It Ends With Us is a story following florist Lily Bloom (played by Blake Lively) as she falls in love with Ryle Kincaid (played by Justin Baldoni). The story is a tale of confusion, loss, love, pain, and self discovery while juggling two love interests. She becomes entangled with both Ryle and Atlas (played by Brandon Sklenar), and finds herself trying to deal with the same kind of abuse she saw as a child in her own relationship. It’s a beautifully romantic and dark drama that manages to be both empowering and deeply emotional.
In 2022, It Ends With Us experienced a resurgence in popularity after being released in 2016, rising to the top of the charts and becoming a New York Times Bestseller within the year. Earlier, in 2019, Justin Baldoni optioned the novel for a film adaptation. Because of this, Hoover landed the movie, now becoming the second biggest movie in America. Obviously, due to its high ratings, it has been very loved, but not everyone thinks so. It’s clear that Colleen Hoover’s It Ends With Us has proven to be a great film adaptation to the novel, making over $100 million in its first week out. Though that’s not to say it hasn’t had its critics recently.
The film has received plenty of backlash, being from interviews, the acting itself, and the many differences presented in transition from novel to movie. One of our own Cass students, Ansley Reed, said, “It could have been better honestly, only because there were certain elements in the book that were not in the movie that could have, and really should have, been included.”
Additionally, some people felt that the way the movie developed Lily’s story was far too different from the book. For example, the movie takes the viewer through Lily and Ryle’s relationship, showing details of both their lows and highs, while the book shows us very little and especially less of what some may consider the most romantic and important scenes of the film. Also, the order in which the story was told in the film differed greatly from the novel. In the book, however, she immediately called him out for his abuse and told him she would leave him after those instances. Moreover, characters such as Lucy, Devin, and Ryle’s parents were not included in the movie.
Although there were parts that could have been improved, it’s been highly loved. Another student, freshman Peyton Brennan,when asked about her favorite part of the movie, said, “Just watching their [Ryle and Lily’s] relationship develop,” proving that even some of the parts that were criticized could be good in a different light. It was shown in the movie many times that the relationship has developed more intensely than the novel.
Commonly, people doubt that the movie adaptation will do the novel any justice, and a lot of times this can convince lovers of the novel to refrain from seeing the film. When the trailer was released for It Ends With Us, those who read the book honestly thought the movie just wouldn’t be as good and may ruin their love for the story itself. When it came out in theaters, many were proved wrong, as the movie was able to not only follow the same storyline, but it also brought each and every character to life in a way that hugely impressed and touched all those who’d read it, along with the watchers that hadn’t.
Overall, the film may not be exactly like the beloved novel, and it’s had its flaws and fair share of bad reviews, but it’s undoubtedly been very loved by both those who’ve read the novel and those who’ve only seen the film. It has touched all those who know the story very deeply, and will continue to resonate with us. It Ends With Us will continue to live on being an amazing story about love, violence, and the reality of life within those lines, and it will continue to encourage all those in situations of the same likeness, and even those just struggling within themselves.
