87North Productions is generally known for its action films. The studio behind the John Wick franchise, Atomic Blonde, and Violent Night tends to make stylish action with some well-choreographed fights from veteran stunt performers. Stunt coordinators David Leitch and Chad Stahelski helped usher in this type of action movie by getting behind the lens and making films that almost instantly land in the center of pop and film culture every time. Now, fellow seasoned stunt coordinator Jonathan Eusebio has hopped into the director’s chair to bring his spin on the rom-com genre with Love Hurts.
He teams up with Oscar-award-winning actor Ke Huy Quan to lead the movie, hoping to make their mark in the rom-com action genre and leave the audience entertained and wanting more. What comes out is a sweet date movie worth checking your brain at the door.
Love Hurts, directed by Eusebio, takes the script written by Luke Passmore, Josh Stoddard, and Matthew Murray and uplifts the movie to 87North’s standards. The story follows Marvin Gable (Quan) as a relator whose past life as a ruthless gangster comes back in an ultra-violent way. The woman he was sent to kill but spared, Rose Carlisle (Ariana DeBose), enters Gable’s life where the two must work together to save one another from Gable’s brother Alvin ‘Knuckles’ (Daniel Wu). What happens is a series of punches and kicks, comedy beats, and characters that keep the pace going.
From the top, Eusebio’s directing is suitable for a first-time feature. The director was able to use his vast knowledge of stunt choreography to keep Love Hurts entertaining for the most part. The combat style matches Quan’s sensibility as a man trying to escape the situation in any way possible. The film doesn’t hold back regarding the brutality of these fights. I wouldn’t call the movie gory by any means, but several blows and violent moments gave the film its deserved rated “R.”
Eusebio and his team gave the characters involved in fight scenes in Love Hurts each able to have its style. It’s enough to keep the action engaging, but there are moments when it takes an entertaining twist. The director can carry some of that fluid nature with the film’s pacing. The script, though, is where the issue with the movie starts to come around.
Murray and Stoddard have worked together in the past, and in comedy, Passmore’s works fall more in the action genre. It’s perplexing that this combination should work, but it doesn’t. There are several funny moments throughout Love Hurts, but nothing of that “laugh out loud” category. Also, some of the logic in the plot makes little to no sense or falls apart when I think about it for more than five seconds. I wasn’t expecting The Brutalist-level writing, but it was just too distracting to really enjoy the movie. However, the underlying message is not half bad.
Love Hurts conveys the message about confronting your trauma and being true to yourself. Those themes are delivered throughout the movie simply through inner monologues and decent acting from Quan, DeBose, and Wu. The film does have moments of beating you over the head with it, but will reward you some of the following action set-pieces. Apart from this, the importance of Quan’s charm in carrying the movie should be noted.
Quan’s story of returning to fame is interesting. We all remember him as a child star, but most of us were blown away by his role in Everything Everywhere All at Once. His first step into a leading man role in an American-made movie—his first official lead role was in Red Pirate (1997)—was the right move with Love Hurts. The movie is carried a lot by the type of charm we’ve seen from the actor over the past few years. I couldn’t get enough of Quan in the film; he just has this level of sweetness that makes me feel connected to the guy. Yet, the movie does show that Quan has range.
The Gable character is seen as this murderous madman and the stuff of legends. His brother compares him to a rabid dog, and we get glimpses of that personality. There’s a particular shot in the movie where Gable’s fists are covered in blood, and I saw the murderous rage in the characters’ eyes. That moment showed me that Quan has what it takes to play a villain and is willing to challenge himself in future roles.
Love Hurts is a good to decent action rom-com that sometimes’s silly. The action is worth watching, but nothing spectacular or memorable. The comedy might give you a few chuckles, but the film’s main draw is to escape for a little while. It’s a good date movie, or if you want to turn your brain off for an hour and twenty-three minutes. Quan should definitely get another lead role, and I hope he does. He still has plenty of talent to entertain us and hopefully continues to show why he’s got that Oscar.