Movies like The Perfect Date often get a lot of flack from some of the more serious film critics out there, but I think that there’s a place for them. This is the kind of movie where I watched the trailer for before watching it, and could already predict how everything in the movie was going to play out. While there may have been a few surprises here and there, for the most part I was right, and so The Perfect Date really is just your typical, predictable rom-com. However, I’m never going to argue that a movie like this is high art, but it also doesn’t need to be. Some movies I like to just turn my brain off for and enjoy it for what it is, and for what it’s worth I did enjoy The Perfect Date.

I think that the best thing about the movie is its premise. While the movie does fall into certain rom-com conventions, its advertised concept is pretty unique. We follow Brooks Rattigan, a high school senior that’s trying to get into Yale. When overhearing a fellow classmate talk about how he’s getting paid to take his cousin on a date, but doesn’t really want to go, Brooks offers to go in his place. After making money off of a successful evening, Brooks realizes he might be on to something, and so he creates an app where people can pay him to be a stand-in date. They get to customize everything about him, from his clothes to his personality, and he will offer his services to give the girls the dates that they desire. It’s a pretty fun idea, so if the concept interests you and you enjoy rom-coms, give it a shot.

However, I’m sure you can also probably see where the movie goes. Brooks winds up getting close to one of the girls that he takes out, some feelings start to occur, etc. There’s a love triangle thrown into the mix, and everything is clearly going to inevitably blow up in Brooks’s face. Like I said, don’t watch the movie if you’re expecting some really high-quality plot. Watch The Perfect Date if you want a mindless rom-com to enjoy. It’s nothing amazing, but it does provide enough enjoyment to make it worth a watch for me.

3.5/5