‘People We Meet on Vacation’ adaptation trivializes emotional connections
Netflix’s “People We Meet on Vacation” suffered a poor adaptation from the book, leaving out major plot points that made the book memorable. Despite this, the film remains a classic rom-com. Kendall Thompson | Contributing Illustrator
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After watching BookTok adaptations like “It Ends With Us” and “Regretting You,” I always look forward to my favorite books coming to the big screen and watching the characters come to life. So, when Netflix announced Emily Henry’s “People We Meet on Vacation” adaptation, I was counting down the days. But, the movie felt almost unrecognizable from the book I loved.
Though the movie included basic elements from the book, like a decades-long friends-to-lovers story between two college friends and the vacations they take each summer. I plan to rewatch the movie for its relatability. However, it left out key moments and plot points that established the romantic buildup between the two friends, leaning too much on comedy over chemistry.
The novel and movie adaptation follow two protagonists, Poppy Wright (Emily Bader), a travel journalist, and Alex Nilsen (Tom Blyth), a school teacher. In their freshman year of college, the two promise to take vacations with each other every summer, no matter where they are in the world or who they are romantically seeing — because they are just friends (sure).
Despite Netflix’s attempt to play into the rom-com sphere and explore whether a relationship between a straight man and woman can ever really be just platonic, the adaptation left out the emotional depth of relationships from the book. It left me craving more substance and less comedy.
Compared to the book, the movie adaptation features fewer trips, different vacation spots and less chemistry between the leads. The movie isn’t as great as the book, but the movie is typical and could happen to anyone.
Akin to “When Harry Met Sally,” the friends (almost lovers) meet at the University of Chicago, a well-known and academically driven school, in the novel. In the film, they met at Boston College. While this didn’t seem like a big difference, it left me wondering whether the film was trying to make Poppy and Alex more approachable for the big screen.
The movie also didn’t have as much romantic suspense between the two friends as the novel. Yes, Alex and Poppy end up together in both, but the pair abruptly falls in love with each other in the film, while their chemistry develops more naturally in the book.
The book and movie both flip from present-day Poppy and Alex’s strained relationship and flashbacks from the worldly vacations on par with the book, which shaped their friendship and ultimately ruined it.
While it’s challenging to adapt a roughly 400-page book into an appropriate movie length, the movie should have included fewer comedic anecdotes and more moments of intimacy and emotional depth. The film just didn’t include enough romantic yearning.
In the book, Poppy experiences a pregnancy scare and confides in Alex instead of her boyfriend, the would-be father. The interaction scares Alex, who decides to get a vasectomy.
Alex chooses to get the vasectomy to prevent any possible pregnancy complications in fear of his own childbirth, after his mother died. The decision to get a vasectomy may not seem integral to the storyline, but it reveals Alex’s inner worries and character development. Without this plot point, I felt robbed of Alex’s feelings.
The movie omits Alex’s vasectomy and only briefly mentions that his mother died when she gave birth to Alex, skimming over his fears.
In the book, both Poppy and Alex are undeniably likable: Poppy’s quirky and adventurous, while Alex is sweet and more reserved. The film only depicts Poppy’s quirkiness, leaving out Alex’s mutual romantic admiration for Poppy. I yearned for more of Alex’s kind behaviors; he seemed grumpy half the time.
Like many other rom-coms, I plan to rewatch this movie many more times. I know and love the storyline all too well: platonic friends who eventually fall in love.
If it weren’t for Tom Blyth’s seamless acting, I would’ve hated the movie version of Alex for his lack of attention and empathy for his friend. He didn’t notice Poppy until he was single and had finally ended it with his high school sweetheart.
Whether you’re looking for a friends-to-lovers romance or some laughs, director Brett Haley’s movie adaptation of “People We Meet On Vacation” is a fun watch — complete with beautiful scenery, small laughs and a predictable ending. It’s not groundbreaking, but it is definitely a perfect comfort movie.
