Alex Strangelove (2018): A Queer Coming-of-Age Tale with Heart and Humor
When your name is Alex Truelove and you're trying to lose your virginity to your girlfriend while secretly falling for a gay boy from Brooklyn — you know it's going to be complicated.
When your name is Alex Truelove and you’re trying to lose your virginity to your girlfriend while secretly falling for a gay boy from Brooklyn — you know it’s going to be complicated.
Alex Strangelove (2018) Review – A Queer and Honest Coming-Out Story
Alex Truelove (yes, that’s his real name) is a high school overachiever with a solid GPA, a loyal girlfriend, and a plan to lose his virginity. What he doesn’t plan on is meeting Elliot, an openly gay guy who casually upends Alex’s entire worldview with one conversation and a really good taste in music.
The Charm of Alex Strangelove (2018): Confusion in Technicolor
Directed by Craig Johnson, Alex Strangelove (2018) is part teen sex comedy, part coming-out dramedy, and entirely drenched in Gen Z anxiety. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it lets it roll freely through awkward dates, cringey conversations, and inner monologues that feature… proboscis monkeys.
Alex – Neurotic, Relatable, and Endearing
Alex is the kind of teen who overthinks foreplay and compares himself to penguins. His narration is both hilarious and telling: he wants everything to be perfect, which is exactly why everything goes sideways. The pressure to be “normal” pushes him toward hetero expectations — until Elliot enters with his confidence, sarcasm, and total lack of shame.
Elliot – The Spark That Sets the Closet on Fire
Elliot doesn’t push Alex out of the closet — he just holds the door open with a smirk and lets him wander out in his own time. Their scenes are sweet, vulnerable, and magnetic, without being overly dramatized. There’s tension, sure, but it’s honest, and it never feels like trauma porn.
Best Quotes from Alex Strangelove (2018)
- Funniest: “Am I gay, or did my dick just fall off?”
- Realest: “You think being yourself means being unworthy.”
High School Sex Panic Meets Identity Crisis
Alex’s attempt to plan his first time becomes a full-blown identity spiral. Condoms, hotel rooms, and “gorilla sex metaphors” collide with confusion, guilt, and Elliot’s ridiculously cool eyeliner. It’s messy in a very real, very teenage way.
What Makes Alex Strangelove (2018) Stand Out?
This isn’t a coming-out story for adults looking back — it’s for the teens living it right now. It doesn’t treat bisexuality or questioning as a pit stop, but as part of the journey. And despite the chaos, it’s a film that leads with kindness.
So, What’s the Deal with Alex?
It’s messy, it’s gay, it’s full of weird animal metaphors — in short, it’s exactly what growing up feels like.
Alex Strangelove (2018) delivers laughs, emotional honesty, and a chaotic journey toward self-acceptance. It’s more than just a Netflix teen rom-com — it’s a messy love letter to everyone who’s ever felt like they were supposed to be someone else.
Watch it for the humor, stay for the heart, and maybe, just maybe, learn to stop planning everything.
