By Kaelyn DiMartino ’25
“It stops here. With me and you. It ends with us.”
“It Ends With Us” is such a great movie in my opinion. Lily Bloom (played by Blake Lively) moved to Boston to chase her lifelong dream of opening her own flower shop. While in Boston she met Ryle Kincaid (played by Justin Baldoni), a neurosurgeon at a local hospital. The two sparked a connection on the spot and shortly after fell in love. However, Lily started to see a side of Ryle that she had never seen before, and it reminded her of her parents’ relationship, which was toxic and abusive. Lily’s first love Atlas Corrigan (played by Brandon Sklenar) coincidently entered her life again in Boston so she had suddenly become confused about who she loved, but that is just a peek into this film.
Lily Bloom had gone to Boston for her father’s funeral. Her parents did not have a good relationship, as her father would abuse her mother. Lily was so traumatized growing up and had to do everything in secret, which caused her first love to almost die due to her father beating him up. Her father dying was a relief in her eyes, and she thought she would never see abuse like that again, but she was wrong.
Lily met Ryle the night of the funeral on a rooftop, which happened to be the rooftop of the apartment Ryle lived in. They both were having a rough day and ended up talking to each other and catching feelings. They never exchanged contact information, so they never assumed they would see each other again considering Lily didn’t live in Boston at the time. Well, Lily moved to Boston a few months later and started to work on her flower shop. Coincidently, Ryle’s sister Allysa (played by Jenny Slate) walked in, asking to help and looking for a job, but Lily had no clue this was his sister. Eventually, Ryle had come to visit his sister at the flower shop and that is when they saw each other again.
Lily and Ryle ended up getting to know each other, and eventually started dating. Everything was perfect in the beginning, until they got married. Ryle started to be abusive. He hit her, pushed her down the stairs, and tried to rape her. Lily was so scared that she went to Atlas. He changed her life for the better and took care of her when she needed it the most. They found out Lily was pregnant at the hospital with Ryle’s baby and that is when she knew she had to divorce Ryle.
“My mother went through it. I went through it. I’ll be damned if I allow my daughter to go through it. I kiss her on my forehead and make her a promise, ‘It stops here. With me and you. It ends with us’.”
Abuse is a horrible thing that can happen to anyone. Unfortunately, some people do not know how to properly treat someone. Lily wanted to break the cycle. This book/movie is to put awareness out there to people who might be going through something similar. It is here to show you that no matter how bad it gets, you can escape, and people will be there for you when you do. Break the cycle. If you or someone you love is in this situation of abuse, please reach out for help.
“It Ends With Us” is a romance and drama. It was released in theaters on August 9th, 2024. It had an unbelievable showing, which was probably because there was already a book version of the story. It is only in theaters as of right now, but it has been said that it will be released on Netflix in December of 2024. This movie has a 3.5 rating and a lot of mixed reviews. I kept seeing very mixed reviews like “This was nothing like the book” or “This is so fake and doesn’t show what really happens in abusive relationships.” People need to realize that the people in this movie did their absolute best to make it watch-worthy and make it so people like it and actually want to watch it. User Holly Rhian from Google Reviews says, “Ok so it wasn’t terrible, just average. I literally read the entire book today and then spent $29 to watch the movie. I just felt like so much from the book was missing.” User Beth Ebdon from Google Reviews says, “Thoroughly enjoyed the film wholeheartedly, and this might be unusual as I read the book, although can’t say I fully loved the book. It translated exceptionally well to film. And I’m so glad for how the film plays out. I can’t wait for the next one.” Lastly, User Sara Spirit from Google Reviews says, “It Ends With Us” was an awesome movie. I had no idea what to expect, but I never expected to go through a series of emotions – I cried, I laughed, I smiled, and I cried some more; I felt joy, love, hurt, sadness, pain, wonder, hope, support, encouragement, strength, and affirmation. The acting was top tier and the story line hit close to home and spoke to so many parts of me.”
All of those reviews I had read turned out to be mostly on the good side. I recognized that people who read the book did not like the movie as much, but people who did not read the book loved the movie, so it was hit or miss with the reviews. I can say I would watch this movie over and over again. I actually watched it in theaters two times. Fortunately for people who enjoyed this movie, there may or may not be a movie called It Starts With Us coming out. The actors and actresses were absolutely amazing with the way they showed emotion and the filming was also well done. I really enjoyed watching this movie and recommend it to anyone looking to watch something new.
The Raider Press 