"Sierra Burgess is a Loser" has one major flaw

The romantic comedy is alive and well at Netflix.

Recently the online streaming giant released Sierra Burgess is a Loser, coming off the success of another hit To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before. While, Sierra Burgess hasn’t met quite the same success, there are good aspects of this movie.

First, the cast is phenomenal. Shannon Purser (Stranger Things, Riverdale) plays the title lead, Noah Centineo (To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, The Fosters) plays Jamey, Sierra’s love interest, and Kristine Froseth plays Veronica, Sierra’s enemy-turned-friend. Even though this cast is mostly newcomers to the screen, their talent is undeniable, making the story believable and entertaining.

Sierra Burgess is a Loser delivers powerful messages, the opposite of what one would typically expect from a stereotypical chick flick. The movie’s main message is about not letting society dictate one’s standards of beauty, something not commonly found in today’s media.

Another great part of the movie is that American Sign Language (ASL) is demonstrated between multiple characters. Thousands of people use ASL to communicate, yet it is rarely shown in popular movies and TV shows. Shedding light on this community is important, and it’s great of Netflix to take the first steps in doing so.

Even though Sierra Burgess is a Loser has a cute love story and good messages, it does have one major flaw-it’s essentially a catfishing story. The plot takes shape after Veronica gives Jamey Sierra’s number in an effort to blow him off. Jamey and Sierra develop a good friendship through texting, until Sierra realizes Jamey believes he’s texting Veronica. Instead of correcting him, Sierra decides to keep going, pretending to be Veronica.

Catfishing is basically pretending to be someone you’re not in order to communicate with someone else. This is dishonest, morally wrong, and definitely creepy. Seeing as how this movie is targeted towards teens, it’s concerning that a media giant like Netflix is making such dishonest behavior into a cute story.

If you can look past the whole catfishing thing, this is fun love story. The characters are relatable, there are good messages, and the story is entertaining.

Sierra Burgess is a Loser is the kind of movie that you have to watch yourself in order to truly form opinions on. It’s difficult to overlook the main negative part of this movie (catfishing)- but if you can, get ready for a heartwarming story about love and friendship.