What If (2023) Netflix Movie Review – Less of a honeymoon and more of a snooze-fest!

Less of a honeymoon and more of a snooze-fest!

Netflix just dropped its latest Filipino movie, What If and unfortunately it’s not very good. The film is directed by Mike G Rivera and fronted by JM de Guzman and Alessandra de Rossi. 

What if tells the story of Billie and Jecs, a newly married couple who head off to an island for their honeymoon. Jecs is a musician trying to get a more significant social media following and working on his next album. His wife, Billie, is also a musician but chooses not to work actively in the industry.  

They finally get to the island and start their honeymoon on a high note. Given that they are both musicians, they keep singing. At some point, it gets annoying as it feels like the story is stalling. The two actors barely have any chemistry and to be honest, Jecs has more chemistry with his guitar. Unfortunately, he cannot complete his song on time and send it to his manager. 

As the story lags on, and we’re led to believe that these two have been a couple for years, and there’s also the usual cheesy flashback sequences thrown in too. It’s your classic girl and boy meet; they fall in love and get married. The wedding scene is the only one in this entire movie where they actually look in love. 

Back to the honeymoon, things start to go off the rails. As they spend their time on this island, they realise that they have a lot of issues they need to address. For starters, Billie doesn’t want kids. Hold your horses; this is something she had informed Jecs before they got married. She explained that she suffers from premature ovarian failure and is unwilling to try having kids. 

This is one of the fundamental issues that threatens their newly-minted marriage. The couple drifts further apart as days pass, and their fighting escalates.  One can’t help but wonder why they even got married in the first place. They were supposed to have most of these serious conversations before saying,“ I do.”

Barely days into the marriage, they have huge cracks in their foundation as a couple. It gets so bad that, as a viewer, you get tired of rooting for them. Their fights drag on and on with no solution. They keep returning to the same issue with no one willing to compromise.  

Ultimately, the couple is dealing with realistic issues that most couples face. From the nosy in-laws who don’t understand boundaries to childhood trauma affecting the relationship and the pressure to have kids or not. However, the acting and the execution in the film are too flat.

JM de Guzman barely brings life to his character as Jecs. The audience might find it hard to see him as a musician or a good husband. On the other hand, Alessandra de Rossi tries her best for her character, but not even she can save this monotonous movie from experiencing the same fate as the Titanic.

Having said that though, the cinematography is great. The island looks beautiful, and it is a pity the couple couldn’t find peace there. We only wish we had seen more of the island; it would have been a breath of fresh air away from the stifling effect this couple will have on you.

Unless you are looking for something to lull you to sleep, it’s best not to add this to your watchlist. 

Read More: What If Ending Explained

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