Aarcflick

When PhD student Olive Smith impulsively kisses the intimidating Professor Adam Carlsen to help her best friend, the two end up agreeing to a fake relationship that becomes increasingly difficult to maintain as a charade. I approached *The Love Hypothesis* expecting exactly what the title suggests: a polished academic rom-com, an absurd fake-dating arrangement, an incredibly attractive professor—seemingly incapable of smiling—and enough sexual tension to constitute a laboratory hazard. And, to its credit, the film knows exactly what it is. It doesn't try to reinvent the romantic comedy; it aims to make a well-known formula work, and for the most part, it succeeds. Director: Claire Scanlon Writers: Ali Hazelwood, Sarah Rothschild Stars: Lili Reinhart, Tom Bateman, Rachel Marsh The main reason is Lili Reinhart. In the role of Olive, she tackles the difficult task of turning a character who could easily have been reduced to a bundle of genre clichés into a real person. Olive is smart ...