In 1987, there was Buttercup and Westley. In 1989, there was Harry and Sally. And over two decades later, from the director who brought us both iconic love stories, comes the story of Juli and Bryce. Set in early 1960s suburbia, their love story may not involve conquering six fingered men, rodents of unusual size, or giant pits of quicksand. At only 11 or 12 years old, their process of figuring out what they feel for each other has nothing to do with sex. But capturing a story of young love which is just as much a flip of a switch as it is a journey of courage, honesty, and freedom, Flipped reminds us that no matter how youthful and innocent it may be, love is complicated... but that doesn't mean it's not worth sorting out.

Flipped is a story of boy meets girl, of girl likes boy and boy can't stand girl, and—just as soon as girl starts to see the boy as less than perfect—of boy falls for girl and must win her back. The girl is Juli Baker (Madeline Carroll), a free-spirited, unabashed romantic who greets Bryce Loski (Callan McAuliffe) with a smile and an instant assumption of friendship the moment he and his family move across the street. The boy is Bryce Loski, a self-conscious, uncertain people-pleaser who's just trying to be a good son and a cool friend who doesn't cause any trouble. And their story—characterized by sudden turns of emotion neither of the two children even seem to quite understand themselves and delightfully portraying Bryce and Juli's very different perspectives of the same events—is one that can't help but make you smile at how even the simplest of complications and feelings can come to mean everything when it comes to love.

However, beyond merely a nostalgic portrait of young love and a humorous depiction of how different the perspective from each side of a love story can be, the story we are given in Juli and Bryce's evolving relationship is one which acknowledges some of the most basic elements to making love work even after we've made it out of our adolescence. In fact, the parts of the story I like the most are the ones in which Juli and Bryce come face-to-face with love and relationship as it exists in their own families.

In Juli's family, they, like her, are all more free spirits. Her father is a painter. Her brothers are musicians. In all of them is a love for life and beauty and a desire to share that joy with others. But as we learn about Juli's mentally-disabled uncle to whose care much of the family's money goes and the difficult daily realities and choices that situation has long involved, we also see that the Baker's love is also one that recognizes limits, deals with reality, and takes responsibility.

Across the street at the Loski house, the climate is primarily determined by Bryce's pragmatic father who is rarely seen without a glass of hard liquor in his hand. A hard-working man, he has provided well for his family and takes pride in the home in which they live. Looking across the street, he voices his pity for Mrs. Baker for marrying "a dreamer" who he obviously feels does not properly live up to his responsibility to his family. On the topic of the Baker's two sons, their desire to pursue a career in music immediately translates into Mr. Loski's judgment of them as irresponsible members of society and very likely criminal delinquents. But as Bryce concludes, his father's anger, more than just a blanket condemnation of everyone unlike himself, is just as much about his own life, about the dreams he never pursued, and, likely, a responsibility he felt he always had to live up to as opposed to a responsibility he chose to take on.

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