A Missed Landing

Netflix’s “Love Is in the Air” Did Not Meet Expectations

Photo by Ian Keefe on Unsplash

The romantic comedy film “Love Is In the Air” directed by Adrian Powers made its landing on Sept. 28, 2023 on the streaming platform Netflix. This movie follows the story of young seaplane pilot, Dana Randall (Delta Goodrem), a determined and headstrong woman who is constantly working hard to keep her family airline Fullerton Airlines running since it was founded by her late mother. Dana soon becomes entangled with an executive from the private equity firm ITMC Financial, William Mitchell (Joshua Sasse), who travels from England to the home of Fullerton Airlines in Australia with the intention of shutting the business down to sell its assets. This puts Dana in a difficult position as viewers are taken through her and William’s journey, with an emphasis on their “opposites attract” romance.

“Love Is in the Air” does have some well-executed aspects, such as the beautiful scenery of islands in Queensland Australia, where it was filmed.  However, much of the film is boring and predictable. This movie hardly has any depth and is packed full of cliches, so for those looking for a surface-level rom-com with mediocre acting, this is the one. 

While it carries the potential for good themes and an interesting plot line, “Love Is in the Air” fails to pique the interest of viewers. The storyline is either all over the place or so painfully predictable that viewers will not even want to continue watching. The majority of this plot just isn’t much to unpack, as the dialogue and storyline of a pilot falling for someone she believes she shouldn’t is too shallow without a creative twist on it and falls flat throughout the movie. Overall, this movie is a failed attempt to mix cliche rom-com tropes and a cheesy small town romance plot. 

The acting in “Love Is in the Air” is okay as it is nothing special within the realm of the romantic comedy genre. The acting is comparable to that of a Hallmark movie, not quite laughable but not believable either. Dana, played by Australian Singer and Actress Delta Goodrem, gave a performance that was only slightly above average. Dana’s backstory of losing her mother and carrying on her legacy through Fullerton Airlines could have made this movie feel more deep and emotional, but it was held back by Goodrem’s acting which did not fulfill the range of emotions that Dana’s character needed. Even with the blatantly emotional scenes of the movie, Goodrem does not really pull in the viewer or make them feel anything from her acting. The blame for the less-than-good acting does not solely fall on her, as the whole cast didn’t really have the chemistry needed to make this film exceptional.

This movie is meant to be an entertaining display of a love story, however, the romance in “Love Is in the Air” does not live up to its title or its genre. Goodrem and her co-star Joshua Sasse lack the sparks and chemistry that are crucial for any rom-com film. This “opposites attract” romance trope, which even has an essence of enemies to lovers, feels more like two people who have nothing in common trying to force themselves to be in love. Dana’s character is carefree, while William’s character is uptight. Though these characters had the potential to have an epic love story, their lack of chemistry and romantic moments in the film ruin that potential. 

Though this movie had an interesting premise and a promising cast, the whole thing was too boring to live up to any good expectations. It is a difficult movie to get through, as the lack of complexity in its plot, mediocrity of the acting and absence of chemistry between the two main characters squashes the potential it had to be an exceptional rom-com. Some may enjoy its cheesy and feel-good moments, however, “Love Is in the Air” is definitely not worth a watch for those looking for something deep and romantic. 

<Star Rating>

Plot: ★★★★★

Acting: ★★★★★

Romance: ★★★★★

Overall: ★★★★★