Look Both Ways offers a glimpse into parallelly-running futures when the possibility of an unplanned pregnancy leaves Natalie spiraling on her graduation night.
Wanuri Kahiu’s debut directorial into Hollywood, the Netflix original starring Lili Reinhart, Danny Ramirez, and David Corenswet develops the interesting “what-if” trajectory. As Natalie faces a crossroads at her graduation party, her life diverges into two parallel realities prompting the question- which reality does Natalie thrive in?
The Story
When Natalie’s (Lili Reinhart) impulsive tryst with close friend Gabe (Danny Ramirez) leads to a pregnancy scare at their graduation party, Natalie’s life splinters into two alternate realities- one where a positive test leads to Natalie embracing motherhood, and one where a negative test sets Natalie embarking on her carefully charted 5-year plan.
The positive test-reality follows Natalie as she decides to have the baby, returning to her parents’ house in Texas with Gabe. After her parents overcome the initial shock of the news, Natalie settles in Texas as nine long months of pregnancy prepare her for motherhood, replacing her highly anticipated career plans in LA.
Parallelly, the negative-test reality witnesses a very excited Natalie leave for LA with her best friend Cara (Aisha Dee). After Natalie and Cara settle into their cozy shared place in LA, Natalie manages to land a job at her idol Lucy Galloway’s (Nia Long) animation studio Tall Stories Animations with the help and advice of charming co-worker Jake (David Corenswet). Within a few months of work and amicable banter, Natalie and Jake begin a relationship.
While positive test-reality-Natalie embraces a new life of parenthood and family in Texas, negative test-reality-Natalie parallelly settles into her new and happening life and career in LA. As both Natalies deal with their share of love, happiness, disappointments, and pitfalls, Natalie’s immaculate 5-year plan goes out the window as viewers are left wondering which life pans out better for the film’s plucky protagonist.
Read More: Look Both Ways Ending Explained: Who does Natalie end up with?
Reasons To Stream
A warm romantic dramedy with a strong woman at its core, Look Both Ways offers a turbulent but ultimately heartening perspective into a young Natalie’s life at crossroads.
Riverdale-fame Lili Reinhart shines as the film’s protagonist, essaying a capable aspiring animation artist paving her unique path in the competitive milieu of Los Angeles while simultaneously instilling vulnerability and developing maturity in the character of the new mother.
The positive and hopeful plot of the film is propped up by well-written and supportive characters seen in the roles of Gabe, Jake, Cara, and her highly animated and loving parents. Emotionally intense scenes in the film are counterbalanced by the comic presence of Natalie’s parents, the endearing support of Jake, and the warmth and care of Gabe.
Natalie’s relationships are companionate without being idealistic, and realistic without losing their characteristic charm. Both of Natalie’s love interests are supportive and caring influences as they successfully overcome communication difficulties and commitment phobias to result in a happy reunion.
The film attempts to overcome the stereotype of motherhood standing as an obstacle to women’s careers by having Natalie establish herself as a successful animation artist in both scenarios.
Look Both Ways seems to reflect on the unpredictability of life and how it manages to surprise us no matter how obsessively we try to plan it. The film ends on an optimistic note for the protagonist, ending with a conciliatory “different journeys-same destination” concept.
Reasons To Skip
Despite ending on a positive and conciliatory note, Look Both Ways can’t help but provoke the debate of “career vs children” that women are often subject to.
The pregnancy reality doesn’t escape entrenched social stereotyping as a “road not taken” ideology permeates through the first half of the film. Shadows of missed opportunities and despondent outlooks on the future thereby inevitably portray the pregnancy reality in a negative light.
Moreover, with the highly divisive issue of abortion in the USA lurking in the background, Natalie’s uncontested choice to keep the baby almost becomes unidimensional in its “choice” as it subsumes a possible third alternate reality.
While Natalie’s character is developed over the events of both realities, promising supporting characters such as best friend Cara are pushed to the periphery as their roles remain underused, condensing into one-dimensional characters.
Moreover, both Natalies’ character arcs, though adequately developed emotionally and psychologically, are remarkably free of real-world predicaments. Freshly graduated-Natalie seems to face no financial struggle in LA in a job as a creative assistant which cannot be too well-paying.
Simultaneously in an alternate reality, new parents Natalie and Gabe seem to be getting by remarkably well with a new child when Gabe is in an essentially non-paying band (though he is seemingly equipped to buy a brand-new house) and Natalie frustratedly puts her lofty career plans in the back-burner.
The Verdict
A perceptive glimpse into unplanned pregnancies, Look Both Ways weaves a heart-warming tale of growth and maturity.
The dual timelines explore divergent iterations of Natalie’s future as the film’s protagonist navigates through love, pivotal life decisions, and unpredictable futures. Lili Reinhart shines in her portrayal of contrasting characters as she leads both Natalies to a satisfactory conclusion.
Rating: 3.5/5
Look Both Ways is now streaming on Netflix.
Read More: Heartbreak High Trailer: Check release date, cast and plot
