Romantic comedies have been the in-thing for the last 3 years thanks to the resurgence of the beloved genre. But having said that, when something becomes popular, there are always subpar entries to deal with. I’m not going to hesitate at all when I say Relationship Goals is just not it. I don’t know much about relationships, but it’s definitely not any kind of goal. But I’m not here to just punch down; I have my reasoning. The film follows Leah, a young-ish woman working towards her dream promotion, before everything is shattered when a random competitor is added to the mix. Leah was literally promised the job, but at the 11th hour, a new “man” was introduced to ruin it all. Now, you’d think this would turn into a cute enemies-to-lovers situation, but when it’s workplace competition like this, there’s always going to be a loser, and in this case, it’s me. Boy, am I sour.
It’s not that this is a bad idea, but when you then add the faith-based storyline into the mix, it just leaves you wondering if an AI generated this plot and left it halfway. The film doesn’t really give us a beginning to this romance. Leah and Jarrett were together before she was all grand and haughty, but he didn’t know what he had. But then what is the point we’re trying to get at? Is he here to ruin her life? Is he here because he wants her back? Guess I shouldn’t give you spoilers, though I’d really like to. Anyway, because of this exes’ situation, there’s really nothing that makes you feel like these two people have any kind of chemistry, because even if Jarrett is trying to be open to Leah, she’s absolutely uninterested. There are some montages of them working together, but they really bored me, and there was nothing that could’ve kept me going with this film except for the fact that I had to write this review.
Kelly Rowland is great, but even she can’t save this half-baked plot that doesn’t really give you anything. The thing is, does this self-help book really do anything for this story apart from people quoting at the main character a dozen times to make her feel like she’s the only one who isn’t doing things right? But then literally everybody around is suffering the same fate. Given that Pastor Michael Todd is actually in this film, I feel like it’s just promo material, but hey, as someone who doesn’t know anything about him, I’m just making guesses. All the female characters seem to be aimless in love and do not know what they need, whereas the male characters are way better off because at least they’re certain about what they want in life.
Both leading actors try their best to keep this film afloat. Rowland really looks the part with her excellent pantsuits, lovely hair, and 2026 arms (you know what I mean). Method Man is good in the role of Jarrett, and honestly, this character would’ve been so unlikable had someone else played him, but there’s a sobriety in the way he plays this role, which makes Jarrett easy to handle. But at the end of the day, I can’t not complain about how this is misogynistic propaganda about women having to settle down to be happy. Oh, and let’s not forget the megachurch propaganda, bringing in Mike Todd and using him as the voice of reason for a film that’s meant to be fun and remind women to be free and jolly. In terms of direction, I don’t really have anything to say; it looks like a generic rom-com.
I might be younger than the demographic this film is meant for, but correct me if I’m wrong in saying that even women of that age group would not be happy with the outcome of this film. I was honestly so excited to see a happy romcom with BIPOC main leads, but instead I got boring stale bread that left me wishing I’d thrown it out before I took the bite. Don’t get me wrong, this could’ve totally been fun. There’s nothing inherently wrong with the foundation of this film; it’s just that it doesn’t entertain. It’s simply boring and dull at the end of the day, giving you all the more reason to be annoyed by it. It’s not like all romance has excellent female characters. Sometimes it’s just about being dumb, sometimes it’s about finding love where you least expect it, but when it’s someone who is intelligent and knows exactly what her goals are, and they change because of a man, that’s where I draw the line.
The saving grace of the film is the soundtrack, though, and having Jarrett walk in to “What a Man” was pretty fun, and might as well have been the best part of the film. Even beautiful people can make bad decisions, though, and I really think this was one of them. When it comes to the supporting characters, there’s no real development there except for them to be used as puppets for the main story rather than giving them their own voices, which is such a shame. Because we all love a group of girls who are relatable, sweet, and stunning to look at, until they turn into mouthpieces for inadequate men and their agendas, sigh.
At the end of the day, if you can’t tell already, I really didn’t enjoy Relationship Goals, though I went in with an open mind. I had no expectations, so really it was worse than I could’ve imagined, which is such a shame. February is the month of romance, and a rom-com coming out this month should be worthy of becoming a classic rather than turning out to be so bad. Ultimately, I have no choice but to give this film 2 out of 5 stars, only for the costuming, music, and lead actors.
