Tribeca 2024: Jenna Ortega-Led Winter Spring Summer or Fall Encapsulates Teenage Angst At A Pivotal Time
For the first time since the early 2000s, it seems as though the romantic comedy is back! Anyone But You solidified this trend with its box office success, alongside streaming originals like Red, White, and Royal Blue and The Idea of You. Winter Spring Summer or Fall, which premiered at Tribeca Festival, combines classic rom-com elements with a coming-of-age story at the transitional time of falling in love while graduating high school and moving on to college.
Jenna Ortega plays Remi, a straight A student with plenty of promise as she is headed to Harvard in the fall. During a chance encounter, she meets Barnes, played by her former Wednesday co-star Percy Hynes White, a slacker and music fiend with no clear direction. The two don’t immediately hit it off, but Barnes is determined to get a second chance. As the two slowly fall for one another, they must question their priorities and what the future may hold for them, with or without one another.
While your typical romantic comedy has you rooting for the two love interests from the start, this couple is hard to support from the start. They make undesirable and often poor decisions, but when you’re young and in love, that’s what you do. The feelings you have for another person can cloud your judgement and have you do things you wouldn’t normally do. When Remi proposes the idea of deferring her Harvard acceptance, her parents freak out and blame Barnes.
Jenna Ortega carries the film with her witty and intimidating demeanor that is equally endearing and off putting. Her character is the one who starts making poor choices in what is one of the most pivotal times in her life. Everyone has felt that pressure of graduating high school and having to plan out the rest of your life, and it often feels entirely overbearing. Remi doesn’t cope with that pressure in a healthy way, and instead lashes out and uses her boyfriend as the excuse to questions the plans she once made for her life.
Percy Hynes White plays the unmotivated teen almost a little too well. He has a slightly off-putting but also endearing way of conducting himself. Though he is often painted as the villain of the story, he is a teenager seeking connection and love like many others. His struggle with knowing what he wants to do with his life is all too relatable to the coming of age story and will resonate with audiences.
If there is one thing a coming-of-age movie will always get right, it is the soundtrack. This film has some great songs including performances by musician Evangeline. She plays herself and performs live in the film in the band that Barnes is working for. Music holds so much power not just in storytelling but also in evoking an emotional response. This film nailed that.
Winter Spring Summer or Fall perfectly encapsulates the pure bliss and blindness that comes with being in love for the first time. Remi and Barnes are young lovers who make poor choices, but it’s reflective of that pivotal time in life when everything feels so dire and permanent. In a space where movies try to paint relationships and growing up as such a perfect and linear route, Winter Spring Summer or Fall highlights the importance of being young and making mistakes in order to learn about oneself.
Winter Spring Summer or Fall does not yet have an official release date.
