Look Both Ways (2022)

 

 
Streaming Service: Netflix
Movie Name/Year: Look Both Ways (2022)
Genre: Drama, Romance
Length: 1h 51min
Rating: TV-14
Production/Distribution: Catchlight Studios, Screen Arcade, Netflix
Director: Wanuri Kahiu
Writers: April Prosser
Actors: Lili Reinhart, Luke Wilson, Andrea Savage, David Corenswet, Danny Ramirez, Nia Long, Aisha Dee, Amanda Grace Jenkins, David Corenswet, Jaden Tolliver, Jason Johnson, Justin Donte, Lauren Garrott, Sahara Ale, Solar Dena, Taylor Ashley Murphy
 
IMDb Blurb: On the eve of her college graduation, Natalie's life diverges into parallel realities: one in which she becomes pregnant and remains in her hometown to raise her child and another in which she moves to LA to pursue her dream career.

 
Cat’s Point of View:

I’ll be honest, if it weren’t for our review today, I probably wouldn’t have chosen to watch Look Both Ways at this time. I’ve been craving action, sci-fi, and thrills this summer. Prepping for August’s Top 20 Movies, while we were going through trailers, I noted that the premise of the movie looked cute.
 
It didn’t quite make it onto my personal list, but Selina placed Look Both Ways as her #17 pick. It was just barely edged out by other films I was, frankly, a little more excited about.

 
I also had this nagging feeling that I’d seen this movie before. It didn’t take a lot for it to sink in that I was remembering Sliding Doors (1998). I liked that movie at the time, too. Though, much like today, it was during a time in my life I was watching a lot of movies. A lot of those weren’t always because I was dying to see them – it was because I worked at a movie theater and customers would ask if employees had seen the films we were showing. We got late night employee screenings of most new flicks so that we could offer answers to those questions. I digress.
 
All of that said, Look Both Ways wasn’t disappointing. I enjoyed it well enough. The premise was interesting and I appreciated that they didn’t attempt a cookie-cutter remake using the premise of a missed travel connection to split the parallel timelines. Many of the younger audience that would be drawn to Look Both Ways today might not even be aware of Sliding Doors – that is, if they haven’t read critic reviews in advance – to be aware of the comparison. There’s a time gap of over 20 years between productions, after all.

 
The cast didn’t disappoint. I enjoyed Lili Reinhart (The Good Neighbor, Chemical Hearts, Riverdale) as she explored both trajectories her character’s life could have taken. I don’t have any faults with any of the cast’s performances. The production value was fine, writing seemed grounded. It was a cute story.
 
I can’t promise that I’m going to remember Look Both Ways years from now – just as I struggled to recall the title of the similar movie I watched ages ago. That shouldn’t deter anyone else from seeking out and enjoying this Netflix Original, however. 

Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score – 58%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score – 84%
Metascore – 50%
Metacritic User Score – None
IMDB Score – 6.4/10
 
Trust the Dice: Cat’s Rating – 3.5/5
 
Movie Trailer: