This review includes spoilers.
The romance film “Regretting You” is based on the bestselling novel “Regretting You,” written by Colleen Hoover in 2019. The film was released on Oct. 24, starring Allison Williams and McKenna Grace. As of Oct. 30, the movie has brought in over 27 million dollars in its opening week, which is a moderate success considering its 30 million dollar budget (The Numbers).
The film follows Morgan Grant (Allison Williams) and her complicated relationship with her teenage daughter, Clara Grant (McKenna Grace). After a tragic car crash flips their world upside down by revealing secrets about the Grant family, Morgan and Clara have to relearn how to coexist in their grief and anger.
Directed by Josh Boone, “Regretting You” does not retell Hoover’s story – it reinterprets it. The result is a film that underwhelms the novel’s emotional weight while carving out its own identity as a teenage romance-focused film.
One of the first differences between the novel and the film is the setting. The 2019 novel was set in a fictional small, unnamed town in Texas. But the film was set in the fictional town of Dylan, North Carolina. (New York Times)
Morgan’s relationship with Chris Grant (Scott Eastwood) is less featured in the film adaptation. In the novel, the Grants’ wedding is featured, and more of their teenage relationship is shown. They began dating at 16 in the novel, and in the film, only one scene of their relationship when they were 18 was shown.
The film lacked these details and made their relationship seem surface-level instead of the complicated relationship shown in the novel.
This is not the only time character depth was lost. In the novel, Morgan appears to be more worried about finances, and she goes back to school to become a substitute teacher. In the film, she instead stays home and makes minor home improvements.
Another difference between the film and the novel is the main focus. In the novel version of “Regretting You,” the main plot is the mother-daughter relationship as they navigate through their grief. During the film adaptation, the main relationship covered is between Miller Adams (Mason Thames) and Clara, not Morgan and Clara.
Overall, the film version is an entertaining adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s novel, but it does not reach the same emotional depth.
