Back in 2018, the Netflix adaptation of Beth Reekles’ The Kissing Booth was released, and in no time, it became a must-see for everybody. 

Fans got their wish when July of 2020 brought the release of a sequel, Kissing Booth 2. 

All our favorite characters reprised their roles, including Elle Evans (Joey King), Lee Flynn (Joel Courtney), Noah Flynn (Jacob Elordi), Rachel (Meganne Young) and Mrs. Flynn (Molly Ringwald). Two new cast members were also welcomed into the Kissing Booth family, Taylor Zakhar Perez and Maisie Richardson-Sellers. 

Like its predecessor, the film began with an opening monologue from Elle, filling the viewers in with all the details of what happened since we saw our characters last. Elle is befriended by new student, Marco Peña (Perez) and struggles to make her relationship with Noah work after meeting his friend Chloe (Richardson-Sellers). Elle’s friendship with Lee also wavers when Lee is forced to choose between her and his girlfriend Rachel.  

The film did have its fair share of shortcomings. The whole storyline seemed recycled and unoriginal and like I’d seen it before. It made the movie feel a little boring and like I knew what to expect.  

It also felt extremely misogynistic toward two of the main characters. Elle and Rachel are in similar situations; neither feels like a priority in their boyfriend’s life and they torture themselves over a guy who just keeps hurting them. There’s no irony lost on the fact that they’re dating brothers. Not only do they come across as desperate, it screams “toxic relationship.”  

The misogynistic vibe also took away from the climax of the movie. Marco and Noah came close to fighting over Elle like she was a piece of property. I can totally see this happening if Chloe and Elle didn’t intervene. I would have enjoyed this more if the boys fighting over Elle didn’t feel like a jousting-match-for-the-princess movie than a rom-com set in the twenty first century. Considering how prominent feminism is in today’s world, it felt awkward and out-of-place. 

Despite lacking a healthy dose of girl power, I do have to give the crew major props for equal representation, giving the LGBTQ community their moment in the spotlight. One character ends up coming out at the end of the film in an incredibly sweet moment that had me on the verge of tears.  

All negatives aside, it’s a fitting second installment to the Kissing Booth series, blending almost seamlessly with the first and tackling some of the real-life issues high schoolers everywhere face surrounding college and long-distance relationships.  

If anybody needs an escape from the monotonous isolation, I recommend watching it.