After watching this movie, I can say for a fact that this is the kind of movie you put on when you want something light, funny, romantic and you don't want to spend two hours trying to understand the entire plot..
The story follows Owen, a young musician who meets a girl named Emily and immediately feels like he has found the person for him... But it's not that simple, because when Owen tries to contact her, he discovers that he has been given the wrong phone number and instead of accepting defeat like a normal human being, this man decides he is going to find her.
So begins the search for Emily but while looking for the Emily he met, he ends up meeting another Emily... This Emily is a psychology student who is working on a thesis about love and relationships and somehow, these two end up helping each other.
The movie becomes interesting at this point because Owen is basically chasing an idea of love, while Emily is studying love like it is a scientific problem... She is actually quite sceptical about romantic love, while Owen is the complete opposite.
He is the guy who sees one person across a room and is already thinking about their future together.
That contrast between them is what makes the movie work... Spike Fearn was really good as Owen. He plays him as this slightly awkward, hopelessly romantic guy without making him completely annoying because honestly, a character like Owen could easily become irritating.
You're searching an entire university for a woman whose phone number you don't even have correctly?... That's really crazy..
Angourie Rice was probably my favourite though... Her Character, Emily is much more guarded and analytical... She has her own relationship problems and reasons for being sceptical about love, and watching her slowly get dragged into Owen's ridiculous mission was entertaining and the chemistry between Rice and Fearn is probably the biggest reason the movie works.
They feel comfortable together. Their conversations feel natural and there is that slow realisation that maybe the person you're looking for isn't necessarily the person you originally thought you wanted.
I also liked the Manchester setting... The movie makes good use of the city and the university environment, and it gives the whole thing a nice British rom-com feeling.
There is also a lot of music throughout the movie, which makes sense considering Owen is a musician. The soundtrack adds a lot to the atmosphere and keeps the movie feeling lively.
The biggest problem for me is that the story can be a little too predictable.
You can probably figure out where things are going long before the characters do.
Some of the supporting characters are funny, but a few feel like they exist mainly to push Owen and Emily toward the next part of the story and the whole idea of Owen contacting hundreds of people named Emily could easily come across as creepy if the movie wasn't so determined to keep everything lighthearted.
Thankfully, it mostly works because the film knows exactly what it is.
It isn't trying to be Oppenheimer.
It isn't trying to teach us some deep lesson about human existence.
It is a romantic comedy.
And sometimes you just need that.
What I really liked, though, is the little message underneath everything.
We sometimes build an entire fantasy around someone we barely know.
You meet somebody, you like them, and suddenly you've created this perfect version of them in your head but what happens when reality doesn't match the fantasy?
That's where Finding Emily becomes more interesting.
Owen thinks he is searching for one specific girl but along the way, he starts discovering what he actually wants from love and Emily, who spends so much time studying love from a distance, is forced to actually experience it.
That part was sweet.
Overall, Finding Emily is exactly the kind of movie I would recommend when you want something easy and enjoyable.
It is funny.. It is romantic.. The leads have good chemistry.. The soundtrack is great and it has that old-school British rom-com feeling, just with a more modern university setting.
Rating: 80/100
