22 of the worst, most cringeworthy moments in Netflix's 'Look Both Ways'

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Erin AjelloAug 20, 2022, 01:45 IST
22 of the worst, most cringeworthy moments in Netflix's 'Look Both Ways'

There are two distinct plots in "Look Both Ways."Netflix

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Natalie and Gabe drink and yell in the library.

Natalie and Gabe drink and yell in the library.
They make quite a scene in the school library.Bettina Strauss / Netflix

Gabe tells Natalie about his band getting sponsored for a tour while they're studying in their school's library.

The two yell and drink out of a flask to celebrate the news despite the fact that other students are trying to study for finals.

Natalie implies she's not attracted to Gabe before sleeping with him.

Natalie implies she's not attracted to Gabe before sleeping with him.
She keeps insisting they're just friends.Netflix

Natalie and Gabe make a point of saying they're just friends before they have sex.

It's clear they don't want their friendship to change, but Natalie also claims they're not attracted to each other.

Gabe makes a point of saying this isn't true because he's attracted to Natalie, but Natalie doesn't say the same to him.

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Natalie decides to take shots after she's just thrown up.

Natalie decides to take shots after she's just thrown up.
She rallies really quickly.Netflix

The version of Natalie that gets a negative result on her pregnancy test takes shots with Cara to celebrate.

But she took the pregnancy test because she was throwing up — perhaps from eating gas-station sushi — so it's an interesting choice to follow up getting sick with hard liquor.

The entire conversation when Natalie tells her parents she's pregnant is hard to watch.

The entire conversation when Natalie tells her parents she's pregnant is hard to watch.
Everyone is blowing the situation out of proportion.Netflix

In the plot where she has a baby, Natalie takes Gabe to her parents' house to tell them she's pregnant.

She arrives unannounced, which may explain her mom and dad's initial harsh judgment. But Natalie is 22 years old, and they treat her like a teenager.

Her mom is very judgemental about the fact that she and Gabe ended up in this situation when they aren't even "a thing." Instead of showing her support, her mom also loudly complains about how this baby is going to ruin her future plans.

Natalie essentially has to beg her parents to let her move home. And all of this is made even more awkward by the fact that Gabe just has to sit and listen to them argue.

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During that same awkward conversation, Natalie's parents insinuate that women who get pregnant can't have careers.

During that same awkward conversation, Natalie's parents insinuate that women who get pregnant can't have careers.
Andrea Savage in "Look Both Ways."Netflix

By the time Natalie finds out she's pregnant, she's already graduated from college with the degree she needs to go after her dream of becoming an animator.

Deciding to stay in Texas to have the baby may leave her with fewer opportunities than moving to LA. But her parents, especially her mom, seem to imply that being a mother will make it to get a job in her desired field.

It's a very old-school view of the world and an opinion that's usually more present in stories of high-school pregnancies.

To keep the clichés going, Natalie's parents belittle Gabe's dreams of becoming a musician.

Natalie seems utterly unprepared to apply for jobs as an entry-level animator.

Natalie seems utterly unprepared to apply for jobs as an entry-level animator.
Natalie doesn't even send a cover letter with her application.Netflix

In the non-pregnant plot, Natalie complains about the job market when she gets to LA.

She's surprised that so many listings are for unpaid positions as if this is the first time she's looked for animator jobs despite knowing it's what she wants to do for years.

When Cara pressures her into applying for something, Natalie quickly fills out the fields on the job board and doesn't even think to include a cover letter with her resume.

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Natalie's mother is oddly spiteful toward her.

Natalie's mother is oddly spiteful toward her.
She seems to want to make her daughter feel bad.Netflix

Natalie's parents let her move back in when she finds out she's pregnant, but her mother is oddly antagonistic about it.

She purposefully works out in Natalie's room before 6 a.m. to wake her up, and she complains about Natalie "invading her space."

Her mom even makes a point of immaturely saying, "I'm not sorry we woke you up."

Her father doesn't know the proper title for an ob-gyn.

Her father doesn't know the proper title for an ob-gyn.
Rick has a stereotypical suburban-dad vibe.Netflix

When reminding her that she has a doctor's appointment to check on the baby, Natalie's father refers to the doctor as an "OGBT, MD" since he apparently doesn't know the term ob-gyn.

It's a pretty outdated joke to imply that her father is so clueless about pregnancy that he doesn't even know what the field is called. Presumably, he went through all of this when Natalie was born.

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Natalie crashes an event thrown by her dream employer.

Natalie crashes an event thrown by her dream employer.
She doesn't really have a solid plan.Netflix

After applying for her dream job with no cover letter, Natalie decides to show up at an event the company's head animator, Lucy, is throwing at a bar.

The plan is pretty unprofessional, and Natalie didn't even think it all the way through.

She ends up having to rely on Jake, who she happens to meet at the bar, to help her get into the event only to find out Lucy isn't even there.

Lucy spends part of Natalie's interview having her make facial expressions.

