When I heard about Love Hurts, I was excited, mostly because of the cast. Ke Huy Quan is crazy talented and seemed the perfect fit for the premise of the movie. When I got the chance to watch this film, I found it funny and entertaining, romantic and full of action. It was fun in all the best ways.

Love Hurts is an action comedy film directed by Jonathan Eusebio in his directorial debut and written by Matthew Murray, Josh Stoddard, and Luke Passmore. In the movie, Marvin Gable (Ke Huy Quan) is a successful real estate agent who believes his past is behind him. He loves his job, he has a depressed assistant Ashley (Lio Tipton) who wants to quit her job and a boss, Cliff (Sean Astin), who is like a brother. But on Valentine’s day, Marvin’s past as a former assassin for his brother Alvin “Knuckles” Gable (Daniel Wu) comes back to haunt him when Rose (Ariana DeBose), a former lawyer who Marvin was supposed to kill when she stole from the company, sends him a note. Soon, Marvin is tangled up with an assassin his brother sends, the Raven (Mustafa Shakir). He also deals with  two thugs sent by Knuckle’s right hand Marlow (Cam Gigandet), Otis (Andre Eriksen) and King (Marshawn Lynch). Eventually, even Rose catches up with him. Rose asks for his help but also has kidnapped Knuckles accountant Kippy (Rhys Darby). Chaos reigns as Marvin learns that in order to move on, he must confront his past, both good and bad. 

Part of what makes this film so funny and entertaining are the contrasts, especially in Marvin. He appears to be a happy realtor with nothing but smiles but that all changes as soon as he has to fight. While the story doesn’t delve too far into the characters, we quickly see that Marv would like to be a good guy despite his past. Rose tells him hiding isn’t living and that’s the lesson Marv has to learn, not only to confront his past but also embrace all of who he is, rather than repressing his darker side. He must use that darker side to obtain the happiness he so desires.

The film does a great job of balancing action and comedy. From Marvin’s depressed assistant Ashley to his use of cookies to sell his homes, there are a ton of humorous situations and scenes. A lot of it is situational, like Ashley bonding with Raven over poetry or Rose drawing mustaches on Marvin’s realtor signs. Ke Huy Quan is completely likeable as Marvin and his dismay over Rose coming back is part of what makes this so hilarious, especially as she draws him into her chaos. One of the funniest scenes is when a pair of house buyers get swept up into a fight between Marvin, the Raven, King and Otis. Marvin trying to keep them alive against gunfire is fantastic action comedy. 

Despite being billed as an action comedy, there is still a fair amount of romantic and emotional scenes in the film. Ashley and Raven bonding over poetry is equal parts hilarious but also sweet when you see how they connect and understand each other. Rose disrupts Marvin’s life but just wants to see him be his true self. There is even a bit of a Goonies reunion in a scene between Sean Astin and Ke Huy Quan. And when Cliff confronts Knuckles it is emotional and a bit heartbreaking. 

Ke Huy Quan is the spotlight of the movie. His warmth as Marvin is what makes the audience empathize with him. The actor infuses the character with warmth, humor and complexity and he is stellar in his action scenes. I love the dynamic between him and Sean Astin, it is particularly beautiful to see the pair of them on screen together again after so long. While the connection between his character and Rose is more subtle, I love how they interact with each other. Ariana DeBose is hilarious chaos gold as her character is funny and dramatic. Lio Tipton as Ashley and Mustafa Shakir as Raven bring a beautifully silly aspect to their characters and I definitely wanted more of the pair of them. Lio Tipton was especially good at stealing attention. Daniel Wu as Knuckles was compelling. Andre Eriksen as Otis and Marshawn Lynch as King are fantastically bumbling and funny. Rhys Darby is silly as well and there is even a surprise appearance by Drew Scott of Property Brothers fame as Marvin’s reality rival. 

The movie isn’t perfect. It is very much over the top and silly much of the time but it is a unique Valentine’s Day film with great acting, fantastic comedy and action scenes that just keep the film moving. If you like action and comedy, this one has it in spades. It is funny and entertaining, Key Huy Quan is at his best and even though it is silly, it is the best kind of fun, comedy that doesn’t take itself seriously and lets the audience join in the fun. I highly suggest seeing this one while it is out in theaters.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 candy hearts. 

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