Minha Culpa (2023)

Someone must have got fed up with the constant slating of the "After..." series and thought - "I know, let's make something that will really make those films look good". Guess what, they succeeded. "Noah" (Nicole Wallace) has had to relocate to live with her mother and her new husband in a palatial home that also happens to be occupied by her rather weedy step-brother "Nick" (Gabriel Guevara). Now the two do not hit it off. He's a bit of a cocky git and she's equally no-nonsense about things - so that ought to be the end. Rock and hard place kind of thing. Nope, no such luck. For almost two hours this takes us on the most predictable of romantic dramas that actually manages to incorporate car chases, fist fighting, sex, familial drama, more (beach) sex and a kidnapping. I would say you couldn't make it up, but clearly the series-prone author Mercedes Ron did in her novel. Amazon have early thrown some cash at this, but little of it was spent on the screenplay and the acting - well Wallace reminded me a little of Shailene Woodley but "Nick" is just an overblown drip - with or without his clothes. I know I'm not the demographic for this, but yikes - I wonder who really would appreciate this banal film. Bring back "90210"!!