‘People We Meet on Vacation’ Review:  When Chemistry Isn’t Enough

Based on the popular romance novel of the same name, People We Meet On Vacation follows the free-spirited Poppy and high-strung Alex, played by Emily Bader and Tom Blyth respectively. After meeting on a road trip to their hometown in Ohio, Alex and Poppy become unlikely friends, agreeing to go on a vacation with each other every summer. As time goes by and the two grow closer, they must decide whether their budding chemistry is worth risking the end of their friendship. People We Meet On Vacation is an opposites attract, friends to lovers trope heavy romance that is carried by the palpable charm of the two leads. Read our full review for People We Meet On Vacation below. 

I did not fall head over heels in love with this movie the way I wanted to. I am a champion of the rom-com resurgence, looking for any film that will make me say “Rom-Com’s are so back!” People We Meet On Vacation is simply not that film. It is riddled with tired tropes, excruciating needle drops, and bland direction. As someone who has read the book, I do not think it had to be this way. There is a lot from the book that was left out of the movie that flattens the characters and makes their story into a highlight reel instead of an umbrella of what they went through. It felt like the screenwriters read the spark notes and called it a day. I get that not everything can be included in the book, but some things are mentioned as character traits and then never resolved. A main couple moment for the two is the fact that Alex will hold Poppy’s hand despite claiming to hate it. In the movie, he admits to hating it and then an hour later he confidently holds her hand without mention of his disdain. This feels more like the screenwriter forgot they wrote that in the beginning than a full circle moment. The writing is weak, despite being based on a strongly written book. 

The real only saving grace of the film is the two leads. Tom Blyth specifically plays Alex near perfectly. It is really hard to play a straight laced rom-com lead, it can come off disinterested or boring, but Blyth performs it with a sting of awkwardness and sincerity that works. Then there is Emily Bader as the outgoing Poppy who really shines. She could have come off extremely annoying or over the top, but Bader’s natural charm comes through and saves it. The pair perfectly encapsulates the vibe of the source material. I would like to say that these two are enough to say the movie, but I can not fully say that. 

People We Meet On Vacation suffers from a problem I have seen with a lot of streaming and new age romantic comedies: needle drops. For most of the runtime this feels like a string of music videos. It is so incredibly formulaic; a pop song starts playing, the characters look at each other, the music turns down into the background, the characters have a conversation, and then on to the next. When you think of timeless rom-coms they do not do this. I don’t know how or why this started, but I am begging for it to end. If all of the set up scenes with music blasting were taken out of this movie the runtime would be cut in half. It has become a clear red herring for whether you are about to watch a basic studio rom-com that is not worth your time. It is a shame that a book with a lot of potential was given the most by the book’s adaptation that does nothing to elevate the material or bring it to life. There is already confirmation that more Emily Henry adaptations are in progress at Netflix, so we can only hope that they make some major improvements. 

People We Meet On Vacation was directed by Brett Haley and stars Emily Bader and Tom Blyth. You can watch the film on Netflix as of January 9.

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