I watched Heartstopper Forever this morning, and I've been wondering ever since whether I should even post my thoughts here. My opinion is... very mixed, and I'm pretty sure people won't enjoy reading it.
But... who do I think I am? No one's going to read this anyway!
First of all, I like Heartstopper. I love its optimism, its unapologetic queerness, the way it tackles simple but important issues. I love the positive representation, I love the visual identity... basically, I really do enjoy Heartstopper.
There were definitely moments I loved in this film. Huge, huge, huge shout-out to Elle. Her speech in Charlie's bedroom was beautiful, and seeing her stand so confidently on the Pride float took a lot of courage. I also really enjoyed Tori and Michael. We only got a glimpse of their relationship, but it managed to feel both wonderfully odd and incredibly sweet.
And then... Well, that's... kind of it, unfortunately.
There were other nice moments, of course, but I'll never understand why they chose to make a film instead of a final season. It just felt so... long. Painfully long. A full last season would have allowed them to give proper attention to all the characters again, just like the first three seasons did, while also giving Nick and Charlie's story the time it deserved.
Now, Heartstopper has never been a particularly complex story, and that's never been the point. To me, its beauty has always been in its simplicity. But while that simplicity made the series feel light and charming, in the film it somehow has the opposite effect: it makes everything drag.
Within the first fifteen minutes (even if you've never read the books) you completely understand Nick and Charlie's fears and motivations. And then... The film spends another hour and a half circling the exact same issue. Please. Move the story forward!
To fill that empty space, everything gets dramatised. They create drama where it really didn't need to exist. For what feels like an hour, Nick and Charlie simply can't talk to each other while everyone around them keeps reacting with "But you're Nick and Charlie! 🥹❤️" An. Entire. Hour.
What a shame for what was supposed to be our final time with characters I genuinely love. And then there's the constant music and all those montage sequences. In the series, I actually like them. They fit the rhythm perfectly. In a film... My God. At times it honestly borders on being ridiculous, but maybe I'm a boomer on this one.
I've never really been Heartstopper's core audience. I'm well past the age of most of these questions and first discoveries (even though I don't think there's ever really an age limit on discovering yourself, you know what I mean). But until now, I'd never felt excluded from the story. Even in my thirties, I understood these characters. I empathised with them. I was emotionally invested. This time, though... The film left me behind.
And finally, a quick word about Nick and Charlie themselves, because I absolutely adore them. But once again, I don't think the film format did them any favours. It almost pains me to say this, but throughout the film I never really felt their usual chemistry. That little flutter in my stomach they always gave me just... wasn't there. Even during scenes that were clearly meant to have that effect, I mostly found myself feeling... nothing. Anyway, I'll stop here.
Long live Heartstopper, a story that has given me so many wonderful memories. When I think back on it, though, I'll probably remember the series... and try not to dwell too much on the film.