We’ve all been there. You’re working as a sound engineer for Manchester University and are trying to get the club DJ to keep the volume within sound laws. Then you hit it off with an alluring woman dressed as a fairy (Sadie Soverall), who you think is so smart and cute and funny. You dance until her friend pulls her away to attend a birthday party and you quickly get her name—Emily—and her number, only to discover the following day that her number is missing a digit. Your brother Matt (Jack Riddiford) and his girlfriend Freya (Isabella Laughland) ask why you don’t know anything about her, including her last name, and you say: “We din’t really have a proper conversation, we were just dancing and looking at each other, it was dead nice.” This is the case for Owen (Spike Fearn), anyway, and so he sets out to find her.
Owen starts at the university where he tries to describe Emily to the receptionist—but that doesn’t really help when there are 118 Emilys in attendance. When student Kyle (Anthony J. Abraham) overhears Owen’s situation, he directs him to Emily (Angourie Rice), a psychology student who believes that our modern world has evolved past the need for romantic attachment, rendering it unnecessary. When Emily asks why he can’t just find someone else, Owen wonders when everyone got “so cynical.” He’s a real loverboy, a musician who pays attention to vibes, and chases dreams. Emily, on the other hand, is analytical and more interested in the psychology of love, which is what her dissertation is about. Emily decides to help Owen with the intention of secretly using him as her test subject, which will serve her larger goal of securing a graduate position so she can obtain a work visa and avoid having to go back to Idaho.
Finding Emily is a love letter to Manchester, student life, and, of course, love itself. There are plenty of scenes around the city as well as in bars, clubs, and even a cheeky kebab after a night out. Common locations include the University of Manchester (renamed Manchester City University in the film), Canal Street, Millstone Pub, The Pev, Night and Day Cafe, and Electric Shuffle. I didn’t know how much I craved a Northern romcom until I watched this. It helps that it’s produced by Working Title, the company who brought us Notting Hill, Bridget Jones’s Diary, and Love Actually. You get used to London and all the American romcoms, so Finding Emily is absolutely delicious for us Northerners who get to enjoy familiar locations and hear an accent that sounds like home, complete with all the banter. I could listen to Fearn talk all day. Fearn is a tremendous young star who embodies his role as Owen. He’s impossibly endearing as some directionless young lad who lost his mother to illness a year prior to the film’s events. Owen and Matt often rip into each other, but they’re there for each other when it truly counts. There’s a scene where they sing along to “Wordy Rappinghood” by Tom Tom Club in the car, which highlights their history and bond.
Rice’s Emily is harder to sympathise with, but she isn’t entirely unlikeable. After a bad experience with her friend Tristan (Timothy Innes), love has left a bad taste in her mouth. She makes some bad choices, as does Owen, and it’s entertaining to watch these two opposites come together and fall for each other as the film progresses. The supporting cast are also excellent. Cora Kirk appears as Emily’s friend Anna. She stands as her own person and not just the protagonist’s best friend, which only strengthens the depiction of their friendship—as does the fact that Anna doesn’t just allow Emily’s bad behaviour. Riddiford is fantastic as Owen’s brother Matt, who similarly feels very realistic and fleshed out alongside his girlfriend, portrayed by the lovely Laughland, who clearly cares for Owen as well. Kat Ronney stands out as one of the Emilys, a perpetually offended redhead who spearheads protests against Owen’s questionable behaviour in his misunderstood quest for love. Minnie Driver also makes a memorable appearance as the university’s Dean.
Directed by Alicia MacDonald, who has previously directed episodes of Pure, SisterS, and Too Much, and written by Rachel Hirons (A Guide to Second Date Sex), Finding Emily is visually reminiscent of the funny and heartfelt romcoms of the ‘80s and ‘90s. It’s colourful, well-shot, and boasts fun fashion in addition to a memorable indie soundtrack that includes Fearn himself. When Owen reveals on an episode of the university’s podcast that he’s written a song about his Emily, he’s given a guitar and starts singing, and, in a welcome surprise, it’s wonderful. Featuring many Manchester-born artists, the soundtrack features the likes of Blossoms (“There’s A Reason Why [I Never Returned Your Calls]”), Antony Szmierek (“Rock and a Calm Place”), New Order (“Blue Sunday”), and Carly Rae Jepsen (“Call Me Maybe”).
Hirons’s script makes commentary on modern dating, cancel culture, social media, and the ways things can easily spin out of control when it comes to relationships. It incorporates these elements of modern life with the still-remaining real life experiences of love and connection, which it does by still giving a voice to not only student life, but to young people in love. It also has fun with these elements. Before anyone knows Owen’s true identity, he gets to hear what people really think of him when his email to every Emily at the university turns into a group conversation (the importance of knowing about BCC cannot be understated). Getting to hear both positive and negative opinions about himself while walking around on campus sounds like a nightmare, but the film plays it for laughs which is effective and also captures and somewhat satirises the insane dynamics commonly found online. People are unafraid to share their true feelings about the situation on TikTok, but Owen is out there living it—it’s a great addition that he’s never really on his phone, he’s out in the world living his life.
Finding Emily’s story, characters, humour, and commentary feel deeply authentic, including its visual style. Everything comes together naturally and has room to breathe. It’s not overly stylised, polished, or contrived. Fern is exceptionally talented and carries the film beautifully. He was born to play Owen. His sincerity and natural zest for life and love, despite losing his mum, are contagious—even though there are moments when he understandably feels dejected. Finding Emily succeeds in doing what it aimed to achieve. It takes beloved tropes and adds its own flair, especially in celebrating the British experience. I need 10 more Northern romcoms immediately!
Finding Emily is in cinemas now.
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