The average rom-com loves couples who “meet cute.”
The new flickSouthside With You is not exactly a rom-com, and it’s definitely not average. Its subject, after all, is the first date of Barack Obama and future first lady Michelle Robinson.
Nevertheless, it must be said that the two meet kind of cute. But that’s just part of the charm of writer-director Richard Tanne’s depiction of a momentous day they spend together in 1989.
They walk, talk and get acquainted, but first of all they argue—primarily about whether they’re actually on a date. As a young associate in the Chicago law firm where Barack is serving as a summer intern, Michelle insists it’s inappropriate for them to socialize. She’s agreed to see him outside the office only because he invited her to attend a community meeting in his South Side neighborhood.
It’s not until after he’s picked her up in his rusted-out hatchback that he admits the meeting is still hours away. In the meantime, he suggests they take in an African-American art exhibit and get a bite to eat.