Ali Hazelwood’s “The Love Hypothesis” is living, breathing proof that writing fanfiction about on-screen characters you’re thirsting over will get you far in life. “The Love Hypothesis” is, then, a love letter to our 13-year-old selves who read Episode, Wattpad and Archive of Our Own (AO3) under the covers, our faces illuminated by content too explicit to read in broad daylight.
Background Information
As a neuroscience professor deeply disappointed by the outcome of the Star Wars Sequel trilogy, Hazelwood wrote a modernized adaptation of the story, with Kylo-Ren and Ray as Stanford University academics who fake-date and eventually fall in love. Her “fic,” titled “Head Over Feet” and published under the pen name “Ever_So_Reylo,” became incredibly popular on the AO3 website, fetching over 5 thousand comments.
I, however, came across her story 3 years after it was published as a romance novel in 2021. The chemistry between Kylo, now named Adam Carlsen, and Ray, Olive Smith, combined with the science jargon and incredibly entertaining filler scenes, made me an immediate fan; Hazelwood’s books felt like a godsend for someone who wanted to combine her love of literature, romance and science.
That said, the 2021 novel was a tough act to follow.
Variables
As Carlsen would argue, this film had too many independent and dependent variables to qualify as a proper experiment. That said, in the spirit of reviewing a rom-com about two biology academics, I will assess the product—the film—like a scientist.
The Independent variable
For those whose science homework saw more tears than correct answers, an independent variable is a factor in an experiment that the researcher intentionally moderates and changes. In this “experiment,” that variable is certain scenes in the movie that were either heavily altered or changed entirely in the adaptation process.
The film has a subtle habit of de-radicalizing Hazelwood’s work. One example is Smith’s invitation to speak at the esteemed Society for Behavioral Diagnostics conference.
In the book, Smith receives an invitation from the official committee; however, in the movie, Tom Benton asks her to speak after meeting Smith and learning about her relationship with Adam Carlsen. This change may seem slight at first, but it actually alters the entire point of the movie. Especially when combined with another ill-advised change.
Throughout the book, Smith doubts her abilities as a scientist, but Benton is the only one who says it out loud. After telling her he’ll let Smith work in his lab at Harvard, he commends her for figuring out “so early in her academic career that fucking well-known, successful scholars are how to get ahead.” It’s a significant turning point in the book that the movie euphemizes.
Instead, the film has two random women belittle Smith in the public restroom, arguing she was invited to the conference only because of her romantic relationship with Carlsen. It may be the same message, but the messenger changes the entire tone. Worst yet, it goes against everything Ali Hazelwood writes.
As an author, Hazelwood repeatedly chooses to illustrate women’s solidarity and friendship. In “Love on the Brain,” one of her other books, the main character even chooses to forgive her ex-best friend, who betrayed her, by recognizing the struggles women face in academia. “The Love Hypothesis,” at no point, pits women against one another. The film ignores the progress Hazelwood makes with her books, turning the narrative into a cliché.
Benton doesn’t invite Smith in the book, which lets readers know Benton’s words are an absolute lie. The movie, by contrast, implies that Olive did, in fact, get to her position because of her relationships. That said, the film uses these changes to make the male love interest more charming, portraying him as a “savior,” and trading off Smith’s independence for it.
Dependent Variable
The dependent variable is the factor that changes in response to the independent variable the researcher alters. In adding new scenes and removing old ones, the film simultaneously alters the main characters’ personalities.
Carlson’s personality has, admittedly, always been scarce on display, revealing itself only in scenes with Olive. However, in the book, Hazelwood had done an excellent job of letting it shine through when necessary.
The author depicted Carlson as a subtly amusing, sassy man who had pined after Smith for years before they ended up fake-dating. By contrast, the film dulls his already limited personality. His entire being was dumbed down to being Olive’s savior and confidant to such an extent that the villain, Benton, was more interesting.
Perhaps the biggest loss of Carlsen’s depiction came from the film’s decision to exclude his years-long pining. Book Carlsen had been vying for Smith’s number for three years; movie Carlsen fell in love suddenly.
Unfortunately, it’s not just Carlson whose personality is overhauled for the worse.
Book Smith is absolutely hilarious, confident in her stance as a woman in science despite her internal self-confidence struggles, and is in no way meek. The film, in contrast, lobotomizes Smith, turning her into a stereotypical male-gaze movie love interest who’s soft, shy and easily cowering behind others, such as her movie-version best friend Anh, who has been imbued with both her own and book Smith’s personalities.
Yet Anh was never supposed to be the only headstrong, funny female character; their incredibly endearing dynamic comes from their shared humor.
During a seminar given by Benton, whose lab Smith may work in the following year, Anh says she decided to come with Smith to protect her: “Consider my presence the equivalent of a father cleaning his rifle in front of his daughter’s boyfriend before prom.” To which Smith replies, “Aww, Daddy.”
I mourn the absence of these lines that had made me laugh out loud while reading.
Controlled Variable
The controlled variable group is everything that remains the same. Thankfully, the banter between Smith and Carlson qualified for the controlled group, at least at first.
If a rom-com doesn’t have me giggling in my seat, I consider it a failure. Amazon Prime’s “The Love Hypothesis” succeeded in this department; I felt the chemistry between Smith and Carlson. Even though their romance was a bit rushed and underdeveloped, they mostly made up for it with intimate scenes.
At one point, when Carlson kisses Smith in front of her friends, her friend Malcolm says, “he’s starving.” Nothing’s more attractive than a man who actually desires the woman he’s kissing, so this scene feeds the bookworms.
Evaluation of Errors and Strengths
Without a doubt, what I missed most in the film was the lack of science. I loved Hazelwood’s books because they satisfied my passion for romance novels and science at the same time. The book had scenes where characters attended seminars, ran experiments and faced the usual PhD student struggles. The film did not. Ultimately, it seemed like the movie prioritized the typical rom-com aesthetic over the book’s original idea.
A small detail I deeply enjoyed was a movie easter egg hidden in the paratext behind Carlson and Smith’s respective theme music.
Every time Carlson menacingly walks into a scene, an epic, mischievous sound begins to play. The addition is funny on its own; however, longtime Star Wars fans will enjoy it even more, recognizing that the theme is inspired by Kylo Ren’s theme march. Similarly, Smith’s theme is also inspired by Ray’s. It’s a wonderful, playful way of paying homage to the content’s origins.
Conclusion
Some films are meant to change lives, some are meant to entertain and most don’t choose which one they gravitate toward when released to the public. This film was definitely the latter. Thus, it was a success; despite its flaws, entertain it did. A day after I first watched it, I wanted to watch it again. It appears Prime’s success in book-to-movie adaptations will continue.