samyuldavis Review of Ali & Ava

Ali & Ava (2021)

Lovely, authentic romance that swerves all possible complexity

[6/10 · 23 February 2022]

It wears its emotional beats well and features a relationship that's easy to root for, but a growing sense emerges that none of the conversations you'd want/expect to be had make it to screen. A blindsidingly abrupt ending cuts the potential drama short and it doesn't do its complicated family dynamics and themes of parenthood & racism justice. So subtle that it just about qualifies as lipservixe. Mental illness, loneliness, domestic abuse and intersectionality rear their head briefly, but this isn't a story willing or fit to make them...relevant. Beautiful, likeable performances (even able to make a Landlord sympathetic!) but considering how genuine the core of the film is, I wish there were more closure or resolution to the social stigmas & gross family members that hassled them all movie.