It is not Sofia’s day.
First, she was asked to sign her own birthday card. Then she got fired. Then she came home to discover her live-in boyfriend, Richard, cheating on her. And then, as she stormed out of the apartment, she fell down the stairs, breaking her foot.
Yep. Definitely not her day.
Sofia moves back home to her mom’s house. And while Lainie loves having her daughter around, she’s also worried that if Sofia doesn’t push herself, she’ll fall back into what seems easy and comfortable—such as working a job she hates and dating a guy who cheats on her.
So, Lainie signs Sofia up for a couples’ cooking class (mother-daughter combos are still technically a couple, right?).
It just so happens that the guy teaching the class has a handsome nephew, Matias, visiting from Spain. And since Matias is an aspiring chef himself, he’s helping to teach the class.
Oh, what’s that, Lainie? You have stomach cramps? It would be a shame if Matias had to partner up with Sofia for an intimate cooking class.
Who knows? Perhaps they’ll fall in love, move to Spain together and live happily ever after.
That is, if Sofia can stop throwing a pity party long enough to actually go to the class.
Sofia’s jaded, cynical attitude toward love and life clash harshly with her mom’s happy-go-lucky personality. However, as the film progresses, she learns that she and her mom aren’t so different from each other.
Lainie went through a similar heartbreak once, and she simply doesn’t want Sofia to marry a guy she isn’t in love with. She also doesn’t want Sofia to give up her passion for graphic design because of a minor career setback. So, though she can be pushy at times, Lainie is just trying to help Sofia reach her full potential.
With the help of Lainie, Matias and Olivia (Sofia’s best friend from high school), Sofia realizes that the only thing holding her back from happiness and success is herself. They encourage her to pursue graphic design—even if that means going back to school to get her master’s degree. They give her advice about love. And they remind her that you can’t sit around waiting for something great to fall into your lap. You have to put yourself out there and live life to discover what you really want.
When Sofia learns that Matias has a girlfriend, she rightly refuses to have a relationship with him, citing her own recent heartbreak and claiming she won’t do that (meaning cheat) to another woman.
People are kind and helpful to Sofia when she breaks her foot.
Several people celebrate La Noche de San Juan (or Saint John’s Eve). And while this holiday celebrates the birth of John the Baptist, it’s never referenced. Instead, participants write their wishes for the next year on paper and burn them in a bonfire. Then they jump over the flames to “cleanse” themselves of bad energy.
Lainie says, “God rest his soul,” referring to her deceased husband.
A couple removes clothing (we see the woman’s undergarments) and makes out on a bed. It’s implied they had sex since the woman doesn’t return home until the next morning. This couple kisses in other scenes as well.
Sofia catches Richard and his mistress in their underwear. Instagram pictures show that Matias’ girlfriend has been galivanting around Europe with a slew of other men.
Some women wear revealing outfits. A gay couple attends the cooking class and ogles Matias when they first see him. There are some euphemisms about sex. When Matias says that cooking is “sensual” (literally meaning that it requires the five senses), Sofia mistakes it for “sexual” and crudely describes eating food off a woman’s body.
Sofia says that all Spanish men are players and charmers. We hear that Lainie was in love with another man but chose her husband (who is now deceased) because her parents approved of him. [Spoiler warning] Sofia later sets her mom up with the man.
Sofia falls down a flight of stairs, breaking her foot. Sofia makes a joking threat to her mom while holding a chef’s knife.
There are 26 abuses of God’s name and two abuses of Christ’s. Other than that, language is actually pretty minimal with two uses of “d–mit” and one of “d–k.”
People drink at bars and restaurants throughout the film.
Some women talk disparagingly about men. Sofia complains about having to prove herself in the workforce since she is a woman. A little girl is rude to her mother and other bus passengers. People lie. Someone makes an ageist comment. A woman speculates if a model has an eating disorder.
Richard tries to win back Sofia by giving her a necklace (which somehow, in their 12 years together, he didn’t realize she never wears because she doesn’t like necklaces). He then confronts Matias, claiming that Sofia is his and telling him to back off. (On a positive note, Matias defends Sofia’s autonomy, saying she doesn’t “belong” to either of them.)
That’s Amor is one of those romcoms you want to like, but you just can’t.
The story is sweet. The leading couple is cringingly cute together. I liked that Lainie ultimately told Sofia that Matias didn’t have to be her “escape hatch” but could simply show her that she needed to build one of her own.
But the film is weirdly full of questionable content.
Language isn’t great. God’s name is abused quite a bit. And Sofia exclaims a few choice words on the day she gets fired, catches her boyfriend cheating and falls down the stairs.
Sex appears out of nowhere. One couple goes home to do the deed on their very first date. And it pops up in conversations that have nothing to do with it.
And just speaking from a critic’s perspective, the film could’ve done with a few less romantic music montages where we see the characters falling more and more in love.
So That’s Amor will not likely be one your family will love.
Emily studied film and writing when she was in college. And when she isn’t being way too competitive while playing board games, she enjoys food, sleep, and geeking out with her husband indulging in their “nerdoms,” which is the collective fan cultures of everything they love, such as Star Wars, Star Trek, Stargate and Lord of the Rings.
