The film-length finale of Netflix's Heartstopper series, Heartstopper Forever, has poignant moments but ultimately feels like fan service by numbers, according to a review. The show's central couple, Nick (Kit Connor) and Charlie (Joe Locke), are now 18 and 17, and the film explores whether their relationship can survive into adulthood.
Connor's Vision vs. Oseman's Wholesomeness
Kit Connor recently told the Guardian that he would have preferred a different ending: "If I'd had my way, I would have had Nick and Charlie cheating on each other and doing all those stupid things. Because young people do that and don't necessarily need to be villainized for it." However, Heartstopper Forever stays true to Alice Oseman's wholesome vision, avoiding vape, sex apps, and infidelity.
Plot and Pacing Issues
The film covers a year in the couple's life over two hours and four parts (Autumn, Winter, Spring, Summer, plus an epilogue). With little to tie the sections together, it often feels like a slapdash game of Issues Bingo. Nick is a borderline alcoholic crippled with anxiety at the start, but overcomes his demons by working at an animal rescue. Charlie's eating disorder from season three is seemingly healed by the sight of Derek Jacobi, who cameos as half of a sweet elderly gay couple. Friends Tao and Elle's relationship issues are hardly explained, an odd oversight for previously prominent characters.
Fan Service Over Character Development
The film often feels more concerned with creating a love letter to the franchise than taking characters anywhere new. Scenes like Nick and Charlie canoodling on a wintry day retread earlier moments, and flashbacks dampen the magic of revisiting their first kiss. The film also includes earnest PSAs about LGBTQ+ rights. "The government is taking away my rights and everything we fought for," says Elle, the trans friend. "If I was a few years younger I wouldn't even have been able to take hormone blockers legally." While grimly true, this message feels shoehorned in, as Elle never mentioned this before.
Standout Moments Amidst the Workshopped Feel
Thank God for the well-timed one-liners of the delightfully narcissistic Rhea (Imogen Heaney), who announces she is a lesbian as if she just won the clout Olympics, and Charlie's sister Tori, whose speech about her asexual relationship is one of the most touching scenes. "Maybe our together isn't the same as your together, or the normal sort of together," she says. "But it's ours, and we're happy with it."
Sanitized Sex Scenes
The sex scenes are strangely coy, especially given that both actors are 22. There's nary a flash of buttocks, no nasty gunk to clean up, and none of the fumbling awkwardness. In one scene, Charlie sticks his hands down Nick's jeans before an aerial shot shows not a soul within 500ft, as if the film-makers are holding up a sign: no late-night dog walkers were traumatized by this blowjob.
Conclusion
Heartstopper's magic rests in its rosiness, but the extended cast that Heartstopper Forever mainly ignores is part of Nick and Charlie's glow. The film isn't without aww-inspiring moments, but odd pacing, relentless Easter eggs, and montages leave it feeling like its own fan cam edit. Nick and Charlie are supposed to be all grown up, but Heartstopper Forever treats them with kid gloves.
