When it comes to some of Netflix’s original movies, there are some that truly stand the test of time and are a lot of fun, like To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before, or even one of the latest entries, Army of the Dead. However, there’s one series that has truly stood the test of time, and that is the romantic teen drama, The Kissing Booth, and its sequels, including the latest, The Kissing Booth 3.
Look, I know what I signed up for when I started watching these films. It’s The Kissing Booth series. These teen movies are meant to be filled with cliché romantic tropes and plenty of strange height differences between the two leads, but this last film in the series really had me reeling. While The Kissing Booth 3 cast is plenty talented, there are just some moments in this entry in the 2021 Netflix movies that made me go, “Huh?” several times. And, today, we’re going to talk about that in detail so I can vent all my frustrations.
Elle Moving Into Her Own Apartment Freshman Year
I don’t know if you guys have gone to college, but most of the time, freshman aren’t allowed to live off campus.
Elle, in The Kissing Booth 3, was accepted into both Harvard and UC Berkeley. A big driving point of why Elle ends up deciding to head to Harvard with Noah is that he proposes that they live together.
First off, that’s not even allowed to happen. She has to live on campus in her freshman year - it literally even says that on the Harvard College website. Secondly, you’d think that in her first year, even if living off campus was possible for her, she’d want to spend her time trying to get to know other people her age, in her year, by living on site. Noah will always be someone she can visit, but why would she give up the opportunity to make new friends when her closest one wasn’t even going to be there?
It seems Elle didn’t do her research on this one.
Also, not for nothing, but this same instance happens with Lee too. At one point, they are talking about possibly going “apartment hunting” near Berkeley. While Berkeley doesn’t have a requirement for freshmen to live on campus, more than 96% of students choose to, according to the official website for UC Berkeley. That fact that Lee would even think about moving into an apartment - where he would have to pay most likely more in expenses than just housing - is absolutely astonishing to me. I don’t know - rich people things?
Why Was This Beach House Never Mentioned Before?
In The Kissing Booth 3, this is the first (and last) film that has taken place completely during the summer, so I’m not surprised that this supposed beach house of our main trio’s childhood is such a big setting in this film.
But, seriously, if this beach house was so important to them, why was it never mentioned in any of the previous films? Why is it suddenly coming up now? We’ve gotten montages of Elle and Lee’s summers together and not once have they ever mentioned a beach house that they loved to go to.
It’s a tiny issue in the grand scheme of things, but a little continuity would be nice. If this was the first movie in the trilogy it would make tons of sense, but it’s not. It’s the third. Just now bringing up something that's supposed to be so important is silly.
Elle Getting Uncomfortable With Lee Bonding With A Berkley Guy
When Elle inevitably told Lee she was going to Harvard, the guy was upset but quickly moved on, following one of their sacred best friend rules, “Always be happy for your bestie's successes.”
However, when Lee decides to go full throttle on this and start hanging out with someone who just finished up his first year at Berkeley, Elle is troubled by this. She feels weird seeing Lee hanging out with some guy rather than her, thinking that it should be her next to him in college, not new friends, and that it was strange to be going down some separate paths.
I’m sorry, but when exactly did this become a problem? This is what she wanted. She wanted Lee to move on and have a life at Berkeley while they could still see each other during holidays or breaks. And, suddenly, when he’s starting to finally warm up to the idea, she’s uncomfortable? That just doesn't make sense.
Elle Snapping At Linda and Her Father
This was a moment in The Kissing Booth 3 where I had to get up and pace around my room because I was so upset. Elle’s father is finally getting back into dating after her mother passed away, tragically, years ago. However Elle, for some reason, doesn’t like Linda, the woman he is dating.
During game night, Elle snaps at Linda, saying that she doesn’t belong there with them. When she stomps off to the beach, she tells her dad that she thinks he’s being selfish for trying to find someone else that’s not mom - even though her mother is gone.
Her dad rightfully calls her out afterwards, saying that she had no idea what he was going through and that she wasn’t the only one in the family that wanted love in her life, saying how disappointed he was in her.
Honestly - I agree with him whole-heartedly! Linda had literally never done anything wrong. She even took care of Elle’s little brother when she couldn’t. I understand the emotional impact of seeing her father date someone new after losing her mother, but come on. Her stomping off like she’s a 3-year-old child? You’re better than this, Elle.
Lee's Still Upset With With Elle For Dating Noah
Bro, I thought we were over this.
In The Kissing Booth 3, Elle is trying to complete her and Lee’s Ultimate Summer Bucket List for one last amazing summer before they go their separate ways. On the same day Noah breaks up with Elle, she winds up being late to her and Lee’s last showdown on their Dance Dance Revolution machine, finding it missing.
Lee snaps at her when she tries to talk with him about it, revealing that he didn’t care about the game. He cares that she was spending so much time with Noah, and believes that he doesn’t matter to her, not compared to Noah, and never has.
Okay, first, Lee and Elle were best friends long before she started dating Noah, long before feelings were even involved. It makes zero sense for him to say that she doesn’t care.
Secondly, while I do give Elle a lot of crap, she is handling a lot right now emotionally, especially in this very vulnerable moment, even admitting it was a problem with his brother, and Lee can see that - and he decides to yell at her? This really isn't a happy romance between her and Noah at all if Lee keeps doing this.
I’m sorry, but no real best friend would just snap at their friend like that if they were crying like Elle was when she showed up. It’s not right, and definitely not in character for Lee.
Elle Becoming A Game Designer
This was the most mind-boggling sequence in The Kissing Booth 3. Yes, we’ve seen that Elle likes video games. That’s not a shocker to anyone. She has an Xbox, plays Dance Dance Revolution, and even had a gaming podcast with Lee, all things that a gamer (such as myself) might enjoy.
But not once did she ever mention she ever wanted to design games. I felt like this was a completely out of the blue decision for her, just because she likes the games she played. Does she even know how much work goes into making a game? The coding process? Any of it? And, for a place like University of Southern California to take her in without any prior coding experience is the most unbelievable aspect of it all.
I don’t know. I liked the ending and how her life seemed to work out for her, but I just can’t see Elle Evans, of all people, as a game designer. She’s never shown interest once in that sort of thing. It feels rushed.
The ending to The Kissing Booth 3 sort of left Elle and Noah’s relationship a bit ambiguous, but I’m happy to just let it be after everything that’s happened. Let's let The Kissing Booth saga come to an end. If you did enjoy the movies, however, check out what you can watch on Netflix now that The Kissing Booth franchise has ended.
