Plot: A powerful CEO and her airline’s newest lawyer share a secret romance that takes off when these two workaholics stop playing by the rules and start following their hearts.
Review: The romantic comedy has seen better days. Over the last decade, the number of big-screen comedies has dropped dramatically, and with it any sort of rom-coms of note. There have been a few debuts on streaming platforms, but none come close to even the most mediocre entries in the genre. While a standout here and there has kept hope for romantic comedies alive, it has been a long time since we have had one that works as well as Office Romance. Led by Jennifer Lopez, a veteran of Maid in Manhattan and The Wedding Planner as well as weaker recent entries Marry Me and Shotgun Wedding, and Ted Lasso‘s Brett Goldstein, Office Romance plumbs the right balance of raunchy humor and heartfelt emotion for a movie that will appeal to a broad audience thanks to the feel-good nature of the plot which doesn’t try to do too much or too little with the story. It also helps that the chemistry between Lopez and Goldstein is palpable.
Brett Goldstein plays attorney Daniel Blanchflower, who works for AirCruz, a New Jersey-based airline led by CEO Jackie Cruz (Jennifer Lopez). Daniel is a by-the-book Brit who relocated to the States to look after his imprisoned sister, Lizzy (Jodie Whittaker). When AirCruz lead counsel Peter Vance (Bradley Whitford) is unable to take part in a deposition, Daniel steps in and is immediately smitten by Jackie. Confronted with a lawsuit by a rival airline that claims she used sexual favors to secure an airport deal, Daniel defends Jackie and sees something appealing in him. Quickly, sparks fly despite AirCruz’s stringent zero-tolerance policy on workplace relationships. Of course, the pair can’t help but fall for each other and try to keep their romance a secret from everyone. Pretty quickly, it becomes evident that the relationship is more than just a fling, which complicates matters for both Daniel and Jackie.
Unlike many rom-coms, where the couple doesn’t get together until the end, Office Romance wastes little time getting the leads together. The movie instead focuses on what is keeping the two of them apart. Jackie is still traumatized by her cheating ex-husband, as well as calls from the AirCruz board to remove her as CEO. Her father, Captain Jack Cruz (Edward James Olmos), the company’s founder, regularly steps in and makes her feel smaller and less than. Daniel must balance his professional ethics as an attorney with his sense of obligation to protect his sister. Both Jackie and Daniel struggle to come to terms with their feelings for each other, much to the chagrin of Jackie’s best friend and colleague, Sydney (Betty Gilpin). The film also features supporting turns from Amy Sedaris, Tony Hale, Will Sasso, Mary Wiseman, Roger Bart, Michelle Hurd, and Lisa Gilroy, filling out the ensemble. But as funny as everyone is, the core of what makes Office Romance watchable is the easy-going combination of Jennifer Lopez and Brett Goldstein.
The chemistry shared between Lopez and Goldstein jumps off the screen in their first scene. The two actors are the most natural pairing I can recall, with their intimate moments clicking just as much as the awkward ones. Office Romance was billed as a raunchy comedy, and while it is nothing compared to The 40-Year-Old Virgin or Knocked Up, it does boast some surprising moments. We have seen boners on screen, and the last few years have showcased some pretty graphic childbirth scenes, but Office Romance offers the first we have gotten in the same movie. As an R-rated comedy, Office Romance leans more heavily on profanity rather than explicit nudity, but it may have set the record for an American film with the most use of the c-word. Clocking in at close to two hours, the movie has more f-bombs than sex scenes, but when the actors look as good as these two leads, it doesn’t seem like that much of a chore to watch them without clothes.
Brett Goldstein co-wrote Office Romance with his fellow Ted Lasso scribe Joe Kelly. Goldstein has had a solid run writing the romantic drama All of You, as well as co-creating the series Shrinking and the upcoming fourth season of Ted Lasso. Goldstein is a talented comedian, and his knack for developing believable romantic comedy is a big component of why Office Romance works. The problem a lot of romcoms have is that they feel formulaic and inauthentic. Office Romance sticks to the overall formula the genre is known for, while keeping things feeling authentic. Director Ol Parker, known for The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again keeps the focus on the romance, while the office element is a bit underdeveloped. There are funny moments with coworkers and a brief turn from Tony Hale as a burnt-out head of human resources, but the film uses the conceit of a forbidden workplace relationship as a vehicle to push the main characters together. This is not a twist on The Office, but I would have liked some more workplace shenanigans to emphasize that part of the story.
Office Romance has some genuine laughs and a couple of standout moments that keep it raunchy and funny, but without being gross. For a movie that clocks in at just about two hours, Office Romance moves pretty quickly. Some of the side elements could have been fleshed out a bit more, but the spark that Brett Goldstein and Jennifer Lopez share on screen gives the movie an electricity that permeates every moment they share together. Both actors are unfairly attractive, but they present a fresh pairing we don’t see much in romantic comedies these days. Office Romance is fun and funny without veering too far into Hallmark or Lifetime territory, and it keeps the humor at a level that will appeal to every demographic. This is the strongest romantic comedy to debut in a long time and will hopefully translate into more like it in the years to come.
Office Romance premieres June 5th on Netflix.