The times of the sweet Martin twins from “Hotel Zack
“Beautiful Disaster” is the film adaptation of the novel of the same name and New York Times bestseller by Jamie McGuire (44), about the explosive love story of womanizer Travis Maddox (Sprouse) and college newbie Abby Abernathy ( Virginia Gardner, 27) leaves. Travis mostly spends his nights fighting underground boxing matches. He usually ends his evenings in the company of many women in his apartment, with which he embodies exactly what Abby doesn’t want. But as fate would have it, after an intense encounter with Travis, she feels attracted to him – but fights against it. Travis, on the other hand, is fascinated by her resistance. The two of them make a bet: If he loses his next fight, he will have to go without sex for a month. However, if he wins in the ring, Abby has to live with him for four weeks.
The latter occurs, and Abby and Travis become friends over the ensuing weeks – at first. Because their close friendship sparks a wave of passion and both develop romantic feelings for the other. What Travis didn’t realize, however, is that Abby also hides a dark past. Will this package destroy their relationship or instead bring them closer together?
The first impression is by no means deceptive. Fans of the currently popular “After” series, which is based on the novels by Anna Todd (34), should remember the plot of “Beautiful Disaster” from the relationship drama of Hardin (Hero Fiennes Tiffin, 25) and Tessa (Josephine Langford, 25) remember. As luck would have it, Dylan Sprouse also had a role in the second installment, “After Truth.” Only his current character has little in common with his “After” role of handsome nerd Trevor Matthews.
The fact that “After Truth” director and screenwriter Roger Kumble (56) had a hand in this is clearly recognizable, for example through the humorous note that the film has compared to the book – which is not necessarily positive. Because although the two main actors, Sprouse and Gardner, would have enjoyed the many comedic dialogues, according to the press release, it is precisely these that disappoint the viewers, who were hoping for an impulsive love story. Because the more comedic scenes dominates the actual love story.
What mostly convinces, however, is the bad boy performance by Dylan Sprouse. With the tattooed MMA fighter he has now completely discarded his nerdy character from “After Truth” and has thus proven his versatility as an actor. Even before the shooting, the 30-year-old trained four hours a day to get in shape physically and to keep fit during the fight scenes. The role was a challenge for him because Travis is “not very much like him,” Sprouse is quoted as saying in the press release. What should also make some knees weak is Travis’s loyal and respectful personality outside of the boxing ring.
Even if Dylan Sprouse should make one or the other woman’s heart beat faster with his bad boy role, the film adaptation can’t keep up with the book and the plot can’t keep up with that of the popular “After” series. While Jamie McGuire’s novel brims with romance and declarations of love, Kumble’s film version falls short – at least for tearjerkers and some “After” fans. Instead, the film thrives on its comedy scenes, which only partially make you laugh because of the bad puns.
