By Teri O.
Overview
Title: 2 HEARTS
Genre: Drama, Inspirational, Romance
Themes: hope, love, faith, sacrifice, giving and receiving
Rating: PG-13
Run time: 1:41
Theatrical Release: October 16, 2020
Studio: Freestyle Releasing/ AMT Productions
Starring: Jacob Elordi, Tiera Skovbye, Radha Mitchell, Adan Canto
About
For two couples, the future unfolds in different decades and different places. One young couple meets at college. The other meets years earlier and begins a globetrotting romance. Some day a hidden connection will bring both couples together in a way no one could have predicted. Based on an inspirational true story, 2 HEARTS is a romantic journey that celebrates life, love, and generosity of spirit.
Review
The two main protagonists in this story are Christopher Gregory, a 19-year-old freshman at Loyola University in New Orleans, and Jorge Bolivar whose family owns a prominent rum-making business. (His real name is Jorge Bacardi, but for some reason they changed his last name for the movie. The other characters’ names stayed the same.)
The way they wrote this movie was very clever and unique! It’s like two movies in one; there are two parallel stories that unfold side by side but in different time periods. Even though they keep switching back and forth between two sets of main characters, the way they do it really works, without feeling like you’re jumping back and forth or not being able to follow what’s going on. Still, you keep wondering how their stories will come together in the end, because they don’t seem to have anything in common.
In keeping with the parallel yet opposite theme, the following phrases come to mind:
- Heartwarming yet heartwrenching
- Inspiring yet infuriating
- Uplifting yet distressing
- Shocking yet comforting
- Joyful yet mournful
- Somber yet hopeful
As you can probably tell from my choice of words, this movie was a roller coaster of emotions with a bizarre twist that took me by surprise. It actually made me kind of mad upon realizing the filmmakers were leading me in one direction but it turned out to be the exact opposite. I turned to my viewing partner and exclaimed with tears in my eyes, “What??? How could they do that to us!!!”
Yeah, it was kind of mean, I don’t know why they did that other than to throw us off track. I’ve seen plenty of sci fi movies with alternate timelines, but this wasn’t science fiction. So why they put that fantasy sequence in there is beyond me. Especially if someone was familiar with the real story, they’d say what the heck is up with that?!
If you don’t watch the trailer or read anything about the 2 HEARTS movie or the true story behind it, you will be totally taken aback at what happens. Thinking back on it after the fact, though, if you are keenly observant and listening carefully, you may sense a hint of what’s to come. But I’m kind of gullible I guess, so I totally fell for it. As for the actual ending, it was neither happy nor sad, but it was satisfying.
Content Advisory
2 HEARTS is best viewed by teens and adults. (I don’t think kids would be interested in it anyway.) I could have sworn I heard one of the characters say the F-word once, but it happened so fast that it was barely noticeable and that was the only potential bad word in the whole movie.
I was more concerned about one scene in which two unmarried characters were sleeping together. After the camera panned around the room showing all of their clothes lying on the floor, we see the two of them in bed talking and covered by a bed sheet. The characters are so likeable and so much in love, you can easily overlook their transgression, but I still don’t think it sets a good example for impressionable young viewers. Although, assuming this was how it really happened, the conversation in this scene was part of a critical plot development.
In addition, there was talk about making babies and having lots of babies, and one scene at the beach showed the girl wearing a skimpy bikini. Oh, and at least two of the characters drink – Jorge was brought up in a rum dynasty, after all. 😉
So while the families in this movie are Catholic, they pray, they talk about the angel Gabriel, and some of the characters attend a Catholic college, this is not one of those purely wholesome Christian or Mormon films. But if you like romantic true stories and the idea of divine providence, you should see 2 HEARTS.