After fighting for their love to conquer time, distance and a global shutdown that keeps them apart, Joy and Ethan meet again in Canada but realize that they have also changed a lot, individually.
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| (C) Star Cinema |
[includes minor spoilers]
In Hello, Love, Goodbye, Joy, played by Kathryn Bernardo, chose herself. She chose her dreams. She chose her desire to live a better life. At least, that's what I thought the thesis of the film was. Sadly, its sequel undermined all of that for the same guy. Choosing to settle down is one thing, but designing the entire story to lead her to pick the guy is another. It's a disheartening conclusion to Joy's story. It's almost as if she was forced to choose this path (Joross Gamboa's character literally forced the initial conversations).
Make no mistake, the film still has its grounded moments. While Canada is no Hong Kong in terms of being a movie character, Hello, Love, Again still managed to showcase the life of being an OFW in the region. This has always been the heart of the film series, and fortunately, they did not forget that. It was also nice to see Alden Richards' character finally grow, but at the expense of Joy’s dreams.
Love winning above all else isn’t a new concept. It happens in real life, and director Cathy Garcia-Sampana still knows how to make the magic happen. The chemistry between Bernardo and Richards remains palpable. However, in a story about trying to get by or break free from financial burdens, what they ended up suggesting felt off. That should not have been what "Again" meant in the title. 2/5
Film is now streaming on Netflix Philippines.
