Dir. Rachel Morrison · Written by Julia Cox · 2026 · Amazon MGM · on Prime Video
Maya (Margaret Qualley) is a nurse who has built her life around not needing anyone. Charlie (Gabriel Basso) is warm, talkative and a little nerdy. The two meet in the manner of a romantic comedy, and the film begins by playing it that way: bright, funny, a little rhapsodic. Reviewers agree that this is a trap of the best kind, because the film is about love and grief, and the cheerful first stretch is there so that what follows has something to lose.
Morrison, whose debut was The Fire Inside, is working from a screenplay by Julia Cox and with cinematographer Todd Banhazl. The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September, had a limited cinema release on 7 October and arrived on Prime Video on 14 October.
Almost every review starts with Qualley, and for good reason: critics describe a light, quick performance early on that gives way to something heavier and more withdrawn later. The supporting cast gets praise too, with Catherine Keener singled out in more than one review, and Aaron Pierre bringing warmth to the later chapters.
Critics also point to Morrison's feel for joy. She can stage a happy, swooning moment and then pull back from it, and the settings (the story travels widely) are described as striking rather than postcard-pretty. The film is built from episodes across several years, and the reviewers who liked it say the pieces still add up.
It's a tragedy in which the lead character isn't sure whether to surrender to that tragedy or try to recover from it.
Steve Pond, TheWrap
This is where critics split. The A.V. Club finds the second half leaning on overwritten dialogue and familiar platitudes, and pushing for emotion it has not fully earned; TheWrap says the tone can feel unsettled as it swings between joy and pain. Maya also stays guarded, so the film withholds the easy catharsis some viewers will want. The most enthusiastic review, from Flickering Myth, finds no real flaws at all and calls it a romantic drama that hardly gets made any more. Rotten Tomatoes lists the critical response at around 80% positive, which fits a film that is admired more than it is loved without reservation.
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The film is on Prime Video following a limited cinema run, according to the reviews and its release listings. Availability varies by country, so check your local service.