Gabrielle Union’s new Netflix movie ‘The Perfect Find’ is out
“The Perfect Find” falls far short of perfection, but it’s the kind of low-key romance that often finds a grateful audience on Netflix. Gabrielle Union plays the newly single woman who falls for a much younger man, in a film that emphasizes chemistry over eroticism, somewhere between Hallmark film and Harlequin romance.
Jenna van Union just divorced her longtime boyfriend (DB Woodside for short), very publicly losing her job in the process. Concerned about her career, she goes hand-in-hand with a former boyfriend/rival, Darcy (Gina Torres), who after some hazing, hires Jenna to join her vaguely defined fashion company, which usually seems like an excuse for everyone to wear fabulous outfits. to carry.
Jenna attends a party and instantly clicks with Eric (Keith Powers), a recent film school graduate who also happens to be Darcy’s son. Their flirty banter and magnetic attraction to each other are deftly handled by director Numa Perrier, adapted by writer Leigh Davenport from the Tia Williams novel.
The sex usually takes place off-screen, allowing the audience to enjoy the aftermath and the natural, impromptu exchanges of feeling as Jenna and Eric get to know each other. That works better than the various sitcom-esque obstacles that get in the way of the relationship, starting with the issue of not letting Eric’s mom find out what’s going on.
The older woman/younger man dynamic is certainly a well-used concept, with “How Stella Got Her Groove Back” – a well-known antecedent for this type of exercise – celebrating its 25th anniversary (where did the time go?), and “Magic Mike’s Last Dance” (admittedly, more of a June-September romance) represents a more recent, steamy variety.
But despite a few funny lines — like an exasperated Jenna snorting, “Ten years ago you had a lab partner and a locker” — the age difference eventually becomes an almost minor factor in the workplace concerns, especially since Union looks barely there when she robs the cradle.
The best elements actually have relatively little to do with the central plot, as the film makes particularly good use of older songs, such as “Chain of Fools” and “You Got It All,” to breezily advance the story and take advantage of the central duos. shared love of old movies – an abbreviated way to show they’re meant for each other, years be damned.
The Netflix model revolves around serving different audiences, with a plethora of teen/young adult romances and more mature alternatives, such as the “Sex/Life” series, as those viewers move up the demographic food chain.
“The Perfect Find” fits right into that strategy, finding the ideal home for a movie that can best be summed up as perfectly suited to the task at hand.
“The Perfect Find” premieres on Netflix on June 23.
