As glad as I am to see a film celebrating the complex joys of interracial love and debunking the stigma of arranged marriages, I can’t help but wonder how and why a film about love got to be so dry and passionless. Is dating really this painfully awkward? Is marriage really this burdensome? Realistically, yes, but when you’re trying to make a point about true love supposedly trumping it all, including cultural differences and age-old traditions, then you should at least make it seem like the winner. The movie tries to have its cake and eat it too by serving us heaps of realism and fantasy on one plate, failing to understand that you only have to pick one to be palatable. “Love Contractually” is the title of Zoe’s documentary, but it’s also the name this movie should’ve gone with, seeing as how everyone acts like they’re obligated to be here. 

I appreciate how the script doesn’t sensor offensive Boomer sensibilities, like when Kaz’s mother says she prefers “beige” Pakistani candidates over darker ones, or when Zoe’s mom says “You wouldn’t think they were Muslim” as a way to compliment Kaz’s family. However, I do wish they got more than just a slap on the wrists and a roll of the eyes for these comments. They’re played off as typical parent jokes, but they’re actually the type of microaggressive remarks that build up into something much more sinister and harmful in the long run. Leaving these as jokes is another instance of this romcom trying and failing to play with realism.