Love Me Love Me Review: When Grief, Desire and Choice Collide in the City of Romance

Love Me Love Me Review: There’s a beat in every young adult romance where the world seems both impossibly vast and crushingly small — the moment when you realise that one choice could change everything. Love Me, Love Me captures that beat again and again, teeing up a contemporary love triangle that’s as emotionally grounded as it is stylistically smooth. Directed by Roger Kumble, the film transplants the familiar tropes of YA romance into the timeless allure of Italian streets and elite schooling, mixing familiar genre pleasures with genuinely affecting moments of self-discovery.

The movie has a runtime of 1 hour 39 minutes.

Love Me Love Me Review

The film introduces us to June (Mia Jenkins), a young woman grappling with loss, her brother’s sudden death has left a void that Milan’s beauty and privilege can’t immediately fill. In an effort to start fresh, she enrols in an elite international school, a microcosm of bright futures, hidden wounds, and social hierarchies that feel both daunting and intoxicating. While the backdrop is picturesque, think cobblestone courtyards and sun-washed facades — the emotional terrain she navigates is anything but perfect.

Early on, June finds solace in Will (Luca Melucci), the classic honour student. Steady, dependable and ideal on paper, Will represents stability in June’s unsteady life. He’s the kind of partner who listens, supports, and makes decisions that are responsibly paced, not flashy, but safe. Will’s warm reliability feels like an antidote to June’s grief, and their dynamic unfolds with a charming ease that’s easy to root for.

Then there’s James (Pepe Barroso Silva), Will’s best friend, a charismatic, enigmatic boy entangled in underground MMA fights and a life that’s unpredictable at every turn. James doesn’t just break rules; he seems to break contexts, skidding into June’s world like a force of nature. His presence introduces a thrilling instability, challenging June’s sense of what love should be and what it feels like. The tension between Will’s calm and James’ chaos forms the emotional core of the film, and watching June weigh both is where Love Me, Love Me finds its narrative momentum.

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What sets this adaptation apart from many YA romance films is how it balances the predictability of its genre with genuine emotional depth. The love triangle is familiar, but the stakes here are subtly layered. June isn’t merely choosing between two boys — she’s choosing what version of herself she wants to trust, protect, or let go. Her vulnerability feels real; her doubts feel earned rather than manufactured for drama. Yes, there are moments of cliche (the moonlit conversation, the almost-kiss that lingers too long), but these are offset by scenes where June confronts her grief head-on, reminding us that Love Me, Love Me is equally about healing as it is about romance.

On the performance front, Mia Jenkins brings a grounded sincerity to June that anchors the story. She’s expressive without exaggeration, and her chemistry with both Melucci and Barroso Silva feels lived-in. Melucci gives Will a quiet strength, making him more than just the “nice guy,” while Barroso Silva’s James sparkles with intensity, vanity, and vulnerability in equal measure. The supporting cast, including classmates, teachers, and June’s new circle, add texture and humour, keeping the story from feeling monolithic.

Director Roger Kumble, known for adapting young adult fare, leans into the romantic potential of every setting. Scenes set in Milan’s artsy cafés or late-night school corridors are visually rich, shot with a pleasant mix of breathless close-ups and sweeping establishing shots that make the city feel like another character. Villa Mondragone, repurposed as the elite school setting, adds old-world elegance that contrasts with the disruptive emotions erupting within it.

If the film falters at times, it’s in its pacing. Midway through, the narrative occasionally stalls, looping in familiar territory without pushing the emotional bar forward. Some plot twists land with more predictability than punch, and a few character motivations could’ve been sharpened for more impact. Yet these are relatively small blemishes in a movie that otherwise knows its audience and delivers what it promises: a heartfelt take on love, loss, and the messy beauty of being young and in motion.

There’s also a pleasing universality to Love Me, Love Me that might surprise even those who don’t typically reach for YA romances. While rooted in a specific demographic, its exploration of vulnerability, yearning, and choice resonates beyond age categories. It doesn’t shy away from the messiness of relationships, the second chances, the missteps, the uncomfortable silences, and that’s where it finds its authentic pulse.

By the time the credits roll, you’ll find yourself living with June’s choices long after the visual romance fades.

Final Thoughts

Love Me, Love Me isn’t just another love triangle, it’s a gentle reminder that the questions at the heart of love are rarely simple, and that every choice, however small it seems, shapes who we become.

This movie is a tender, at times turbulent, romantic drama that blends picturesque settings with real emotional weight. While it leans on familiar tropes, its heart and performances give it a genuine beat worth feeling.

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