Greetings-Treat-A-Weekers,

Remember my post in April “For the Young Adult At Heart” about the Netflix TV show On My Block? Well, if you liked that one, you are going to LOVE this week’s recommendation…Netflix Movie To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before starring Noah Centineo as Peter Kavinsky.

Before you get all judgey on me and ask yourselves what I am doing watching a teen movie for fun, in my defense, I did so as reconnaissance on whether or not my 13-year-old daughter should be allowed to watch it.  One of her best buds came over and was swooning over how good the movie To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before was and how my daughter HAD to watch it.  She explained that it was the story of a teenage girl, Lara Jean, who poured her heart out to all the boy crushes she’d had over the years in heartfelt letters that she hid, unsent, in a box hidden in her closet.  Concerned that her older sister’s life was too dull, her younger sister mails the letters to the boys and of course, humiliation, hijinks and love for Lara Jean eventually ensue.  Given the title, and the fact that I couldn’t just give the blanket yes without having some clue if the movie was too racy for my R to watch or not, I decided I’d watch it first.  And you know what? I loved it.  Maybe it was because I had seen so many teen angst rom-coms myself when I was a teenager (Sixteen Candles was my favorite) and this movie took me back to that era, albeit with sweeter, more evolved characters and themes; maybe it was because John Corbett played Lara Jean’s sweet, well-meaning, cool yet dorky and funny widowed Dad with such endearing flair; or maybe it was because I loved Lara Jean’s cozy home life, her slightly alternative, introverted personality and her close relationships with her sisters and her best friend.  It very likely had something to do with one of the boys Lara Jean had “loved” before, Peter Kavinsky, who is to the present day teen world is what Jake Ryan from Sixteen Candles was to me and my friends decades ago, namely, the dream guy.  Unlike Jake, who actually makes some pretty poor choices as my mom friends now say :), Peter Kavinsky has very high emotional intelligence in addition to being dreamy in both personality and looks — he is smart, funny and responsible and has a 6-pack! What more can a teen girl dream of? In fact, Peter Kavinsky is about the most considerate teenage male athlete I’ve ever seen portrayed in the movies.  He does all sorts of nice things for Lara Jean to woo her and prove how much he cares for her and he never succumbs to peer pressure.  Too good to be true, right? Well, that’s why it’s a treat of a movie, people!!!!!  If you were a fan of John Hughes movies growing up, it’s a must watch for you.  I still have yet to decide whether I think my R should watch it but she probably has on the down low anyway, so my guess is that the question is moot by now.

If you become a Peter Kavinsky fan along with me and all the tweens and teens I know ages 11  and up  (I’m talking to you Lizzie M!) who saw To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before, you may want to check out Sierra Burgess Is A Loser, also again starring Noah Centineo as a beautiful jock with a heart and a conscience who in a reverse Cyrano de Bergerac/Roxanne plot unknowingly falls for a bright, big-hearted young woman while thinking that she is actually the gorgeous, popular, petite and svelte cheerleader of his dreams.  I don’t recommend Sierra highly as I have some concerns about the negative messages it unwittingly could send teens about body image, honesty and character, but I enjoyed the opportunity to see my new favorite teen actor in another sweet roll.  And after watching both movies I have concluded, if you have teenage girl who is going to have a crush on a movie character, far better that it be a Peter Kavinsky than a Jake Ryan.

That’s it folks…hope to write about something more high brow next week but that truly was my treat for the week and I am nothing if not honest with you all.

Until next week, I remain, very truly yours,

M