Look Both Ways (2022)

Look Both Ways takes a deceptively simple fork-in-the-road moment and turns it into a tender, surprisingly soothing meditation on how lives are built—by accident, by choice, and by the people who show up when it counts. Wanuri Kahiu keeps the parallel-story structure clear and emotionally legible, letting you enjoy the rom-com sparkle while the drama quietly lands, anchored by Lili Reinhart’s openhearted performance and a cast that feels genuinely likable rather than sitcom-cute. The movie’s real pleasure is its warmth: it’s less about “which life is better” than the comforting realization that growth can happen in more than one direction, and the script finds small, honest laughs inside big, scary transitions. If you’re allergic to sentimental, feel-good storytelling you may find it a touch polished, but if you want a smart, gentle crowd-pleaser with real heart, this one earns its glow.

Look Both Ways is aiming for a clever, comforting “sliding doors” romance that asks how one decision can reshape your whole life, and it’s an easy, likable watch on the surface. The problem is it plays everything so safely that neither timeline lands with much emotional punch, and the parallel structure can start to feel like a tidy checklist rather than two fully lived-in lives. The writing leans on familiar rom-com/drama beats, so if you’re hoping for sharp insight about motherhood, ambition, or regret, you may find it a bit lightweight and oddly low-stakes. Still, Lili Reinhart is charming and the movie has a warm, breezy tone—just don’t go in expecting the premise to be explored with much bite or depth.