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Now playing: FINDING EMILY (2026)
Like a losing lottery ticket, the number she punched into his phone was one digit shy of striking romantic riches.
Finding Emily: Boy, did he get a wrong number!
FINDING EMILY (2026) Alicia MacDonald / Screenplay: Rachel Hirons / Cinematography: Rachel Clark (2.35:1) / Design: Bobbie Cousins / Editor: Phil Hignett / Composer: Morgan Kibby / Produced by: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner & Olivier Kaempfer / Acted by: Angourie Rice, Spike Fearn, Jack Riddiford, Isabella Laughland, Prasanna Puwanarajah, Minnie Driver, Sadie Soverall, Nadia Parkes, Cora Kirk, Timothy Innes and Amber Grappy / Countries of origin: England and USA / Production Companies: Focus Features & Working Title Films / Distributor: Universal / Rating: PG-13 / Length: 111 mins.
Things aren’t what they seem for at least the first few minutes of Finding Emily, a spirited romcom of miscommunication from director Alicia MacDonald, making her big screen debut. Owen (Spike Fearn, delightfully dorky) saw her (Sadie Soverall) from across the dance floor and just had to meet her. She seemed amenable as the couple pulled up a ledge to exchange introductory patter. But whether it was kismet, the cocktails, or a hurried departure at the insistence of one of her friends, all he got was her first name — Emily — and almost her phone number. Like a losing lottery ticket, the number she punched into his phone was one digit shy of striking romantic riches.
There’s never any doubt that Owen and the first Emily he meets on his ensuing quest, Emily Raine (Angourie Rice) — a pragmatic psychology major who over-intellectualizes romantic attachment — are going to wind up happily ever after in movieland. One look at Owen, and Raine has found the case study she’s been longing for, a prime candidate upon whom to base her thesis. But there is still a story to tell, so on we go.
Video:
Trailer: FINDING EMILY
With but a first name to guide him, and no less than 318 students with the forename Emily registered at Manchester City University to choose from, terminally diffident Owen has his work cut out for him. And with the help of Raines, he becomes an overnight sensation. Owen is not a college student but a campus audio engineer. The controversy surrounding his decision to hack the computer system to get all the Emilys' email addresses (even though it was Raine who did the dirty work) causes him to lose his job with the college. No matter: that just leaves him with more time to hit the road to romance.
The amorous avalanche triggered by Owen’s engaging every Emily in the student directory in a group chat is a scream. The spectacle of dozens of eligible students responding to the message board he mistakenly starts is a delightful reminder of “The Telephone Hour” in Bye, Bye Birdie. Later, when his secret identity is revealed on what he assumed was an audio podcast, the Emilys split into two camps: feminists classify him as a predator while romantics find a new crush.
The revel is in the details, as Raine both hinders and facilitates his search. A majority of the secondary characters are fleshed out and assigned various bits of business that are true to their natures. The chaotic but connected bulletin board in Raines’ bedroom resembles a smaller-scale version of the kind a detective might use to track down a serial killer. The way Raines speaks of love you’d think it was an affliction; one look at Owen and all she sees in a thesis paper. The initial reason she offers to help him find the Emily of his dreams is so she can prove a theory.
One major logical flaw that wreaked havoc on my brain throughout: if Owen is missing but one digit from Emily’s phone number, that gives him a one in ten chance of finding her. His search for his ideal could have ended in minutes with a few ghost dials. It would have also whittled down the running time to 15 minutes. It was a coincidence I was happy to swallow.
It’s up to the filmmakers to catch and hold their audience’s attention. Credit MacDonald and writer Rachel Hirons for packing a lot of energy into a 111-minute running time. Whatever contrivances the script throws our way (and there are several) are more than compensated for by the film’s rapid pace, coupled with the winning performances of the leads. In the end, the Emily he falls for may not be the one he sent out to find, but she's the right one for him.
And just when Owen and Emily are falling in love, guess who shows up?
Rating: ***
Here's something you might be interested in.
