Five Breakups And A Romance Plot Summary
Five breakups and a romance start in Singapore, where Lance and Justine encounter each other for the first through mutual friends. Justine’s best friend from the Philippines is accompanied by her boyfriend and friends, including Lance, to attend a concert in Singapore. After the concert, Lance and Justine hang out together, away from the group, since they are the only single people.
They eventually decide to stroll around Singapore after Lance follows her out when she bids her friends goodbye. The night ends with Justine thinking of a passionate one-night stand in a hotel room, and she quickly sneaks out the morning after.
When do Lance and Justine start dating?
After their passionate night together, Lance unexpectedly shows up at Justine’s workplace with a bouquet. After Justine finishes work, they go on a date, and Lance confesses his feelings for Justine. Even though Justine is sceptical, Lance convinces her to give in to her feelings and try dating him. They do not have to think about the future but enjoy the moments they spend together in Singapore. Hence, Lance extends his stay in Singapore for a few more days and moves into Justine’s apartment. However, a few days later, the first break-up happens. Lance wants to try a long-distance relationship and court Justine even after he goes back to the Philippines.
In contrast, Justine thinks they might not like each other, especially when they spend more time together in the Philippines. Therefore, she insists they should end whatever they have in Singapore and consider it “just one of those things” that was fun while it lasted. Later, while Justine bid Lance goodbye, he hoped he would see her again and head back to the Philippines.
What leads to the second break-up?
It turns out that Lance and Justine decide to give dating a go, and Justine moves back to the Philippines. On that fateful day, Justine is hanging out with his friends, waiting for him to show up. She texts him hastily, asking where he is, and says he has been waiting for hours. Lance eventually shows up with a friend, Pia. He says that they were having a group study and got caught up in traffic. During the dinner, Lance’s friend grills Justine about quitting her job in Singapore and shifting from her career goal.
After Justine steps out and Lance follows her, the next significant scene in the movie unfolds with a heartbreaking confrontation between them. Lance had lied to Justine about the group study, and when she insists that he had cheated on her with Pia, he comes clean and tells her about flunking his studies and being unsure of whether he still wants to become a doctor.
He projects his anger onto Justine, saying that she is a know-it-all, and that is why he chooses to find comfort in Pia since she understands what he is going through without judgment. Justine says she was willing to do anything for Lance because she believed in their love, but that love is gone. She wonders what happened to the love.
The confrontation spirals with Lance and Justice throwing daggers at each other until Justine storms out. Lance follows Justine outside, and they have a calm conversation when he asks if they are breaking up. Lance tells her he gets the same feeling as the first time they met when he looks at her daily, making Justine wonder if they can make it.
When do they get back together again, and what happens?
Their next reunion and getting back together happens at a wedding two years later. Justine’s parents renew their wedding vows and invite Lance to the wedding. Lance is now doing well, and Justine is considering starting a business. Seemingly, Justine’s family likes Lance and thinks of him as part of the family. Justine and Lance discuss being on a trial period where they promise to give each other space.
During the after-party, the family talks about dating and marriage, and Lance says he is ready for marriage, but Justine might not. Later, Lance and Justine escape the family member’s endless questions hand in hand and enjoy some time together with wine on the beach.
Justine talks about her plans to go back to work while simultaneously trying to open up her fashion boutique. She does not want to be a burden to her parents and does not give Lance a chance to loan her some money. She is confident she can handle the pressure of a nine-to-five job and running a boutique. Lance asks Justine to move in with him. He wants to help her the only way he can as she rebuilds her life and thinks it would make it easier for her if she did not have to worry about rent. Since they are no longer together, Lance says they will technically be housemates, but that changes a few moments later when he leans in to kiss her, and she lets him.
Why do they break up again?
The fourth segment, Everybody Hurts, happens during the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic. Lance is a mess both physically and emotionally since he is a doctor and more so because of what happened between him and Justine. In an audio message that he sent her, we learn that they broke up because Lance cheated on Pia. He talks about being in a bad place at that time, and things happened not because he was into her but because he was in a bad place after one of their fights, and she was available. He apologises for hiding it from her for so long. Meanwhile, Justine is packing the condo and planning to move out.
Do Justine and Lance end up together?
No, the breakup after Justine finds out he cheated is the final blow. Three years later, in 2023, Justine is in a good place. She has set up her shop, and her family is there to help her with the designs. Her father shows up at the shop after running away from home to get away from his wife after an interview. Suddenly, Justine had to rush him to the hospital, and they ran into Lance again. Justine and Lance talk, updating each other on what has happened in life after their separation.
How does Five Breakups and a Romance end?
Lance shares his reflections about his behaviour when he was with Justine, saying he was so angry at everyone and was so hateful to realise that he had some good in him. They reminisce about “quantum entanglement”, and Lance thanks Justine for her role in changing him for the better. He asks for forgiveness for cheating and hurting her. She admits that Lance played a part in helping her believe in herself and challenge her life choices by testing how much her heart could take, how much she was capable of, hope for, and let go of, and she holds no regrets.
Lance wishes things could have been different, but Justine tells him that probably it is how things were meant to be between them. Justine tells him they are still good friends, which will never change.
The movie is a rollercoaster of emotions that coherently captures the struggles of navigating the ups and downs of a relationship. Unfortunately, Justine and Lance do not get their happy ending, but it offers a life lesson: there is just so much a partner can take in a relationship until they cannot give any more chances.
It perfectly blends the journey or romance, showing the partners in their good times and bad times when they make trials and errors to figure out their future, both in life and in love. The actors deliver astounding performances individually but lack chemistry when together on screen. Regardless, five breakups and a romance are worth watching, and they will leave your heart wrenching while slapping you with a reality check about relationships.