''Alex Strangelove'' is a 2018 American romantic comedy film, written and directed by Craig Johnson and starring

Daniel Doheny Daniel Doheny (born ) is a Canadian actor known for starring in the Canadian comedy film ''Adventures in Public School'' and the Netflix films ''Alex Strangelove'', a coming-of-age story, and '' The Package'', a raunchy comedy. Early life and e ...

, Antonio Marziale and Madeline Weinstein. The film had its world premiere at the San Francisco International Film Festival on April 14, 2018. It was released on June 8, 2018, on Netflix.

Plot

High school student Alex Truelove has long been best friends with Claire. After discovering her mother is being tested for cancer, she and Alex share a moment where Alex comforts her. They kiss and then begin dating. After Alex is embarrassed in front of his friends about still being a virgin, he and Claire make a plan to book a hotel room and have sex for the first time. At a party, Alex meets Elliot, an openly gay teenager. Alex's continued interactions with Elliot, who has an obvious crush on Alex, lead him to question his sexuality. Alex confesses to his friend Dell that he believes he might be bisexual, but Dell says that he is just nervous about losing his virginity to Claire and his anxiety has led him to a false conclusion. One day while hanging out in Elliot's bedroom, Alex kisses him, but immediately regrets it and storms out. During the evening of their first time having sex, Alex blurts out to Claire that he has feelings for someone else and she throws him out. Later, still avoiding Elliot, Alex goes to a party where he drunkenly sleeps with a girl he only just met. Claire catches them, and Alex chases her into the night. He falls into a swimming pool where traumatic memories from his childhood come back to him. Claire finds him by the pool, where he confesses to her that he is gay. They decide to go to prom together anyway. At prom, Claire reveals she has invited Elliot to be Alex's actual date, knowing that neither of them would actually make the move without her "passing the baton". While Alex is initially concerned about everyone watching him, he decides that his affection for Elliot is stronger and kisses him. The story ends with Alex creating a video with Claire detailing his coming out.

Cast

as Alex Truelove * Antonio Marziale as Elliot * Madeline Weinstein as Claire *

Daniel Zolghadri Daniel Zolghadri is an American actor known for his roles in ''Eighth Grade'', ''Low Tide'', and ''Funny Pages''. He attended the Orange County School of the Arts Orange County School of the Arts (OCSA, ), is a 7th–12th grade public charter sc ...

as Dell *

Nik Dodani Nik Dodani (born December 19, 1993) is an American actor, writer, and comedian known for his roles as Zahid in the Netflix comedy-drama series ''Atypical'', and Pat Patel in the revival of the popular CBS sitcom ''Murphy Brown''. He also starr ...

as Blake *

Fred Hechinger Fred Hechinger (born ) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Trevor in the coming-of-age film ''Eighth Grade'', John Calley in the Western drama ''News of the World'', and Ethan Russell in the psychological thriller '' The Woman in ...

as Josh *

Annie Q. Annie Q. is an American actress, known professionally as Annie Q. Riegel as of 2022. She is best known for her portrayal of Christine in the HBO television series '' The Leftovers'' and Sophie Hicks in the Netflix comedy-drama ''Alex Strangelove. ...

as Sophie Hicks * Ayden Mayeri as Hilary *

Kathryn Erbe Kathryn Elsbeth Erbe is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Alexandra Eames on ''Law & Order: Criminal Intent'', a spin-off of ''Law & Order'', and Shirley Bellinger in the HBO series '' Oz''. Early life Erbe was born in New ...

as Helen *

Joanna P. Adler Joanna P. Adler (born 1964) is an American actress, known for her roles in Off-Broadway plays. She won an Obie Award in 1995. In 2014, Adler starred in the second season of the Lifetime (TV network), Lifetime television series ''Devious Maids''. ...

as Holly Truelove * William Ragsdale as Ron Truelove *

Isabella Amara Isabella Amara (born October 9, 1998) is an Americans, American actress and singer. She gained attention for her role as Bluebird (Marvel Comics), Sally Avril in the films ''Spider-Man: Homecoming'' (2017) and ''Avengers: Infinity War'' (2018). S ...

as Gretchen * Sophie Faulkenberry as Sierra * Dante Costabile as Dakota * Isley Reust as Isley *

Jesse James Keitel Jesse James Keitel is an American actress, writer, and artist, known for starring in Asher Jelinsky's award-winning short film '' Miller & Son'' (2019), the ABC crime drama '' Big Sky'' (2020) and on '' Queer as Folk'' (2022). Early life Jess ...

as Sidney

Production

In May 2016, it was announced Craig Johnson would write and direct the film, with

Jared Goldman Jared Ian Goldman is an American film and television producer. He is known for his work on the Justin Timberlake starrer ''Palmer'', Antonio Campos' adaptation of ''The Devil All the Time'' starring Tom Holland, the film adaptation of Shirley Jack ...

, Ben Stiller and Nicholas Weinstock producing the film, under their Red Hour Films banner.

STX Entertainment STX Entertainment is a mini-major American entertainment and media company. Founded in March 2014 by film producer Robert Simonds, the studio produces film, television, and digital media projects. In April 2020, STX announced that it would merg ...

would distribute the film. In April 2017, Netflix acquired the film, with STX Entertainment still producing the film. That same month, Daniel Doheny joined the cast of the film. In June 2017,

and Antonio Marziale joined the cast of the film.

Filming

Principal photography began in May 2017.

Release

The film had its world premiere at the San Francisco International Film Festival on April 14, 2018. It was released on June 8, 2018, on Netflix.

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of based on reviews, and an average rating of . The website's critical consensus reads, "''Alex Strangelove'' offers a refreshingly insightful – and fittingly adult – take on teen sexuality enlivened by smart humor and a fearlessly progressive approach." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 62 out of 100, based on 10 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

References

External links

* {{Craig Johnson 2018 films 2018 romantic comedy films 2010s coming-of-age films 2018 LGBT-related films American romantic comedy films American coming-of-age films American high school films American LGBT-related films Films shot in New York City Films produced by Ben Stiller Gay-related films English-language Netflix original films Red Hour Productions films STX Entertainment films LGBT-related coming-of-age films 2010s English-language films Films directed by Craig Johnson 2010s American films