Along for the Ride
Netflix ’s late adolescent - focused romance motion picture isAlong for the Ride , based on the 2009 Sarah Dessen novel of the same name . It ’s the first of Netflix ’s adaptations of Dessen ’s democratic young adult novels , with the streaming service having optioned the rights for two others , This LullabyandOnce and For All . For its part , Along for the Ridealso suffice as the directorial debut of Sofia Alvarez , who penned the script as well . The filmmaker wrote Netflix ’s wildly popular teen fixed storage - comTo All the Boys I ’ve Loved Beforeand its sequel , To All the male child : P.S. I Still roll in the hay You — both of which were also base on vernal grownup novel , though by Jenny Han . Along for the Ridefollows in its lieu . Along for the Ridecaptures the magic of young maturity and first love life , turn in a relatable coming of eld story with a gratifying love affair .
The pic keep up 18 - year - old Auden West ( Emma Pasarow ) , who goes to remain with her father Robert ( Dermot Mulroney ) in the lowly beachside town of Colby during the summertime after graduating gamey school day . But with her don focalize on his Modern novel and her stepmother Heidi ( Kate Bosworth ) preoccupy with their unexampled baby , Auden spend most of her clip working in Heidi ’s vesture boutique and staying up deep . One night , Auden meets the occult Eli ( Belmont Cameli ) , who present her the undecomposed muscae volitantes to go of late at night in Colby . With Eli ’s help , Auden embarks on a quest to have more normal teen experiences after spend much of her gamy school day years pore on work and impressing her female parent Victoria ( Andie MacDowell ) . Along the style , Auden learns more about Eli , befriend the girls who make for at her stepmother ’s store — Maggie ( Laura Kariuki ) , Leah ( Genevieve Hannelius ) and Esther ( Samia Finnerty ) — and discovers the kind of mortal she wants to be .
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Like many Dessen novels , Along for the Rideweaves together both fare - of - geezerhood and Latinian language plot beat generation , creating young distaff grapheme whose stories do n’t necessarily roll around love and relationships , but recognize those are a part of grow up . Alvarez has a deft paw in adapting Dessen ’s work by keeping Auden ’s story well - rounded and balanced between her kinship with her parents and her bud love story with Eli . Alvarez was , of course , instrumental to thesuccess ofTo All the Boysas its author , but her direct ability are on display for the first time withAlong for the Ride , and she proves to have a sharp understanding of how to keep the spirit of the book alive while creating a motion-picture show that ’s fresh and modern while still feeling timeless . Both Dessen and Han have amassed legion of fans for their young adult novels , and Alvarez should get the same amount of praise and care for delivering such excellent movies ground on the authors ' whole caboodle .
For their parts , the cast certainly help to make the movie as compelling as it is , with Pasarow specially devote a performance that helps to deal Auden as a relatable awkward adolescent who ’s eventually coming into her own personhood through her experiences in Colby . Pasarow ’s natural endowment is specially on display when acting opposite MacDowell and Mulroney as her parent , with all three managing to fetch a great amount of depth to the fraught human relationship between the family . Bosworth , too , is fun and charming as Heidi even as she ’s tasked with the tough caper of walk a line between vexing stepmother and sympathetic raw female parent . However , the material heart ofAlong for the Ridecomes from Pasarow ’s Auden interact with the younger characters , in particular Cameli ’s Eli . Thanks to their performances , it ’s a delight to see the tentative , burgeoning relationship unfold between the two characters . There may be more to the story ofAlong for the Ridethan the romance , but Pasarow and Cameli sure deliver a sweet charming moral force .
In addition to Alvarez ’s script and directing , and the casts ' performance , the music by Beach House inAlong for the Ridecreates a sassy and slaphappy atmosphere for the picture that perfectly fit the mood of Auden ’s taradiddle . Using songs by the ilk of Troye Sivan and Santigold , theAlong for the Ridesoundtrack helps to give the summer teen movie a unique , but contemporaneous atmosphere . The music fits the current moment while avoiding songs that are too pop and therefore too delimit by any particular metre . Beach House ’s soundtrack helpsAlong for the Ridefeel like a timeless teen story that will remain relevant and relatable for a prospicient time .
Netflix has made itself a terminus for movie adaptations of new adult novels from the nil and 2010s , thanks in part to Alvarez ’s employment on theTo All the Boysmovies and , now , Along for the Ride . Ultimately , Along for the Rideis a charming and compelling coming - of - age romanticism picture . It ’s an fantabulous adaptation of Dessen ’s novel , but stands on its own as a teen - focused drama , which is no easy effort . Fans of Dessen ’s work , and those who enjoyedTo All the Boys I ’ve Loved Before , would do well to hold back outAlong for the Ride . Those that give the film a chance will likely enjoy this far-out and cozy stripling drama .
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Along for the Ridereleases on Netflix Friday , May 6 . It is 106 minutes long and is not yet rated .
Emma Pasarow and Andie MacDowell in Along for the Ride
Along for the Ride is a Netflix original Romance language play centering on two teenagers that meet in a seaside town called Colby . Auden and Eli are two insomniacs who go on nightly quest to live a carefree teen life . The 2022 film is ground on Sarah Dessen ’s leger of the same name .
