5 things nobody wants to admit about Purple Hearts

4. It doesn’t say what it think it says… at ALL

Even with the defense that the movie isn’t as bad as it’s been made out to be, it still doesn’t do itself any favors when you break down the handling of its themes. The center of its plot hinges on a left-leaning woman and a right-leaning man putting aside their differences and falling in love. Sure, they do that, but not entirely in a way that’s believable or earned.

By the end of the film there’s no evidence that Luke has shifted his perspective or softened his hard conservative stance. He didn’t meet Cassie in the middle. Instead, Cassie did most, if not all, of the bending and reshaping of her values. And even then, it’s surface level stuff, like putting an American flag next to her Pride and Black Lives Matter flags.

There’s no real denouncement of any of the language Luke or his fellow Marines use (apart from Cassie, though she’s otherwise shut down), and there’s no actual reckoning for Luke either. The “red” and “blue” blending into “purple” happens emotionally rather than realistically, leaving the movie not making the triumphant political message it thinks it does. Simply, Purple Hearts bites off more than it’s willing to chew.

3. Luke and Cassie’s love story happens way too quickly

Nicholas Galitzine has been quoted calling the movie a “crazy, idealized fantasy,” and that statement can be applied to multiple aspects but none more so than Luke and Cassie’s relationship. We’re supposed to believe that these two people hate each other, like truly hate each other, but within a few months time, they’re madly in love?

If you suspend your disbelief and go with the flow, sure. Anything can happen! Luke and Cassie do go through a lot together, and even though (as previously mentioned) not much happens in the way of settling their ideological differences, they see each other in a new light the more time they spend together. Regardless, there’s no shot Cassie would throw out her morals that fast.