It Ends for Blake Lively

The novel It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover explores the reality of domestic abuse and teaches lessons about love, strength, and the value of one’s choices. Students at Charlotte Catholic and viewers across the world feel the film adaptation failed to deliver its messages. 

The movie stars Blake Lively as the protagonist, Lily Bloom. While this movie has become a popular topic of conversation,, she and the movie have faced much criticism regarding her role as the character. 

The Chronicle conducted a poll where the majority of participating students feel that Lively “failed to bring the character to life” and “was not a good fit for the role.” To get a better understanding of viewers' opinions, the poll was separated by students who had read the book and watched the movie and those who had only seen the movie.

While some of the students who had not read the book felt that Lively did an incredible job and the movie was equally powerful, others seemed to come to the same conclusions as those who had read the book.

Those who had not read the book expressed disappointment in the movie regarding Lively. Sophomore Madi Hertzig stated that Lively “made it her own instead of focusing on the character,” and that she did not try to embody the character but instead “tried to make the character herself.”

Another sophomore, Brynley Wylde, claimed that “Blake Lively did not do justice to Lily Bloom.” She felt that the actress was too old and commented that Lily was “supposed to be youthful and in her late twenties,” while Lively is in her late thirties.

Throughout the poll, it was clear that other students felt just like Brynley. Some brought up comments regarding her casting directors. They felt that “If they used a younger actor, the character would’ve been portrayed better.”

While readers of the book had similar opinions, there was a dramatic difference in the responses of those who only watched the movie. Although some viewers felt the movie was satisfactory, few readers felt the same.

Sophomore Sadie Lanzas said the movie “failed to capture the most important aspects of the book.” She was not a fan of the movie and thought “the book did a way better job.”

Some readers commented about Lively’s age and her failure to portray the character of Lily Bloom as they had imagined her.

Others voiced their frustrations in the costuming of the characters and the deletion of important scenes. While the movie may be facing criticism due to these issues, it is clear that the main problem was that Lively’s age and acting spoiled the immersion and lost the overall message of the movie.

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