The Valet is one of the best movies on Hulu right now. This Hulu movie premiered on the streaming service in May 2022 and is already one of the must-watch rom-coms of 2022. The Valet follows an actress who pretends to date a valet to cover up her affair with a well-known married businessman. You know, that tale that is as old as time.
The Valet is a comedy that stars Eugenio Derbez, Samara Weaving, and Max Greenfield. While watching the Hulu movie, I couldn’t help but have many, many thoughts, including “they made some interesting hair choices in this movie, '' and “I would watch that fake film.” Let’s dig into some of my other thoughts on The Valet.
Warning: This post will contain The Valet spoilers, don’t read if you want to remain unspoiled.
The Valet Cast Is Almost Too Charming
Eugenio Derbez has been charming and making Spanish-speaking audiences laugh since the ‘80s, but he became even more well known when he starred in Instructions Not Included. Derbez has had some hits and misses throughout his acting journey—as has every actor ever—but boy does he shine in The Valet. He’s just the right amount of silly, earnest, and sensitive.
Max Greenfield tries and tries to play these unlikable characters (and only succeeds in Promising Young Woman), but it’s really hard not to find him charming, even if only slightly in The Valet. Even as this slimy character, you kind of still like him. It’s Greenfield’s natural screen charisma. However, his charm cannot stop the enjoyment you feel when he finally gets his comeuppance in the end of The Valet.
Samara Weaving is also a naturally charming actress. Even as a psycho babysitter, you can’t help but kind of root for her. These three alone are pure cinematic charm, but adding them all in one movie, it’s almost too much.
To make this film even more of an overload of charm, the entire supporting cast is just as joyful to watch. None of The Valet characters feel miscast or irritating to watch. The chemistry between each character is also very strong. I could easily watch another film about any of the characters in The Valet and enjoy it.
I Would Watch A Spin-Off Movie About The Flores Family
One of the reasons The Valet is such an enjoyable film is the emphasis on la familia. Cecilia, played by the late Carmen Salinas, is a fun and caring matriarch, which makes her death all the more heartbreaking. Then each member of the Flores clan brings their own quirks and character. The scene where they all come over to meet Olivia (Samara Weaving) is one of The Valet’s best moments. It’s funny and showcases why this is more than a story about romantic love.
The Valet could have easily just been a family movie and worked. The charisma of the family would have been enough to keep the movie engaging. The addition of the Kim family makes them the perfect eccentric blended family.
Another one of The Valet’s best scenes is when at the funeral, Antonio (Eugenio Derbez) directly thanks Mr. Kim (Ji Yong Lee) for making his mom so happy.
Why Are All The Love Stories In The Valet So Cute?
Olivia and Antonio never really step into romance territory, but there are so many other great romances surrounding them that I think this is still considered a romantic comedy. Antonio even starts a potential romance at the end that would have been exciting to watch.
Mr. Kim and Cecilia’s romance is spicy but also so very cute, especially because neither of them speaks the other’s language but makes it work.
Then we have Kapoor (Ravi Patel) and Stegman (John Pirruccello), and we aren’t sure if their relationship is supposed to be taken as the ultimate bromance, romance, or a little mix of both? Either way, their relationship is endearing. It also plays out in only a few minutes in the film but it works.
The two main characters don’t have to get together at the end for it to be a great romantic comedy, there just has to be at least one great romance or love story in the film. The Valet has many and a wonderful platonic friendship.
So This Is Like Notting Hill, But Not?
The Valet uses so many romantic comedy elements, from fake romances to love triangles to rich characters/poor characters. It’s easy to draw comparisons from The Valet to films like Notting Hill, but it still feels fresh and new.
The Valet may be a remake of the French film La Doublure but it finds its own beats and rhythm, which is why it’s one of Hulu’s best romantic comedies. It’s true to what makes romantic comedies enjoyable, but finds its own blend of sincerity, fun, and definition of love.
Samara Weaving Is So Good At Comedy
I love romantic comedies. They’re some of my favorite movies to watch, but I don’t necessarily watch them expecting to be on the floor laughing. However, The Valet is genuinely a very funny movie.
Eugenio Derbez and Samara Weaving are especially really good at highlighting their characters’ outlandish behavior and traits. There is no doubt that Derbez is great at comedic characters, but Samara Weaving’s comic abilities may surprise some viewers.
Weaving is still a star on the rise, so not quite a household name yet, but she may be one soon as she’s excellent at bringing these comedic characters to life.
Her facial expressions as Olivia are so funny without going to extremes, and she makes this self-absorbed actress likable and funny. Weaving has already showcased her comedy flare in one of the best horror comedies, Ready or Not, and The Babysitter films, so fans shouldn’t be surprised that she kills this role as well. However, it’s still impressive.
Samara Weaving continues to show her acting strengths, especially with comedic roles. The Valet just helps solidify her potential as a future even bigger leading lady.
I hadn’t heard of The Valet before I saw it listed as a new original Hulu movie. The cast looked promising, and I am a sucker for romantic comedies, so I watched it. I had no expectations going into The Valet. It genuinely surprised me how much I enjoyed this film.
Possible controversial opinion, but I think Hulu buys some of the best original movies. I loved Palm Spring, Plan B, Run, Fresh, and now The Valet. Hopefully, the Hulu movies continue to get better.
If the list of June 2022 new Hulu releases is any indicator of the great movies to come, then there will be a few more Hulu movies joining the list of ones I love.
