Nothing feels like young love. Every moment is intense in wildly wonderful, thrilling, maddening ways. In Mac Eldridge and Tom Dean’s nostalgic romance Charlie Harper, the formative relationship years of a 20-something couple are showcased in a way audiences haven’t seen since the beloved (500) Days of Summer.

The film’s nature sets expectations early. It’s all about the journey, not the destination, here. The film catalogues the romance between aspiring chef Harper (Emilia Jones) and the wayward Charlie (Nick Robinson). For Millennials, Charlie Harper may feel like a time capsule: the music, the mixtapes, the intoxicating highs and inevitable lows of young love. What begins as a sweet high school flirtation – all but forgotten until a post-graduation college party hookup – eventually leads Charlie and Harper into a five-year relationship.

Charlie tags along with Harper as she heads to New Orleans to pursue her culinary dreams, but as the years go by, he finds himself adrift in a growing drug and alcohol problem. The rift widens between them as they realize they want different things — for themselves and each other.

Told in a non-linear fashion, the narrative shows slices of time in their relationship, spanning from their 2007 meeting through what appears to be a good decade. Viewers see snapshots of what once was. Charlie and Harper retell their story, sometimes from the same moment but from different perspectives. We see their meeting not once but three times, planting the idea that this is a cyclical romance and these two are destined for one another, which is further illustrated by the film’s title—an amalgamation of their two names.

Visually stylish, it’s easy to see a young generation of filmgoers drawn to the heartache and romance of Charlie Harper, much in the way elder Millennials gravitated to (500) Days of Summer. It’s a portrait of first love and all the messy feelings that come with it. While the film draws on romance cliches – who doesn’t love a good mixtape? – it does so with complete sincerity as it finds its own rhythm.

Robinson and Jones are a dynamic duo with palpable on-screen chemistry. They embody the very extremes of what love is like in your 20s. But eventually, someone has to grow up and mature. Harper eventually sees Charlie as a “fixer-upper”, as someone bogged down by a lack of ambition and plagued by a family history of addiction. Meanwhile, he sees Harper as an ambitious control freak who is all about keeping up appearances. As their resentment grows, their love begins to unravel. The highs and lows of the romance are well juxtaposed against one another, which adds a real depth and dimension to the characters. CODA star Jones is radiant here, while Robinson is perfectly cast as the shy, brooding young man opposite her. It is a relationship that is both nurturing and toxic, helping the characters grow up and grow away from each other.

Dean’s story eventually comes full circle. We see repeated scenes, now carrying more weight than they did the first time around. The flirty, funny moments become more tender and bittersweet, bridging the story to a satisfying conclusion.

While Charlie Harper treads some familiar ground, Eldridge and Dean have a clear sense of vision and storytelling that will serve them well in future projects. It may not redefine the genre, but it certainly earns its place among the more sincere depictions of young love and should be a hit with young audiences.

Charlie Harper screened as part of the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival.

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