawed and emotionally guarded, depicted initially as a 'finance bro' with nihilistic tendencies. The film's primary focus is on the heterosexual couple achieving a complementary romantic union, but the one successful, central relationship that is celebrated is the same-sex couple, which promotes an anti-natalistic, anti-traditional family model.

LGBTQ+9/10

The entire setting, which is a celebration of love and commitment, revolves around the same-sex wedding of the sister of the female lead and the friend's sister of the male lead. The lesbian couple is explicitly depicted as having the 'real idyllic relationship' of the movie, strongly centering alternative sexuality and deconstructing the traditional nuclear family unit as the standard for successful romance.

Anti-Theism7/10

The moral framework of the film is completely secular, focusing on subjective 'truth' and emotional fulfillment. The lead characters engage in pre-marital sex on their first date, which is glamorized and presented as a normal part of the love story. The absence of traditional morality and the clear valorization of actions contrary to Christian values place the morality in the realm of subjective relativism, though the film does not actively vilify religion.