‘Love Language’ Review: Chloë Grace Moretz in a Romantic Dramedy That Offers Plenty of Talk but Too Little Feeling

Share on Facebook Share on X Google Preferred Share to Flipboard Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Send an Email Print the Article Post a Comment It is fitting, I guess, that a film about a writer who spends more of her time intellectualizing life than allowing herself to experience it would be better at telling than showing. Lou (Chloë Grace Moretz) is an aspiring YA novelist who stumbles into a lucrative side hustle writing personalized wedding vows. Despite never having been married herself (in fact, she’s fresh off a broken engagement), she discovers a real knack for putting into words both the enormity and specificity of a couple’s love. Love Language The Bottom Line Words fall short. Venue: SXSW Film Festival (Narrative Spotlight) Cast: Chloë Grace Moretz, Manny Jacinto, Anthony Ramos, Isabel May, Billie Lourd, Lukas Gage Director-screenwriter: Joey Power 1 hour 45 minutes But if the film, like its heroine, does a decent job of explaining emotions, it has a harder time projecting them — such that even the grand third-act gesture feels more like a concession to a tried-and-true narrative formula than a spontaneous act of ardor. Related Stories Movies 'DreamQuil' Review: Elizabeth Banks and John C. Reilly in a Visually Adventurous Slice of Dystopia That Feels Like Yesterday's News Movies 'The Saviors' Review: Adam Scott and Danielle Deadwyler in a Timely Comic Thriller With Good Intentions and Clunky Execution Lou begins Love Language , written and directed by Joey Power and debuting at SXSW , in no mood to engage with the trappings of romance. Still reeling from her recent heartbreak, she spends the bachelorette party for her best friend, Tilda (Billie Lourd), chugging champagne alone in the bathtub, and the ceremony choking back tears as Tilda reads the vows Lou had only very reluctantly helped her write. But love, in films like these, has a way of finding a gal anyway. One pot...