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Director Wanuri Kahiu’s Look Both Ways rides on possibilities, both literally and metaphorically. Look Both Ways dropped on Netflix on August 17, 2022, and features actors Lili Reinhart, Danny Ramirez, Aisha Dee, David Corenswet, Luke Wilson, and Andrea Savage in pivotal roles.
Netflix's official synopsis of Look Both Ways reads:
"On the eve of her college graduation, Natalie’s life diverges into parallel realities: one in which she becomes pregnant and remains in her hometown, and another in which she does not and moves to Los Angeles. In both journeys, Natalie experiences life-changing love, pursues her dream career as an artist, and rediscovers herself."
Natalie, played by the blue-eyed blonde Reinhart, is a 22-year-old college student who is one day away from graduation. She is an animation student, and has a five-year plan, like everyone else around her. Nat, as everyone calls her endearingly, wants to make animated films and own a production house some day. Her ambitions necessitate a stage, which Los Angeles provides.
Look Both Ways uses alternate reality to tell Nat's story
Kahiu introduces parallel or alternate reality to show us what transpires in two situations.
The first involves Nat deciding to keep the baby after testing positive for pregnancy after sleeping with her friend Gabe (played by Ramirez). The second situation, which appears more favorable, has Nat relocating to LA with her friend Cara (played by Dee) to pursue her career in animation after the pregnancy test comes out negative.
Right from the scene where the storyline splits into two directions (or paths), director Kahiu maintains a seamless transition. Graphic doodles drive plot points and time jumps, beginning with Nat's interest in animation.
A page with the doodle 'Five Year Plan', for example, is ripped apart from the middle to make room for the alternative 'Five Year Motherhood Plan.' Instead of jumping scenes to show a growing Rosie (Nat and Gabe’s daughter), Kahiu employs three doodles to signify the same.
Kahiu introduces a new modus operandi for the presentation of an alternate dimension without the use of science jargons, or “Upside Down” concept.
While Nat and Gabe are busy learning the art of parenting in Parallel Universe 1, Nat develops a relationship with her colleague Jake (played by Corenswet) and takes on a job under her idol, in Parallel Universe 2. The almost two-hour-long film does not render one scenario as reality, and the other as a dream. Both are equally real. Life just catches up with them at different points.
Look Both Ways depicts this beautifully through the anxiety social media adds to people’s lives.
Initially, an expecting Nat feels lost after scrolling through her Instagram to find her friends settling into their jobs, and leading a life she once aspired to lead. Parallelly, Nat goes on to lead the aspired life, get into a relationship and end it, and get a job to quit it, only to realize that it’s not everything. Both realities in the comedy-drama continue to progress until they reach a plateau.
They then begin to rebuild from there.
Colours, costumes, hair, music, and weather drive the plot of Look Both Ways
The transition between the two Nats is maintained primarily through colors, costumes, hair, music, and the weather.
The build-up to the pregnancy results in a new attempt to address tensions, with the nervousness fueled by Gabe's drumming and people partying harder by the minute. The LA-based Nat is signified by shorts, noodle-strap tops and dresses with vibrant prints, long hair, and the background of the California Sun to top it all off.
Meanwhile, a pregnant Nat, who has just moved back in with her parents after her plans took a detour, owns everything in the shades of blue, be it curtains, sheets, or dumbbells. She dresses in monochrome tops and checkered shorts, and her hair is cropped to her ears.
Hats off to the cinematographer Alan Caudillo for capturing the moods of the protagonist and the situations they're into.
Look Both Ways humanizes it characters
Look Both Ways is defined by the last 30 minutes. Five years later, both Nats have recovered to accomplish what they set out to do - both personally and professionally.
Look Both Ways does not portray motherhood as an impediment to having a career. Nor does it glorify the concept of a working, independent woman. So, when a pregnant Nat confides in her mother that she no longer has a life because she does not draw, or see her friends, Kahiu reflects on social expectations from a random 22-year-old college graduate.
Alternatively, Look Both Ways portrays the anxieties that come with not having figured out life when a recently-unemployed Nat goes to her friend’s baby shower, or comes across an Instagram post of a recently-married Gabe. Reinhart is believable in her portrayal as Natalie from both realities. Her portrayal of a mother is as accomplished as her stride as a single woman.
Writer April Prosser’s male characters are sensitive and come across as examples of near-perfect feminist allies. When Nat breaks the news of pregnancy to Gabe, he is visibly shaken, but goes on to say, "I am pro your choice." Both Prosser and Kahiu render humane qualities to their supporting characters as well.
For instance, when Nat breaks the news of her pregnancy to her parents, they don’t just flip over Nat’s future but also vent that the event could stall their plans of enjoying their life. Although, it would have been fun to see more dimensions to the parent-daughter relationship.
Look Both Ways also addresses fleeting moments of reality checks. In the alternate reality, for example, when Nat looks for a job in LA, she notices that all the positions are unpaid and remarks that one has to be “rich to be an artist.”
Kahiu's Look Both Ways isn't about weighing options. Rather, it is intended to debunk Benjamin Franklin's famous quote, "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail."
You can catch Look Both Ways on Netflix.
