Summary
Netflix’s catalog of movies continues to expand every week, and it’s now housing one of the most successful comedies from the 2010s, which is a must-watch after one of 2023’s biggest box office hits. After a couple of rough years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, 2023 was a great year for cinema, with huge box office successes likeBarbieandOppenheimer, and others that became surprise hits, as was the case forAnyone But You. Loosely based on William Shakespeare’sMuch Ado About Nothing,Anyone But Youintroduced the audience to Bea (Sydney Sweeney) and Ben (Glen Powell).
After a successful first date that soon turns sour, Bea and Ben cross paths again on their way to Sydney for a wedding. To stop Bea’s parents from trying to get her back with her ex-fiancé and for Ben to get his crush’s attention, they agree to fake being together, but they end up bonding more than they anticipated.Anyone But Youwasn’t the critics’ favorite, but it was a hit with general audiences, grossing $220 million against a budget of $25 million – and now a recent Netflix arrival is a bigger must-watch afterAnyone But You’s success.
Anyone But You’s 8 Biggest Box Office Records & Milestones After $190 Million Performance
Anyone But You continued its unexpected box office success over Valentine’s Day weekend, adding to its impressive streak of milestones & records.
Easy A Is Now On Netflix - What The Emma Stone Movie Is About
Easy A Is One Of Emma Stone’s Best Comedies
Olive embraces her new reputation and agrees to let other students claim they slept with her in exchange for gift cards to various stories.
The perfect companion toAnyone But Youis the comedyEasy A. Directed by Will Gluck and partially inspired by the 1850 novelThe Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne,Easy Astars Emma Stone as high school student Olive Penderghast. Set in California,Easy Afollows Olive as she lies to her best friend about losing her virginity to a college boy. Their prudish religious classmate Marianna Bryant (Amanda Bynes) overhears their conversation and spreads it throughout the school, completely changing OIive’s reputation, though not for the better, as the rumor gets worse and worse.
Olive embraces her new reputation and agrees to let other students claim they slept with her in exchange for gift cards to various stories, but it allgets too complicated and harmful when she’s used as a cover-up for the infidelity of one of her teacherswith a student.Easy Awas a success with critics, holding an 85% critics score onRotten Tomatoesand a 77% audience score and grossing $75 million against a budget of $8 million.
Easy Ais regarded as one of the best comedies of the decadeand is often ranked among the best high school movies ever made, with Stone’s performance considered one of her best. Aside from Stone’s performance, critics also praisedEasy A’s humor, how it redefined teen movies’ tropes, and appreciated its similar tones and homages to 1980s teen comedies.
Why Easy A Is Perfect To Watch If You Like Anyone But You
Easy A Has A Key Connection To Anyone But You
Both movies are modernized versions of literary classics that keep the typical tropes of rom-coms while also subverting some of them.
Despite their different stories,Easy AandAnyone But Youhave one key connection: they were both directed by Will Gluck, and he made sure to add some subtle references toEasy AinAnyone But You. Although no characters fromEasy Aappear inAnyone But You, Gluck added a subtle reference to Olive in the airport scene. In it, a driver can be seen holding up a sign with Olive’s name, making way for theories aboutEasy AandAnyone But Youbeing part of the same universeof Gluck rom-coms.
If that connection isn’t enough reason to makeEasy Aa perfect watch for those who likeAnyone But You, there are other elements that prove they are a perfect double feature. Both movies are modernized versions of literary classics that keep the typical tropes of rom-coms while also subverting some of them, making them feel fresh but at the same time familiar.Easy Aalso has all the elements that makeAnyone But Youa fun rom-com, both narratively and visually, including the use of Natasha Bedingfield songs in the catchiest ways possible.
Anyone But You’s Viral Song Is An Incredible Callback To Emma Stone’s Iconic 14-Year-Old Rom-Com Scene
Natasha Bedingfield’s “Unwritten” going viral after Anyone but You is even better when considering a scene from Emma Stone’s 2010 rom-com.
Easy A Is Even Better Than Anyone But You
Easy A Has More Strengths Than Anyone But You
Easy Ahas a more layered story with different twists and turns.
Although, as mentioned above,Easy AandAnyone But Youshare the same rom-com elements that led to their success, the former is a better movie than the latter. One element fromAnyone But Youcritics weren’t fully on board with was the story, which was completely predictable, whereasEasy Ahas a more layered story with different twists and turns.Anyone But Youwas labeled by some critics as “generic”, but found thatEasy Ahad a lot more to offer in its story and character development, the latter being one ofAnyone But You’s biggest weaknesses.
Ultimately, bothEasy AandAnyone But Youare fun rom-coms with interesting connections between them that may or may not hint at a subtle rom-com universe of Gluck movies. Although one succeeded more than the other with critics,Easy AandAnyone But Youare a perfect double-feature for those who like one or the other.
Easy A
Inspired by The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Easy A stars Emma Stone as Olive Penderghast, a young high school student who suddenly finds herself in the middle of a rumor mill when a lie she tells her best friend about losing her virginity spirals out of control. Penn Badgley, Amanda Bynes, Thomas Haden Church, Patricia Clarkson, and Stanley Tucci are part of the supporting cast.
