Is Red White And Royal Blue Good? | Feel-Good Escapism But Not The Best Movie

If you’re wondering, “Is Red White And Royal Blue Good?” after watching the film myself, I would say – well, it depends.

This film was made to be enjoyed by members of the LGBTQ+ community and it seems to have satisfied that goal.

You don’t have to be the target audience to enjoy a film but being a conduit of escapism and offering a distinct display of relatability can really give a mediocre movie some brownie points.

And this film needs the brownie points.

Is Red White And Royal Blue Good? | Not Really

I viewed Red White And Royal Blue with my usual critical eyes, oblivious to how the cheesiness of this movie could be a welcome escape for members of the LGBTQ+ community. 

Tons of films show a realistic, messy, authentic portrayal of love between straight people, and there are also a ton of cheesy movies that simplify the process to a few formulaic, but effectively heart-tugging plot points, also featuring straight people. 

Red White and Royal Blue is one of the few movies that does the latter for the LGBTQ+ community.

Seeing the pleasant responses from other creators and viewing the support in the comments it’s easy to understand why this film is so positively received.

While I expected a realistic, dramatic, serious portrayal of two huge political figures navigating a nearly impossible relationship in the real world, Red White And Royal Blue instead gave us a world where, yeah, their same-sex relationship is unexpected but not far from acceptable. 

While I expected a Brokeback Mountain or Moonlight struggle, this movie instead gave Hallmark Christmas movie warmth.

And sometimes I forget that not every movie needs to make sense logically as long as it effectively makes you feel something. Sometimes all you need is an emotional escape and that’s what Red White And Royal Blue can provide.  

Red White and Royal Blue takes place in a world where gender roles are less stringent.

A woman is casually the president of the United States and a black woman is the Prime Minister of the UK, accomplishments that are yet to be achieved in the real world. 

Alex is the son of the president of the United States and Henry is the second son of the King of England. 

Following the classic enemies-to-lovers narrative, both Alex and Henry have a palpable disdain for one another, finding the other pompous and arrogant. 

But in an effort to repair their strained relationship in the eyes of the public, they end up falling in love with each other and letting their walls down about their true feelings for one another. 

Although exploring deep feelings of intimacy, the characters somehow still feel quite surface-level, overly animated, and a bit fake.

These characters fail to take on more than two dimensions with Henry coming off as weak and emotionally distant and Alex coming off as brazen and overly confident. 

And the hardest part of Red White And Royal Blue to reconcile with is the choppy script.

Some plot choices are just so ridiculously discordant. Like — why are they longingly locking eyes across the room as the music sings about “sweat dripping down my balls?”

Was this really the most fitting song choice?

Furthermore, the dialogue feels incredibly unnatural as the actors are made to say lines that are very unlikely to ever naturally roll off of someone’s tongue. 

In this modern-day script, they would use phrases like “infinitesimal shred of hope” or “I will trouble you no longer.” You know… like when you get so angry you start to sound like Shakespeare…

This ancient speech greatly contrasted with some of the more casual dialogue that dominated other parts of the script. The incongruence further added to the unbelievability of the story. 

The heated and passionate dialogue between Alex and Henry in their private moments feels like an acting class. Rather than ignite emotion, those moments fall flat as they feel tailored, rehearsed, and inorganic. 

We’ve already established that the cheesiness engulfs the audience into this fantasy, escapist’s world but the unconvincing dialogue swiftly pulls you out of that dream. 

Another aspect of the story that confounded its unbelievability was how non-discreet Alex and Henry were with their romance.

In this day and age where every single watchful eye is evaluating every minute detail of celebrity’s lives, there is no way that Alex and Henry would enter the same room together already hot and heavy with no one catching a glimpse of it. 

The rumors would be flying before the door even came to a full close. 

Also, when Alex and Henry exchanged jewelry I was like, nah, there is no way that people aren’t going to start outing their romance now.

But nope – Alex and Henry’s blatant negligence of keeping the details under wraps was never an issue. Realistically, I don’t see that flying in the real world but I guess fans are a little less nosy in this fantasy world.

Red White And Royal Blue provides another level of escape when Alex comes out to his mother about his sexuality. She is nothing but supportive and loving which is not always the case for many people in the LGBTQ+ community.

Of course, some figures are not supportive of Alex and Henry’s love but their disapproval is quickly drowned out by the love and support of others.

This can provide a level of comfort and an alternate reality for people who were not or are not able to have this support in the real world.

In Conclusion…

Overall, if Red White and Royal Blue were a tale about a classic straight couple who went from enemies to lovers and had a romance that society didn’t agree with, it would get drowned out in the noise of all the other basic Hallmark movies. 

But because this movie provided a lighthearted escape from the classic trauma, pain, misunderstanding, and isolation that usually accompanies acclaimed LGBTQ+ stories, it has a more positive impact at large despite it being an objectively underwhelming story with an unbelievable script, unlikeable characters, and a dry plot.

Rating: 4.5/10

What do you think? Is Red White And Royal Blue Good? Let me know in the comments below!

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Peace, love, and lots of popcorn,

IMO