Credit: Netflix

Can we just have a little word about romantic comedies for a second there? It feels like the last few years, they have been trying hard to prove they are still worth bothering with. But how many of them do you actually remember? Not many. Voicemails for Isabelle, though? That’s a different story altogether. This film has reminded people why they fell in love with rom-coms in the first place.

Now, when you hear the premise, you’ll probably think it’s a stupid idea. Jill, played by Zoey Deutch, loses her younger sister, Isabelle and keeps ringing her old number just to leave voicemails. She’s telling her about everything from work to awful dates to every little win. The only thing is… that number has been given to some fella called Wes, and he is hearing every single message. And before long? He is falling for the woman behind the voice.

Be honest now, doesn’t that sound more like the start of a thriller than a rom-com? In the wrong hands, it would’ve been proper creepy, wouldn’t it? But director Leah McKendrick handles it with loads of care. She never lets the romance take over too early because this isn’t really a love story first. It’s a story about grief, and that’s where the film plants its feet.

What will catch you off guard the most isn’t the romance. It is Jill’s and Isabelle’s relationship. Every flashback between the sisters hits you right in the chest. It never feels like Isabelle’s only there to make you cry. She’s still part of Jill’s life, even after she is gone, because Jill just isn’t ready to let her go.

And those voicemails? They are not really voicemails at all, are they? They are conversations Jill never got the chance to finish. If you’ve ever lost someone and couldn’t bring yourself to delete their number, this film gets it.

Zoey Deutch is absolutely brilliant. We already know she is funny, but this might be the best she has ever been. Jill’s a bit of a mess and makes daft decisions more often than usual. She struggles to keep everything together, but that’s exactly what makes her feel real. She doesn’t come across like some perfect rom-com lead. She feels like somebody who’s just trying to get through one day at a time.

Nick Robinson’s got the harder job, if you ask us. Wes could’ve been impossible to warm to, because let’s face it, he is listening to messages that were never meant for him. The film doesn’t pretend that’s completely normal either, which is appreciable. Instead, it asks whether something genuine can grow out of a situation that’s a bit uncomfortable. Some people won’t buy into that, and we don’t blame them.

Is it perfect? Nah, of course it isn’t. You’ve got to go along with the main idea a bit and wonder if that’d really happen. But the film earns that bit of trust. And long after it finishes, you won’t think about the romance. You’d be thinking about those little voicemails. Tiny bits of someone’s everyday life and the fac that love doesn’t always end just because the conversation does.