Whenever I see a movie set in Paris, it is difficult for me to not watch it.  It is a love that started with Midnight in Paris(2011), was solidified with my own visit to the city, and has continued since these moments.  Until I go back, I will have to content myself with films like Friendzone (2021).  While there is nothing Catholic in the material, I could glimpse in the background one of my favorite sites in the capital of France: The Basilica of Sacre Cœur de Montmartre.  Despite it taking place in the City of Lights, it has some themes working against it.  For one, though I do not mind foreign films, I prefer spoken English over dubbing and subtitles.  The former looks false, and the latter is distracting.  Also, it is a romantic comedy.  It is French, but it is still predictable enough in its beats.  This last factor might be palatable if not for modern culture ruining romance.  You will see why with the main character in a moment, though it comes to the proper conclusion.  Perhaps you will come to agree with me on these points?

It is obvious from the beginning that our main character, Thibault “Titi” (Mickaël Lumière), is in the Friendzone even before he meets the female lead.  He arrives at a beach front resort with a group of friends who are all women to celebrate one of their number’s, Alexandra (Constance Arnoult), bachelorette party.  Titi is the only guy present, but it is clear that they all view this firmly heterosexual man in strictly platonic terms.  His sexuality is confirmed as he watches the ladies run naked into the surf that night, opting to stay on the beach.  When the male entertainer hits on him, he refuses.  Once everyone leaves, Titi decides to take part in the fun by also going for a swim in the buff.  Unluckily, this is when an attendant makes his rounds picking up discarded items, including Titi’s clothes.  Of course, it is at this moment that he encounters Rose (Eva Danino).  He is instantly smitten by her, though he is presented with a dilemma vis-à-vis his exposure.  He overcomes it when he is called upon to give her medical attention after she is bitten by a sea creature, he being a trained nurse.  He is attentive not only to her wound, but also as she talks about how terrible is her ex-boyfriend, Bruno (Maxime Gasteuil).  Being the all-around sensitive guy that he is, he chooses not to take advantage of the situation romantically speaking.  Instead, since they both live in Paris, they forge a friendship based on spending meaningful time together.  What a concept, huh?  After a few weeks, Alexandra, along with Titi’s roommate Lulu (Fadily Camara), and their other friend, Maud (Manon Azem), notice that Titi is entering the eponymous place in the relationship.  He does not see it that way, thinking he and Rose are building something special, but the other three assure him that she intends to be just friends.  To prove them wrong, Titi plans a night with Rose that he intends as a date.  Upon getting to her place, she laughs about how crazy it would be to seriously go out with him, and he leaves in embarrassment.  Seeing the distress this causes Titi, his three female companions make it their mission to teach him how to approach members of the opposite sex in a way that will get them interested in him.  Alexandra shows him how to communicate better, Lulu takes him to a dance class, and Maud works on his physical fitness.  With some time, the ladies are excited to see their friend successfully ask out Jennifer Paoli (Eloïse Valli), a popular Instagram model.  While Titi is excited to be in a relationship, it soon turns out that his role is to operate a camera to take pictures of her, though they do other inappropriate things.  The way they carry on becomes a problem for Alexandra, Lulu, and Maud, who wonder whether Titi still likes Rose.  Given how exhausting it is to be Jennifer’s boyfriend, he says that he misses Rose.  Thus, they arrange for Rose and Titi to meet each other again at an opening of a new line of baby clothes she designs.  Rose is excited to see Titi once more . . . and to introduce her to Bruno, the man she had dumped but with whom she is not back together.  Yet, during this awkward reunion that Titi leaves early, we learn that Bruno and Maud have a history.  In fact, he hits on her at the party, which does not go over well with her because of her own sexual identity.  In any case, it gives Lulu an idea for how to finally make Rose and Titi a couple.  Having Titi host a party and making sure Bruno and Rose are invited, Maude is willing to be a honeytrap for Bruno in order to prove his infidelity.  Everything works as they hope until Rose leaves the soiree in disgust.  Titi goes to her apartment to comfort her, but finds that she is not receptive to his more physical advances, resulting in him being kicked out of her apartment.  His three friends are there to greet him when he returns, but he blames them for turning him into the kind of guy that tries to get fresh with a woman right after having her heart broken.  He stays mad at them for a few days until Alexandra comes to the hospital where he works with the news that she is pregnant.  Maude buys her a gift for the baby, a onesie made by Rose’s company.  Seeing the garment makes Titi realize that he still loves Rose.  Before he makes it to her, though, he is run over by an ambulance.  I have to confess that I did not see that one coming.  It proves only a momentary bump in the road, if you will pardon the expression, and he leaves the hospital in order to profess his love.  We close with Rose and Titi on a beach in Spain chatting with Alexandra, Lulu, and Maude before being summoned into the water by Rose.

Hence, despite having a title like Friendzone, with how it ends for Rose and Titi, it is still a classic tale of boy meets girls, they fall in love, and apparently live happily ever after.  What imperils this conclusion is the guidance given by Alexandra, Maude, and Lulu.  To this Catholic, Titi behaves like a gentleman, and I applauded his bewilderment over the suggestion that he should have immediately had sex with Rose.  As I have often reminded people in reviews of romantic comedies, the Church teaches that carnal relations should be reserved for marriage.  While Titi clearly does not believe in this adage, he at least feels that the best way to show a woman he is interested in her is through quality time, not sexual gratification.  When he tells his three friends how he approached his first encounter with Rose, the fact that he did not try to sleep with her has them thinking that Rose believes Titi does not like her.  They even refer to him as a “born again virgin.”  There is something to that description.  Speaking from personal experience and that of others, it is possible with God to reclaim your chastity.  Movies like this one make it difficult to believe it, which is why I often talk about sex in my reviews of romantic comedies.  They tell you it is okay to indulge in pleasures of the flesh.  Some credit is owed to the film when Alexandra admonishes Titi that he should never tell a woman that he loves her unless he is sincere.  There is truth in this statement.  The problem arises because, like so many of its cinematic cousins, they confuse love and sex.  They are not the same thing, but they are complimentary, and they reach their full potential in a Sacramentally wedded husband and wife.  The act is not simply about getting your rocks off, as the saying goes, but taking part in God’s creative process.  Such concepts appear foreign to Titi, though his innocence at the beginning is at least a shadow of how God would like us to proceed.

All the same, I am not sure I would tell you to proceed with seeing Friendzone.  It is definitely not as raunchy as I expected it to be, though there is a moment when Rose and Titi watch a movie together with a fairly graphic sex scene in it.  It is uncomfortable for him and the audience.  Beyond this, it is not that bad.  What I appreciate least is the matter-of-fact way inappropriate behavior is treated, even with children in the ward in which Titi works.  Thus, I leave the final decision up to you.