I Met A Girl Review: A Light-Filled Performance Elevates This Movie About Love and Mental Illness

Release date: September 11, 2020
Running time: 108 minutes
Starring: Brenton Thwaites, Lily Sullivan, Joel Jackson, Zahra Newman

Devon (Thwaites), an aspiring musician, embarks on an epic, cross-country journey to find the woman of his dreams Lucy (Sullivan) - who may be all in his head.  Devon's history of mental illness has put a strain on his family, including his brother Nick (Jackson) and Nick's expecting wife Olivia (Newman).  After the girl of Devon's dreams suddenly abandons him, he picks up and goes on a journey of love and discovery, a journey that is painful and enlightening for himself and those around him.  

I Met a Girl has a bright, colorful style throughout despite the subject matter.  And this all starts with its charismatic lead.  Thwaites really carries this film, with his combination of charm, wonder, love, and personality.  He is such a joy to watch on screen and even when the scenes become painful, you are still rooting for his character.  On top of his character, the film overall has a bright style, with bold colors throughout.  Devon's wardrobe is stylish and colorful, the scenes have good color selection and shot choice, and occasionally the film will fill the screen with bright splashes of color.  And this bright character is helped along by some fantastic music choices.  In a movie about an aspiring musician, the filmmakers did a great job filling it with impactful and smart musical choices that contribute to the overall feel of the film. 

And the journey that Devon goes on is a fantastical one, with plenty of laughs, drama, and characters to meet along the way.  It is an interesting take on how far someone will go to believe what is in their own head, and one that is one part exciting to see and one part painful.  Once Devon meets Lucy, the film really opens up and the resulting voyage forms most of it.  And although Devon's journey is the main focus, and the source of much of the humor and happy experiences in the film, the movie also shows the effect that someone's mental illness can have on their family.  While Devon is out pursuing the woman of his dreams, his family goes through their own challenges and tribulations.  And in these parts, the film does have plenty of real, raw emotion.  The challenges that his family go through provide a lot of the most powerful scenes in the film (including a very emotional scene with Jackson).  

However, for a movie about mental illness, the depiction of Devon's disease has some highlights, but also has some parts that feel a little too fantastical.  There are other recent movies that I feel do a great job depicting mental illness, and although I did enjoy those parts of the film, I am unsure how accurate the depiction in I Met a Girl is.  And although the story has highs and lows, it does feel like the highs can come a little too quick in the film.  But that being said, the film has a wonderful ending, one that I absolutely loved.  It elevates the already strong performances and ties together a lot of the story.  

I Met a Girl is a tough movie to judge, but overall the light of the performance and lovely message overcome some inconsistencies in the depiction.  I Met A Girl has a moving performance by its charismatic lead, a wonderful bright style, and plenty of highs and lows in this story about love and mental illness.  

Watch it.

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