“Good Grief” is your quintessential made for TV romcom, that is easy to follow, fun and funny with little depth to it. The movie follows Marc (Daniel Levy), whose husband suddenly dies in a car accident. While grieving, he embarks on a journey in which he finds healing, takes a carthatic trip to Paris with his best friends in an attempt to forge his way into the future and find himself and love again. The title poses an oxymoron “Good Grief” being the grief we experience because we loved and lost, and this encapsulates the main theme of the movie.

After a holiday party they have just thrown, Marc bids farewell to his husband Oliver (Luke Evans), a fantasy writer who was going on a book signing tour in Paris. Before he leaves, Oliver hands Marc a red envelope, presumably a romantic Christmas card, however, Oliver has an accident before he even leaves their street and dies. Marc doesn’t open the said envelope, keeping it for sentimental reasons, as well as avoiding dealing with reading what would be his last words to him. With the help of his best friends Thomas (Himesh Patel) and Sophie (Ruth Negga), Marc spends a year grieving his lost husband under their comfort and protection. However, as the 1-year anniversary of Oliver’s death approaches, Marc and his finance manager Imelda (Celia Imrie) discover that Oliver was fiscally irresponsible, had a penthouse he rented in Paris, as well as a lover that Marc did not know about in Paris. Upon this realization, Marc’s grief is confronted with a new level to it, and when Marc decides to open Oliver’s card, he discovers that Oliver wanted to tell him about his other lover in Paris. As a way to escape his grief and treat his friends, Marc decides to visit Paris and see the penthouse Oliver was renting before they cancelled the lease. When it Paris, Marc is able to confront his grief, not only for Oliver, or the life that he had lost, but for his own mother, his passion for painting that he has also discarded as a way to move from grieving his mother.

The movie plays on the absurdity of fear, sometimes dressed as sentimentality and how sometimes it holds us back from truly healing. Had Marc opened the envelope, he would have discovered what Oliver wanted to say to him sooner, wouldn’t have wasted a year’s rental in Paris, and would have come to terms with his loss much sooner, while moving on with his life sooner perhaps. The movie highlights the importance of grief because it allows you to step out of yourself and move on. It allows you to get over things that don’t necessarily serve you. Marc was in a rut because of his failure to properly grieve his mother. Thomas was in a rut because he never really came to terms with the fact that he couldn’t sustain a romantic relationship with Marc, despite their friendship. Sophie was in a rut because she was holding onto a version of herself that she didn’t even fully understand, while undermining her relationship with Terrance (Jamael Westmen), which led to him breaking up with her. While their friendship seems codependent, Marc, Thomas and Sophie are able to confront each other and lead each other on the right path, as well as all deal with their shortcomings, leading to a happy ending for all.

I don’t know if it’s inadequate writing or if it’s the Canadian in Daniel Levy as a writer, that led to many emotions being restrained because we don’t really get to see any anger in Marc, where anger was warranted, but rather the film focuses on the fluff, which is fine, but it doesn’t quite tell the full story of grief in the context we are provided with. While Oliver is good-looking, accomplished and charming, Marc had every right to still feel anger and betrayal over him breaking the rules of the open marriage that Marc reluctantly agreed to. If Marc could admit his reluctance to the open marriage, why would he be denied the anger of feeling betrayed in the movie? This is where it doesn’t quite get as deep as it could have gotten with analyzing grief, albeit good grief. When you (movie) decide to tackle complex emotional processes, you can’t cop out of exploring the uncomfortable parts of it, even in a romcom, these issues can be tackled.

For what it is, “Good Grief” is a good light movie that, although mostly surface, makes for an enjoyable watch and feels like a warm little hug if you’re looking for a comfort watch. I wish it had dared itself more and explored grief more complexly, but maybe this was just not the vessel for it. The cast has great chemistry, the writing is adequate, and the movie goes by swiftly. Definitely a must watch.

Rating- 3 out of 5

Streaming on- Netflix