The Half of It Netflix Review – Will it be worth your time?

Ellie Chu is a small-town Cyrano, but with a twist. Netflix’s acclaimed original The Half of It could well be the most literary high school movie to come along to its adolescent audience.

Not just because writer-director Alice Wu was inspired by a 19th-century French play, but because it loves language. It relishes reading, respects writing, and believes in the power of words to make skeptics fall in love.

1. Quick Review

The writer/director’s queer take on Cyrano de Bergerac features several of the kinds of characters we so often see. Especially in the fields of Young Adult films and novels. Those hyper-verbal teenagers given to expressing their anxieties through witty, self-aware narration.

The Half of It | Official Trailer | Netflix

It takes place in a small town that may seem quaint to the outsider but feels like a prison to the people within it. The premise of teenage dramas—that teens in different rungs of high-school’s social hierarchy can forge life-changing bonds—is perennial.

The pieces may seem familiar in The Half of It, but the way Alice Wu assembles them results in a fresh and inspired whole. By telling a personal tale inspired by her own life, Wu achieves both singularity and universality. It helps a great deal that the actress functioning as her stand-in has such a smart and compelling screen presence.

2. Is it worth watching?

There’s a lot to love about The Half Of It, particularly when it comes to rising talent. The biggest revelation of the bunch is lead actress Leah Lewis. She embodies a moving character transformation that hits hard.

Especially thanks to the nuance in Lewis’ work and how accessible she makes Ellie over the course of the film. Director Wu’s own story of being born to Taiwanese immigrant parents and coming out as a lesbian in a largely conservative community adds a personal note to this film.

The Half Of It doesn’t come with an “aha moment” that changes Ellie’s outlook on herself and those around her. Instead, it slowly chips away at the rules that Ellie thinks she must abide by, giving her time to reassess them. This results in a transformation that feels real, raw, and meaningful.

I. Plot

Set in the fictitious town of Squahamish, the movie revolves around Chinese-American teen Ellie Chu (played by Leah Lewis). She is an extremely bright high school student who isn’t much of a social butterfly. Ellie’s interaction with her peers is limited to getting paid to complete their homework assignments for them. She lives alone with her dad, who can’t speak much English and never quite recovered from his wife’s death. 

However, things change for Ellie when she gets an unusual request from a football player named Paul (played by Daniel Diemer). Paul doesn’t want her to write a school essay for him; he wants her to write a love letter to his crush, Aster (played by Alexxis Lemire). Ellie insists it’s a one-time thing.

She’s completely caught up in the relationship while growing quite close to Paul in the process before she knows it. The soundtrack of the film includes latest songs by the Ruen Brothers, 

II. Music and visuals

Music composer, orchestrator, and producer Anton Sanko is the music director for this film. The Half of It’s soundtrack includes a handful of songs by Tony K, a few by Reem, If You Leave Me Now by Chicago X, Gone Off That Brown by Peleboy and In Your Eyes by The Weeknd. 

Set in the fictitious Squahamish, the atmosphere Wu has created here is wildly effective. The warm color palette, the sensitivity of the three main characters, and the fact that Wu knows exactly when to keep the camera on them; it all adds up to create an extremely full existence oozing with heart and charm.

As filmed by Wu, the screen lights up with ornate words, pictures, and text messages throughout. All of this contributes to a kind of dream life. One where people’s words help transcend their mundane, dead-end milieu. 

3. Final Thoughts

Writer-director Alice Wu achieves a welcome generosity toward her characters with her thoughtful handling of key elements. Race, language, sexual orientation, and religion (Ellie’s an atheist; Aster’s the preacher’s daughter), to name a few.

She showcases teenagers striving to be respectful of their families’ traditions and expectations while also forging paths that satisfy their own dreams and drives. Sixteen years after her writing/directing debut with the lesbian romance Saving Face, Wu follows up with a coming-of-age drama that’s once again open-minded and big-hearted.

The Half of It is a sensitively crafted step in the right direction of representation. It deftly conveys the difficult unsureness that can accompany same-sex attraction at a young age. The characters work their feelings out in ways that are messy and confusing.

What keeps the film mostly on track, even in its scrappier moments, is its central trio of accomplished young actors. The Half of It proves to be a strong, warm-hearted, and quietly progressive addition to the expanding Netflix pack of teen films. 

In most good rom-coms, you fall in love with the characters. In The Half of It, you’ll fall in love with their sheer longing.

4. Grade

5. Info