Yahoo Movies What critics are saying about Jennifer Lopez’s movie This Is Me...Now
The superstar pokes fun at her love life and relationship with Ben Affleck - but is This Is Me...Now any good?
Jennifer Lopez's musical film This Is Me...Now: A Love Story has left critics baffled, who have called it a "chaotic" look at "every single time I got dumped".
Actor and singer J-Lo is releasing the film on Prime Video on the same day as an accompanying album, This Is Me...Now, in reference to her 2002 album This Is Me...Then.
Viewers might be a little confused at the premise of the film (and it seems critics have been, too) - so what exactly is it about?
What happens in This Is Me...Now: A Love Story?
Lopez stars as a character based on herself called "the Artist" in this surreal musical look at her love life, which is presided over by a Zodiac love council made up of Jane Fonda, Sofia Vergara, Post Malone, Keke Palmer and a host of other famous faces.
At the beginning of the movie, the Artist loses the love of her life in a motorcycle accident and then goes through a series of unsuitable relationships as the Zodiac love council despair at her choice of men.
The star pokes fun at the public view of her love life by featuring three different grooms in one wedding sequence, but eventually she finds love with Ben Affleck in a representation of their real-life love story, which saw them split three days before their wedding in 2003 and then get back together two decades on, finally marrying in 2022.
Featuring Lopez's music from her accompanying album, it sounds a bizarre concept for a film and even the star agrees - she told Variety: "Everybody thought I was crazy. And by the way, I thought I was crazy."
What did the critics think of This Is Me...Now: A Love Story?
The film will stream on Prime Video from 16 February and early reviews suggest many critics agree that it's a surreal watch.
Entertainment Weekly writer Kristen Baldwin calls it "a curious blend of Hallmark movie, music video, and self-help seminar," and warns Bennifer fans: "Those fans hoping for a swoony, happily-ever-after appearance from Lopez’s true love will be disappointed. Affleck’s distinctive jawline does make a cameo or two, but the actor’s full face only appears under layers of prosthetics."
Other critics have questioned whether Lopez's film was a good idea at all, with the Evening Standard's El Hunt writing: "Bluntly, I can’t see a cinematic recreation of ‘every single time I got dumped’ making for very interesting viewing for anybody apart from me, or possibly my rightfully concerned ex. And on watching this film, I learned that this is something that continues to hold true for everybody across the board: yes, even if you’re Jennifer Lopez."
In agreement is The Hollywood Reporter critic Lovia Gyarkye, who labels it "a frenetic autobiographically-inspired reflection wrapped in a fairytale and colored by bizarre astrology musings from a starry cast. To watch This is Me… Now is to witness Lopez’s unapologetic vision and uniquely powerful self-confidence. It’s to see how a certain kind of celebrity and financial access allows you to, quite frankly, do whatever you want against the fair warnings of detractors. The film is not good, but it is singular — and absolutely chaotic."
However, while IndieWire's Kate Erbland agrees there isn't much depth to the film, she does give it a slightly more positive reception: "Lopez’s interest (compulsion?) in sharing her “love addiction” with the world is oddly compelling, even if the general story here is quite basic — she loves love! — and it’s only ever insightful when it gets really silly...
"The best bits are when Lopez winks hard at the public perception of her love life (a sequence that sees her flip through three random husbands at the same wedding is a highlight), even if she never says anything deeper about what this all actually means."
This Is Me...Now: A Love Story streams on Prime Video from 16 February.
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