Like Crazy. 

Forced to entertain a French exchange student for the weekend I racked my brains trying to think of anything I could do that wouldn’t involve much talking. Then it hit me. The cinema. The perfect place to hide in the dark with the perfect excuse to avoid conversation. There aren’t many films out at the moment which are light hearted a jovial and then best thing I could find with a plot line that wasn’t too complex for my exchange and I was ‘Like Crazy’. I had assumed that this film was a light hearted chick flick, but I was wrong. I was surprised to find that Like Crazy is actually quite an emotional romantic drama.


The story follows two college students, Jacob and Anna, who fall in love, but face a seemingly insurmountable problem as Anna is actually a British student studying on an American Visa. When the time comes for Anna to return to the UK, she decides that she cannot bear to part with Jacob and so she violates the terms of her Visa rendering it impossible for her to re-enter the US. This is a truly heart-breaking love story of two young people desperate to stay together despite the miles and miles of ocean between them.


Actors Felicity Jones and Anton Yelchin are two absolutely brilliant actors who are perfectly suited for their roles. Whilst the plot is quite simple and there’s a lot of to-ing and fro-ing, the intense chemistry between this pair makes it hard for the watcher to look away and most certainly tugs your heartstrings. Both the young actors deliver realistic performances that truly draw you in as this is real drama. This is a major step up for Felicity Jones as the last movie I saw her in was ‘Chalet Girl’, which is literally the complete opposite to ‘Like Crazy’. I would expect both actors to be much in demand after two absolutely stunning performances in this new film.

This isn’t a silly romance, but an accurate portrayal of the difficulties faced by lovers – the good, and the bad. Even though the couple in question are so young, they face real life dramas faced by couples of all ages and director Drake Doremus successful draws the audience into the story by making us believe that it is real. This film really took me by surprise and much exceeded any expectations that I had. This is much watch for any couples going through hard times and is a kick up the backside for anyone who gave up love because it was ‘just too hard’.