How to Date Billy Walsh is the newest movie from Amazon’s Prime Video but the movie’s scathing reviews suggest this may be one to miss.
Sticking on a cheesy and cheerful rom-com is a staple of cozy Friday night in, but the latest arrival from Prime Video has been labeled ‘offensively boring’ and ‘a real disappointment’ by some critics.
What is How to Date Billy Walsh about?
Starring Bridgerton’s Charithra Chandran and Heartstopper’s Sebastian Croft, How to Date Billy Walsh tells the story of two teenagers, Amelia and Archie, who have been best friends since childhood.
Archie has had a crush on Amelia for as long as he can remember but has kept his feelings for her a secret to not jeopardize their friendship.
Just as he builds up the courage to finally tell her how he feels, Amelia suddenly falls head over heels for American transfer student Billy Walsh (Cobra Kai’s Tanner Buchanan).
This new development pushes Archie to extreme lengths as he attempts to keep Amelia and Billy away from each other, only to find that his efforts are having the opposite effect.
The movie’s reviews are scathing
More often than not, rom-coms are rarely seen as great movies but there is an endearing charm to the genre that always keeps us coming back for more.
However, critics have not taken kindly to How to Date Billy Walsh, suggesting that the movie even breaks the ‘so bad, it’s good’ rule that applies to many cheesy romantic comedies.
In her one-star review for The Guardian, Adrian Horton called the movie an “offensively boring streaming-service mess,” adding that “even with floor-level expectations, this rom-com is incoherent and grating, mistaking teen camp for charm.”
Decider’s Liz Kocan advised viewers to skip How to Date Billy Walsh, saying: “I really wish I liked this film more because the impressive cast was squandered on material that was trying to do too many things all at once.”
Sonal Pandya of Times Now wrote: “I had high hopes for How to Date Billy Walsh but this one’s turned out to be a real disappointment.”
Not everyone was quite so critical of the movie, however, as Meaww’s Ishani Yadav said in a lukewarm review: “How to Date Billy Walsh isn’t a bad movie, but it might not be your new favorite rom-com either. If you enjoy British humor and don’t mind a predictable plot, it’s worth checking out.”
And lastly, Lisa Nystrom of FilmInk was slightly more positive, writing: “Wacky and occasionally unhinged, the film is ultimately harmless and surprisingly fun at times.”
How to Date Billy Walsh is available to stream now on Prime Video after arriving on April 5, 2024.
