Love, Divided (2024)

Love, Divided (2024). 1h 38m | TV-MA

“u0026#39;Love, Dividedu0026#39; tells the tale of Valentina, a young classical pianist gearing up for a high-profile audition. As she settles into her new apartment in the heart of Madrid, she quickly encounters her neighbor, David–a reclusive, grumpy, and socially awkward inventor who detests loud noises. David occupies the apartment immediately next to hers and hasnu0026#39;t left the building in over three years. Complicating matters further is the paper-thin wall separating their apartments; although they canu0026#39;t see each other, they can speak as if in the same room.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eFor obvious reasons, conflict and comedic situations ensue as our two leads initially canu0026#39;t stand each other due to their starkly different lifestyles. Whatu0026#39;s curious is that each neighbor is currently struggling with their own outside personal issues that eventually enter their living situation. Soon enough, Valentina and David begin to fall for each other, simply by candidly conversing through the wall and finding they have much in common–all without ever knowing what the other looks like.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIf youu0026#39;re reading this thinking, u0026#39;This sounds like a completely stupid premise for a film,u0026#39; I agree–yet somehow, it works. Although it follows the common rom-com trope of two people who initially canu0026#39;t stand each other, it avoids the typical plot contrivances and unrelatable characters that plague many modern films of the genre, which seem to be written exclusively to socially engineer unattainable expectations for real-life relationships. The two leads of this film are relatable and have undeniable chemistry together, with Valentina, played by Pop-Singer Aitana in her acting debut, being exceptionally charming and endearing.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eEuro-films generally have more artistic photography than Hollywood films, and this film is no exception, as director Patricia Font makes good use of moving camera shots to convey the idea of a relationship that exists with a wall separating the characters.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eMy main criticism is that the charactersu0026#39; early decision to avoid meeting face-to-face feels slightly underdeveloped, even when addressed through dialogue. At times, I found myself thinking, u0026#39;Itu0026#39;s just a movie; Iu0026#39;ll go with it.u0026#39; Additionally, I felt some of the charactersu0026#39; decisions made in the final moments of the film strained credulity, however, I can give it a pass because I understand the symbolism Font was going for.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eOverall, this slightly saccharine rom-com is more light-hearted than outright comedic, yet it manages to be relatable and surprisingly entertaining. As someone who usually works from home and is a former musician, I found both characters relatable and well-performed by the actors. I usually donu0026#39;t like rom-coms; however, the plot of this particular film had such a sweet, simplistic innocence to it that I enjoyed it quite a bit. 7/10u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003e(I watched this in the original Spanish-Audio and canu0026#39;t speak to the quality of the English-dub.)”