Now playing: FINDING EMILY (2026)
Like a losing lottery ticket, the number she punched into his phone was one digit shy of striking romantic riches.
Now playing: FINDING EMILY (2026)
Like a losing lottery ticket, the number she punched into his phone was one digit shy of striking romantic riches.
Finding Emily: Boy, did he get a wrong number!
FINDING EMILY (2026) Alicia MacDonald / Screenplay: Rachel Hirons / Cinematography: Rachel Clark (2.35:1) / Design: Bobbie Cousins / Editor: Phil Hignett / Composer: Morgan Kibby / Produced by: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner & Olivier Kaempfer / Acted by: Angourie Rice, Spike Fearn, Jack Riddiford, Isabella Laughland, Prasanna Puwanarajah, Minnie Driver, Sadie Soverall, Nadia Parkes, Cora Kirk, Timothy Innes and Amber Grappy / Countries of origin: England and USA / Production Companies: Focus Features & Working Title Films / Distributor: Universal / Rating: PG-13 / Length: 111 mins.
Things aren’t what they seem for at least the first few minutes of Finding Emily, a spirited romcom of miscommunication from director Alicia MacDonald, making her big screen debut. Owen (Spike Fearn, delightfully dorky) saw her (Sadie Soverall) from across the dance floor and just had to meet her. She seemed amenable as the couple pulled up a ledge to exchange introductory patter. But whether it was kismet, the cocktails, or a hurried departure at the insistence of one of her friends, all he got was her first name — Emily — and almost her phone number. Like a losing lottery ticket, the number she punched into his phone was one digit shy of striking romantic riches.
There’s never any doubt that Owen and the first Emily he meets on his ensuing quest, Emily Raine (Angourie Rice) — a pragmatic psychology major who over-intellectualizes romantic attachment — are going to wind up happily ever after in movieland. One look at Owen, and Raine has found the case study she’s been longing for, a prime candidate upon whom to base her thesis. But there is still a story to tell, so on we go.
Video:
Trailer: FINDING EMILY
With but a first name to guide him, and no less than 318 students with the forename Emily registered at Manchester City University to choose from, terminally diffident Owen has his work cut out for him. And with the help of Raines, he becomes an overnight sensation. Owen is not a college student but a campus audio engineer. The controversy surrounding his decision to hack the computer system to get all the Emilys' email addresses (even though it was Raine who did the dirty work) causes him to lose his job with the college. No matter: that just leaves him with more time to hit the road to romance.
The amorous avalanche triggered by Owen’s engaging every Emily in the student directory in a group chat is a scream. The spectacle of dozens of eligible students responding to the message board he mistakenly starts is a delightful reminder of “The Telephone Hour” in Bye, Bye Birdie. Later, when his secret identity is revealed on what he assumed was an audio podcast, the Emilys split into two camps: feminists classify him as a predator while romantics find a new crush.
The revel is in the details, as Raine both hinders and facilitates his search. A majority of the secondary characters are fleshed out and assigned various bits of business that are true to their natures. The chaotic but connected bulletin board in Raines’ bedroom resembles a smaller-scale version of the kind a detective might use to track down a serial killer. The way Raines speaks of love you’d think it was an affliction; one look at Owen and all she sees in a thesis paper. The initial reason she offers to help him find the Emily of his dreams is so she can prove a theory.
One major logical flaw that wreaked havoc on my brain throughout: if Owen is missing but one digit from Emily’s phone number, that gives him a one in ten chance of finding her. His search for his ideal could have ended in minutes with a few ghost dials. It would have also whittled down the running time to 15 minutes. It was a coincidence I was happy to swallow.
It’s up to the filmmakers to catch and hold their audience’s attention. Credit MacDonald and writer Rachel Hirons for packing a lot of energy into a 111-minute running time. Whatever contrivances the script throws our way (and there are several) are more than compensated for by the film’s rapid pace, coupled with the winning performances of the leads. In the end, the Emily he falls for may not be the one he sent out to find, but she's the right one for him.
And just when Owen and Emily are falling in love, guess who shows up?
Rating: ***
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