Somebody I Used to Know Review: Stream It or Skip It?

The season of love is upon us which means all streaming platforms are putting their best foot forward to make sure there is something for everyone around this time, even if it means unconventional happy endings that we are not very used to.

A little while ago, we spoke about the movie Somebody I Used to Know and we had a very vague idea of what the movie was going to be about, and the trailer only confused us more. However, now that we have watched Somebody I Used to Know, we have a lot of thoughts about it, and it’s time we review this movie so you can decide if you want to stream it or skip it this Valentine’s Day.

Somebody I Used to Know was directed by Dave Franco and written by Franco and his wife, Alison Brie, who is also the lead in the movie. Clearly, this pair works because although Somebody I Used to Know has received mixed reviews, we had a whole lot of fun watching it, mainly because it wasn’t what we expected and it is time everyone gets more accustomed to happy endings that don’t end the usual way.

This review will have some spoilers so make sure you proceed with caution and do let us know later in the comments what you thought about it!

Somebody I Used to Know: A Journey to Self-Love and Nudity

We have used the word unconventional before in the introduction of this review, and now we can finally explain why. A little bit about Somebody I Used to Know before we dive into the little details is important because, without context, this review would not make much sense.

Somebody I Used to Know revolves around Ally, who lives in LA and is hosting her own dessert reality show, and is extremely hardworking. Ally hasn’t taken a day off work or a little holiday in a long time but when the producers cancel her show, she is forced to take a break for herself, which leads her back to her hometown, somewhere she has avoided going for the longest time.

Ally is welcomed home by her mother in a rather compromising position which takes Ally to the closest bar instead, and here’s the thing about small towns, you run into people you don’t want to.

Ally runs into her ex, Sean, and they have a lot of history and chemistry, and one awkward meeting at the bar leads the two of them to have an adventure all night long where they revisit all the old places that they used to go to when they were together. This was bound to bring back certain emotions and after Ally kisses him and invites him back home, Sean refuses.

Ally, however, wasn’t ready to give up and shows up at his house the next day to apologize and hopefully rekindle an old flame. Things don’t go as planned because lo and behold, Ally is now at Sean and Cassidy’s wedding weekend. Not only that, but Ally also becomes their wedding videographer.

Here is where Somebody I Used to Know begins, especially the unconventional part. Usually in romantic comedies, we are supposed to adore the main characters, and patiently wait for them to make realize that they are in love with one another and eventually end up together after they sacrifice a few dreams of their own.

However, that doesn’t happen in Somebody I Used to Know, so if that’s the kind of romantic comedy you are looking for, then maybe this movie isn’t for you. The main character of Somebody I Used to Know, aka Ally, is probably the most unlikeable character of the movie, so let’s talk a little bit about her character arc because it is surely an interesting one, considering it was written by Brie and Franco.

There are certain points in Somebody I Used to Know where you almost feel bad for Ally until you don’t. She is at the wedding with one intention: she is convinced that Sean is still in love with her, and with her show back in LA being canceled, Ally might just be considering moving back home.

Ally makes sure that her presence is felt at the wedding weekend, especially when it comes to bonding with Sean’s family and friends, which doesn’t sit right with Cassidy, but being the cool fiancé that she is, she agrees on letting Ally be a part of the wedding weekend, and while that eventually creates a lot of problems, it ends up being for the best. Back to Ally, who is probably one of the most unlikable main characters in the history of romantic comedies, but her journey through that weekend shapes her entire future in the most interesting way possible.

So, spoiler alert, Ally does have a happy ending, just not the kind you might expect. In this unconventional romantic comedy, the main characters don’t end up together and we are more than happy about it. Also, when you are watching Somebody I Used to Know, and if you see a little bit of yourself in Ally, we can only hope that makes you think about your journey moving forward and doesn’t make you look back on little aspects of your life.

Somebody I Used to Know: A Look Into the Title

When Somebody I Used to Know was first announced, people immediately thought about the popular song with the same title, but after watching the movie and analyzing certain parts of it, the title seems more than accurate, and it might just be one of our favorite parts about the movie.

The title has two meanings and both are related to the main character, Ally. There are two people whom Ally impacts the most in Somebody I Used to Know, Sean and Cassidy, the couple who are to be wed. Sean is the person somebody she used to know, the man who was once the love of her life, and after coming back home, and is convinced he is still the love of her life. So that is one part of the title, the somebody she used to know.

The second is Cassidy, whom she has only just met for the first time, and from the very beginning, they didn’t get off on the best foot. However, the more Ally learns about Cassidy, the more she realizes that Cassidy is just a younger version of her. Cassidy is carefree, she doesn’t care about how people perceive her, and every little personality trait that Ally used to have before she moved to LA.

So, that’s the second perception of the title. Both are incredible, and while Ally goes out of her way to sabotage the wedding, she eventually comes to her senses and pulls away, even though it is at the very end.

Stream It or Skip It: Will Somebody I Used to Know be your Valentine’s Watch?

We believe everyone needs to watch Somebody I Used to Know this Valentine’s Day because more than teaching you about love or men or women, it teaches you about how to come to terms with accepting and loving yourself.

There was so much we enjoyed about Somebody I Used to Know despite the unlikeable characters. There were a lot of secondary and tertiary characters that will make up for Sean and Ally, and one of the examples of that is Benny. Benny is a good friend through and through, the only one who calls out Ally on her behavior, and tries to stop her from sabotaging the wedding.

This movie did lack characters who spoke sense, but Somebody I Used to Know makes for a good watch.

As a character, Cassidy might just have been one of our favorites, because she was the embodiment of a strong woman who owned her flaws. She might have been a little hard to like at the beginning, but by the end of the movie Cassidy will definitely grow on you, and you will understand why Sean chose her over Ally.

The ending of Somebody I Used to Know is truly heartwarming, Ally finally does exactly what she wants to do professionally, and there is an incredibly bold nude scene that isn’t sexual at all.

This scene is incredibly important because it portrays a sense of self-acceptance of one’s body, and that not every nude scene has to be sexual in nature. Dave Franco has truly done a brilliant job of molding this movie from start to finish, and we would love to see him and his wife collaborate more often in the future.

Conclusion

We’re hoping that if you haven’t watched Somebody I Used to Know by now, this review will make you stream the movie as soon as possible, and if not, at least add it to your list of must-watch movies this February.

There are so many different aspects of Somebody I Used to Know that you will love and hate all at the same time, and that’s the beauty of it. Do let us know in the comments what you thought about Somebody I Used to Know!