The Other Zoey review: Josephine Langford anchors delightful romantic comedy that winks at clichés

Meet Josephine Langford’s Zoey. She’s a computer science major at Queens University in Charlotte, who wants to cancel Valentine’s Day forever. She says, “Romantic love is a product of capitalism.” When not being passionate about lecturing on the pitfalls of romantic love, she happens to be fundraising for an app that supposedly uses data-based algorithm to find the perfect match for a user. How this cynical and awkward protagonist eventually ends up falling in love, is what makes up for this delightfully feather-weight film directed by Sara Zandieh. (Also read: Maggie Moore(s) review: Jon Hamm and Tina Fey deserve better than this clueless crime comedy)

The premise

Expect predictable turns, but a whole lot of fun. Soon, a soccer ball hits her head and she’s drawn to the apologies that come from athlete Zach (Drew Starkey). Before she knows it, an accident introduces her to Zach’s parents, Connie (Andie MacDowell) and Matt (Patrick Fabian), and his younger sister Avery (Olive Abercrombie). They mistake Zoey to be Zach’s girlfriend, and only then does she find out that he is dating another girl by the same name.

Yet, the namesake problem doesn’t last long as Zoey is introduced to Zach’s cousin Miles (Archie Renaux), who she had seen earlier at a meet, when he had lectured about the same economical proposition with love. So, Zoey decides to lead them on being the girlfriend she never was, meanwhile trying her shots with Miles in the background.

What works

The Other Zoey progresses like a discovery for its own protagonist, as she realises how her story is becoming more and more like the romantic films that she had once criticised vehemently. Matthey Tabak’s vibrant and occasionally hilarious screenplay never provides its characters enough to know better that what they seem to be. Even as she’s self-aware and occupied with her own doubts, there’s always room for discovery and regret.

Fortunately, the awkwardness does not give way to cheesy moments. The twists might just be predictable, but there’s space for patience and possibility – which makes the journey worthwhile.

Final thoughts

The Other Zoey is as much about finding love as it is about compatibility and reaching out. Josephine Langford’s performance is beautifully restrained, when required, ably guiding her viewers through the web of contractions. She and Drew Starkey, who has a welcoming screen presence, have terrific chemistry together.

I was frequently reminded of how I missed that sparkly and comforting rom-coms in the vein of Moonstruck, and The Other Zoey comes surprisingly close to that delightful familiarity. This is a sweet, hopeful and conventionally surprising film, one that winks at the clichés and plays with the genre to sparkling effect.

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