A queer rom-com takes on US-British relations
An international public relations nightmare involving the United States, England, and an enormous wedding cake kicks off “Red, White & Royal Blue,” the Prime Video adaptation of Casey McQuiston’s 2019 bestselling queer romantic comedy novel. The cake is as big as the rift between the US president’s son, Alex Claremont-Diaz (Taylor Zakhar Perez), and Prince Henry (Nicholas Galitzine), the British royal rival with whom he has feuded since they first met.
Their latest verbal battle turns physical and accidentally propels them through that celebratory dessert. The altercation sends tongues wagging in the press about a breakdown in the fragile diplomatic relationship between the US and the UK. President Ellen Claremont (Uma Thurman, using a distracting Texas accent) wants to avoid any scandal, as do the Royals, so Alex and Henry are sent on a PR tour to prove that their feud has been squelched.
This is a rom-com, so it’s no surprise that the two men will forget they’re mortal enemies and fall in love. What is surprising is that the film treats the relationship between a gay man (Henry) and his bisexual paramour (Alex) without the stigma that usually accompanies depictions of bisexuality in movies.
Since the two are high-profile figures (and neither is publicly out), Henry and Alex must keep their relationship quiet. Secrecy is hard to come by when you’re followed by the Secret Service, royal bodyguards, and Zahra Bankston (Sarah Shahi), the tenacious US deputy chief of staff who, in a very funny scene, discovers Henry in Alex’s hotel closet after one of their trysts.
Additionally, Madame President is in a tight race for re-election against the super-conservative Republican candidate Jeffery Richards (Donald Sage Mackay), whose campaign would love a juicy story about the competitor’s son being anything but the average redblooded heterosexual American male. The British monarchy (led by a famous British actor whose surprise cameo I won’t spoil) seems to have the same negative outlook regarding gay relatives.
“Red, White & Royal Blue” also comments on class distinction. Henry is rich and forced to endure a rigid set of rules as a member of the monarchy. Alex is the biracial son of working-class Texans (Clifton Collins Jr. plays his father, Oscar) whose mother worked her way up from small-town politician to the presidency. The appearance of financial snobbery on Henry’s part was the source of tension between the two men, but that’s forgotten when Henry reveals his romantic feelings for Alex by kissing him.
Though “Red, White & Royal Blue” can be appreciated by anyone, director Matthew López, who co-wrote the script with Ted Malawer, knows his primary audience here: viewers longing for a queer rom-com with all the bells and whistles that accompany the straight ones. Considering this genre is littered with the cinematic corpses of bad romcoms past, one should be careful about what one wishes for at the movies.
Fortunately, López knows that the only thing needed for a successful romantic comedy is two characters the audience wants to see fall in love. Perez and Galitzine fit the bill — their chemistry is off the charts — and “Red, White & Royal Blue” gives them all the accoutrements of an old studio system Hollywood movie romance. There’s a slowdance scene, impassioned confessions of love, and obstacles that are more easily surmountable onscreen than they would be in real life. It ends with a stand-up-and-cheer moment of glory for its lovers.
In other words, this movie is corny as hell, and I am here for it. “Red, White & Royal Blue” is sweet and funny, and it doesn’t scrimp on the sex scenes. Horny and corny is a good combination for a rom-com, if you ask me.