It Ends with Us stars Blake Lively as Lily Bloom, a woman who lived through abuse as a child – she witnessed her father beating her mother countless times. The film begins with Lily returning home for her father’s funeral, and she just can’t muster up any sadness. She leaves early and goes back home to Boston, where she’s sitting on a rooftop, having a quiet moment when a man named Ryle (Justin Baldoni, who also directed the film) enters and not seeing her, begins violently kicking a chair across the roof.She’s startled, but when he realizes he’s being watched, he apologizes and switches to his most charming self. What he is though, is kind of creepy and arrogant. Within moments, he tells her he'd like to sleep with her. When she asks how many women that line has worked on, he says, "All of them." Shudder. Luckily, he’s called away to the hospital (he’s a neurosurgeon) before Lily can fall for his charms.
Lily wants to start a florist shop and buys an old store that looks as if it hasn’t been used in years. She begins cleaning it up when a woman named Allysa walks in, asking what kind of store Lily is setting up. Allysa, although obviously wealthy, is about Lily’s age, and clearly would love to be involved. Realizing she does need help, Lily hires her and the two soon become best friends. Jenny Slate, who plays Allysa, has an energy and charm that steals every scene she’s in and she delivers her lines in a way that gets laughs from the audience -- something that would likely not have been possible with another actress in the role.
It’s not long before Ryle, who is Allysa's brother, appears at the flower shop and Allysa quickly comes to the realization that Ryle and Lily have met before. When he leaves, she begs Lily not to date him. But Ryle constantly pursues Lily, and she eventually gives in.
The abuse we then witness, even before the two are married, is sudden and confusing. I wasn’t even sure the first instance was actually abuse and not an accident. But as it becomes clear, Ryle is a very jealous man and when they go to a restaurant that turns out to be owned by a childhood friend of Lily’s – a boy who was very important to her growing up (and who witnessed firsthand her father’s abuse), Ryle is enraged.
The abuse comes out in ways that are never altogether clear – Ryle is always incredibly sorry and charming afterwards and tries to frame it as an accident. Lily has flashbacks back to her mother being beaten, but those memories are intermingled with how charming and kind Ryle has been and it leaves her confused -- often how it happens for women in these situations.
Based on the bestselling novel by Colleen Hoover, It Ends with Us is a carefully crafted story that shows how a woman can be caught in a cycle of abuse without even really knowing what's happening – until she’s so far in that she realizes the way out may be impossible.
The performances are all excellent – Justin Baldoni, who was wonderful in Jane the Virgin, plays Ryle with the right combination of creepiness that morphs into charm, but still every so often says something that makes your skin crawl, even though he says it with a big smile on his face. Blake Lively portrays Lily with an intense, yet quiet emotion. She's torn because she wonders if her past is making her see things in an unfair light.
Brandon Sklenar plays Atlas, the once homeless boy who was saved by Lily as a teen. They formed a close friendship that led to love, but Atlas joined the marines after high school and they presumably lost touch. As the adult Atlas, Sklenar plays his character with strength and a patient kindness, turning in a wonderful performance. Both he and Jenny Slate are standouts in this film.
The younger versions of Lily (Isabela Ferrer) and Atlas (Alex Neustaedter) are also very well cast. At times, it took a few moments to realize if I was seeing Blake or Isabela, while Alex played Atlas -- an unloved teen, avoided by his peers due to his homelessness -- as a lost boy who slowly grows hope as he realizes that Lily cares for him as much as he cares for her.
The ending is unexpected – in fact, much of what happens in the movie took me by surprise. I was expecting a storyline that was more obvious and trite.
Movie lovers should not worry about the dark themes – this is not a depressing movie and has enough twists and turns to keep you interested in what will happen with these characters. The script has a number of entertaining surprises – even the title didn’t refer to what I expected -- and makes for a satisfying and enjoyable night out. ~Alexandra Heilbron
4.5 out of 5 stars
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I could say SO MUCH about this movie, but I’m just going to agree with the reviewer. You are spot on. I can’t stop thinking about this movie. I thought it was going to be a fluff piece, but it was impactful and thoroughly engrossing. It was a very long movie, and yet it didn’t seem so. I loved it. Oh wait. I disagree with you. You rated it 4.5 out of 5 stars. I’m gonna give it the big 5 stars lol.