Relationship Goals

Report Card

Dirty Laundry – A: None. There are no examples of racial dirty laundry on display in this film.

BlackFace – A: None. There are no instances of white characters offensively pretending to be black in this film.

National GeoGRAPHIC – A: None. There are no scenes of gratuitous nudity.

Cosby Content – A: Multiple Characters. There are many examples of black success achieved within the confines and according to the rules of the white establishment.

25-20s – A: Many. You can take many white friends with you to see this movie. The amount of explaining you will have to do is minimal and they will love the soundtrack.

Relationship Goals comes across as a sermon copy pasted into a script, making the dialogue exchanges often feel and sound clumsy and plastic. Pastor Michael Todd’s bestselling book on romantic relationship jumps onto the streaming screen as a Think Like a Man derivative with evangelistic aspirations. The movie tries hard (without seeming like it) to present relationship with God and the opposite sex as attainable and enjoyable once we figure out the formula. Devon Franklin’s follow up to the successful Ruth & Boaz will find even broader appeal thanks to realistic casting recreating a contemporary corporate culture that looks and feels familiar. And with two music titans (Kelly Rowland and Method Man) in the lead roles the soundtrack does not disappoint.

Unfortunately, the movie is populated by characters who all seem to speak in aphorisms and faith sound bites. Despite this, the movie is both fun and funny, with on set chemistry that feels warm and real. The main characters do a bang up job with Laura Lekkos’ banged up script, which sometimes looses its way, asking us to believe that girlfriends dance in a straight line like backup singers when they go clubbing, and that NBA players comport themselves like guests at Buckingham Palace for their road dawg’s retirement party. The movie presents like a glossy women’s magazine issue, but if you’re able to look beneath the visuals and pay close attention to the story it will lose some steam near the end with Leah’s head-scratching decision-making. Nevertheless, the culminating cute twist and send up of rom coms, while straining credulity, will leave you smiling and grateful for the growing number of movies depicting Black love.