Stream It Or Skip It: ‘A Perfect Fit’ On Netflix, An Indonesian Rom-Com Where An Influencer Falls for a Shoemaker

Netflix’s international offerings are always expanding; the streamer boasts titles from dozens of countries, and this year, Indonesia is having their moment on the platform. Sweet teen rom-com Geez & Ann kicked things off earlier this year, and Cinderella-inspired A Perfect Fit, now streaming on the platform, tells another Indonesian love story. We’re here to let you know if it’s worth falling for. 

A PERFECT FIT: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

The Gist: Saski (Nadya Arina) is a blogger engaged to the suave Deni (Giorgino Abraham). She spends her days styling photoshoots and attending fashion shows and hanging out with her best friend Andra (Laura Theux). At a fashion show, a fortune teller named Mrs. Hadra tells her of a new path ahead, and Andra recites a spell that pushes Saski to “follow her feet”. Having promised Deni to wear new shoes to his birthday bash, Saski ends up at a shoe store still under construction after the “spell” leads her there. She meets Rio (Refal Hadi), the dreamy, talented shoemaker, and leaves with a fabulous pair of shoes – or so she thinks.

A mistake at the store leaves Saski with the wrong pair of shoes, and already late for the party, she speeds back in a cab to switch them back. In her panic, however, she stumbles on a ladder by the front door, spilling blue paint all over herself – and making her tardiness to the party inevitable. The sweet Rio does his best to help her recover and get ready for the event, and sparks fly between the two. A bond has been formed. While they both are obligated to other romantic commitments, they can’t seem to shake each other. Can they both let go of their mismatched partners? Will true love prevail? Will the shoe fit?! All this (and more) is revealed in A Perfect Fit.

What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: A Perfect Fit has some serious Disney romance vibes; the obvious Cinderella comparison is there, yes, but I also found myself thinking of The Princess Diaries movies, Enchanted (minus the flashy musical numbers), and even Sweet Home Alabama and 27 Dresses at times.

Performance Worth Watching: I was totally charmed by Laura Theux as Saski’s quirky, musical best friend Andra. Her character may be riddled with tired rom-com BFF tropes, but Theux makes her totally endearing and memorable. Theux plays Andra with a big, open heart and sense of humor, fiercely loyal one moment and giggly the next. Her expressive face makes every one of her scenes a little more interesting – she’s got just the right vibe to fill this kind of Judy Greer-esque role.

Memorable Dialogue: A Perfect Fit‘s dialogue is probably its weakest component, filled with corny exchanges and old adages. Nothing particularly memorable here.

Sex and Skin: Just a little implied cheating in a hotel room – everything here is pretty PG.

Our Take: Boy meets girl. Boy falls for girl. Girl is engaged to asshole fiancé. Girl starts to question everything. It’s a tale as old as time, but it rarely gets old if there’s a great couple at the center and a little bit of spice thrown in. A Perfect Fit begins on a promising note – I was fully prepared for its sweet Disney vibes and the shoe store meet cute that kicks it all off. Between the two leads, Nadya Arina and Refal Hadi, the gorgeous Bali setting, and the opportunity to witness some beautiful Balinese tradition on screen, it’s easy to get sucked into this world.

Unfortunately, however, A Perfect Fit tries a little too hard to juggle a little too much, the tone is all over the place, and its runtime is nearly two hours – way too long for a sappy rom-com like this. There were so many moments that felt perfect for a musical number, and I kept wishing they would break into song; it’s exactly the kind of story that would lend itself well to the musical treatment. Playing the story as straight as they do – and with a fiancé whose casual abuse is never really acknowledged in the mix – is detrimental to the film overall.

A Perfect Fit just can’t balance its Disney-fied moments with the darker components present in the script. Had they gone fully corny and romantic, I would have been on board. It’s hard not to love a cheesy romance with a heart of gold. If only A Perfect Fit had been willing to really embrace the fairytale it was so inspired by.

Our Call: SKIP IT. While the romantic leads have excellent chemistry, A Perfect Fit is weakened by its overlong runtime, tonal inconsistency, and soapy, saccharine dialogue.

Jade Budowski is a freelance writer with a knack for ruining punchlines, hogging the mic at karaoke, and thirst-tweeting. Follow her on Twitter: @jadebudowski.

Stream A Perfect Fit on Netflix