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Red, White & Royal Blue is a gay romantic comedy based on the 2019 novel by Casey McQuiston. It’s a cookie cutter romance about Alex Claremont-Diaz (Taylor Zakhar Perez), the son of the first female president, and Prince Henry (Nicholas Galitzine).

While the plot for Red, White & Royal Blue doesn’t stray from the formula for the genre, it’s the setting and characters that make it enjoyable. The premise is that Alex is sent to a royal wedding to represent the United States and runs into Henry, who is the brother of the groom. Both Alex and Henry loathe each other. Alex gets more than a bit tipsy and confronts Henry in front of the massive wedding cake. The conversation gets animated, and the cake comes tumbling down on them.

As you can imagine, the cake incident is highly publicized leaving British royalty and the president of the United States to clean up the public relations mess. The solution is for Alex and Henry to pretend to be friends. And in typical romance fashion, the two enemies get to know each other and fall in love.

Zahra Bankston (Sarah Shahi), is tasked with handling the PR fiasco between Alex and Prince Henry. Zahra is stern, determined, and looks fabulous. Shahi knows her role and plays it well. Her humor is sharp and direct. When she’s on, things move quick.

The banter between Alex and Henry as they’re forced to spend time together is amusing and clever. And since the press is around for every event, asking questions about their friendship and personal lives, both men start to learn more about each other. And in typical romance fashion, they end up liking each other.

Perez and Galitzine have chemistry, which makes Red, White & Royal Blue watchable. There are also some steamy scenes that leave very little to the imagination. This is not porn, so it’s all kept very tame and tasteful. Still, it was pretty sexy.

Uma Therman is competent as Ellen Claremont, the first female president. She comes off a bit harsh in the beginning, which is when she’s reprimanding Alex, and that tone is consistent throughout. Although Ellen does soften a bit as the film progresses, she still has a bit of an edge.

The cast overall is racially diverse, and the fact that Alex is bisexual is a pleasant departure from the typical gay romance. Another departure from the norm is that both romantic leads are in the closet.

Only Nora Holleran (Rachel Hilson), Alex’s best friend, knows that Alex is bisexual, and we get a bit of his past experiences from their conversations. Also, Alex is from a working-class family and the son of an immigrant father, so he understands what it’s like to be marginalized. And it’s those two experiences that are the driving force for most of his actions.

Henry must live in the closet due to a sense of loyalty to his royal heritage. Because of this he often feels as if he’s two people, at odds with each other. Later in the story, this becomes the reason for the separation that must happen before the final resolution.

While there’s a lot to like in Red, White & Royal Blue, it has some negatives. The acting is reminiscent of a decent made for TV movie and the cinematography lacks inspiration. Alex and Henry’s shift from enemies to friends is a bit clunky. And although the plot offers nothing new, there are some original elements that make it enjoyable.

If you’re a fan of gay romance, you may very well enjoy Red, White & Royal Blue.

You can watch Red, White & Royal Blue in Amazon Prime.