At Midnight is surprisingly not a horror film with that title. It’s Paramount+’s attempt at a Valentine’s Day rom-com. A rom-com that largely doesn’t work except for some heavy-duty hitting from its star Monica Barbaro.

The flick is about an actress filming a movie at a Mexican resort where she meets the handsome assistant manager. He’s been told not to have dalliances with the guests, she’s recovering from a breakup with her co-star. They hit it off. I guess there are roadblocks.

This film has aspirations of classic Hollywood romances… from the style of its opening credits to its direct references to films like Roman Holiday, it seems to be operating under the illusion its an old Hollywood romcom. I’m not sure where it gets is laser-brain delusions because the movie is far too bland to earn that status.

The flick’s script, the corny and borderline offensive meet-cute, and simple, largely unimpressive shooting style put a knife in the back of its aspirations. There’s very little that pops or excites in the production of this film.

Nothing, that is, except the lovely Monica Barbaro who I didn’t recognize until I looked her up (she was Phoenix is Top Gun: Maverick). She’s pretty great in this film. She’s charming, forthright, and she’s not pretending to be coy or old-fashioned… which is very sexy and appealing. She has a dance routine with co-star Diego Boneta that’s fun and flirty and made me perk up from the slouching boredom I’d been feeling.

This is a wildly mixed review. All the stars are for Barbaro (and Boneta, I suppose) and almost none for its random delusions of grandeur (if you want to see Old Hollywood reproduced with a serial killer’s smile, check out Pearl instead). The script isn’t doing any favors and they couldn’t have found a more average production. But I’ve sat through far worse rom coms with far more boring casts and characters.

Score: 74