Lucy spends part of Natalie's interview having her make facial expressions.
Natalie doesn't get a ton of time to make her case.Netflix

When Natalie arrives for her interview, Lucy asks to "borrow her face" and requests different facial expressions from her.

More time is spent on this than the actual interview, which seems like a pretty rude waste of a potential hire's time.

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Jake tells Natalie she essentially has to give up her life if she wants to succeed in her field.

Jake tells Natalie she essentially has to give up her life if she wants to succeed in her field.
Jake is very serious about the work "grind."Netflix

Although it presents a nice parallel to the sacrifices the other version of Natalie had to make to have a baby, Jake's advice to LA Natalie seems a little aggressive.

He tells her that her first year working as Lucy's assistant will require long days, late nights, and giving up her social life if she wants to move up in the company.

This "grind" culture is prevalent in the real world, but luckily, more people are starting to realize the negative effects of not having a good work-life balance.

Jake aptly highlights a double standard between men and women in the US.

Jake aptly highlights a double standard between men and women in the US.
Jake shows his privilege a little.Netflix

While they're talking about Natalie's career, Jake quotes Benjamin Franklin and underlines the importance of having a plan.

It's something he and Natalie bond over because she's very passionate about her five-year plan.

But when she explains that people always gave her shit about it, he says he doesn't "understand that" — perhaps implying that no one has ever questioned him for being ambitious about his career goals in the same field.

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Natalie gets Whataburger on the way to the hospital to give birth.

Natalie gets Whataburger on the way to the hospital to give birth.
She says the hospital isn't going to let her eat in labor.Netflix

After her contractions have already started, Natalie insists that she and Gabe go to Whataburger before the hospital.

She claims she needs a burger because the hospital won't let her eat while she's in labor, but it's perhaps in her best interest to follow that advice from her doctor instead of going out of her way to pick up fast food at such a critical time.

Jake lets out a whole herd of goats in the office and no one says anything.

Jake lets out a whole herd of goats in the office and no one says anything.
Baby goats are called kids, making it a parallel joke.Netflix

There are goats at the Tall Story Productions office that are presumably being used as reference models for the animated movie about goats.

Jake decides to let all of them out on his birthday without asking anyone.

Despite the goats literally eating multiple storyboards on the walls, there don't seem to be any consequences for this and the incident is never mentioned again.

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Natalie tells Gabe he should date other people when he was clearly trying to express his feelings for her.

Natalie tells Gabe he should date other people when he was clearly trying to express his feelings for her.
While protecting her feelings, she kind of stomps on his.Netflix

Although Natalie and Gabe's situation is complicated — Natalie is overly guarded about keeping things safe and easy for their daughter while Gabe has nonplatonic feelings for her — Natalie's reaction to Gabe asking her and Rosie to move in is a little cruel.

After they kiss and Gabe gets vulnerable about how he envisions their future, Natalie gets defensive and shuts him down.

To further rub salt in the wound, she tells him he should "enjoy" his space and start dating other people.

Gabe brings his new girlfriend to Natalie's parents' house without asking.

Gabe brings his new girlfriend to Natalie's parents' house without asking.
Miranda is Gabe's new girlfriend.Netflix

Gabe's new girlfriend, Miranda, joins him at a party at Natalie's parents' house.

He invited her without clearing it with Natalie and is surprised when she's bothered by it.

But Natalie's reaction is also a little blown out of proportion since she told him he could bring a guest. It's clear that it's at least a little rooted in jealousy — especially considering she's the one who pushed Gabe to date in the first place.

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Gabe doesn't communicate with Natalie about having a babysitter watch their kid overnight.

Gabe doesn't communicate with Natalie about having a babysitter watch their kid overnight.
Natalie finds out from her daughter that Gabe hired a babysitter.Netflix

Most of Gabe and Natalie's problems are rooted in communication issues, including when Natalie calls Rosie from LA and finds out she was left at Gabe's house with a babysitter all night.

This is Natalie's first time traveling since having Rosie, so it's clear that she's a little extra sensitive about it. And it was a little shady of Gabe to hire Miranda's sister to watch Rosie without talking to Natalie about it.

We later find out that Gabe needed a sitter because this was the weekend he'd planned to propose to Miranda, but all of that could've been cleared ahead of time to mitigate their fight.

Natalie blows off Cara without really considering her friend's feelings.

Natalie blows off Cara without really considering her friend's feelings.
Cara is super understanding, which makes Natalie's abruptness more jarring.Netflix

Natalie doesn't visit Cara until four years after graduation, and when she does, she cuts her trip early and rushes home to check on Rosie.

Although it makes sense that Natalie is concerned about who's taking care of her child, her immediate reaction is to rush back home instead of trying to get in contact with her parents or someone else in town.

Cara is clearly trying to be supportive and calm Natalie down, but Natalie just brushes her off despite the fact that Cara took a whole week off work for this visit and was excited to finally see her friend.

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Natalie is bitter about the feedback Lucy gives her even though she asked for it.

Natalie is bitter about the feedback Lucy gives her even though she asked for it.
Lucy agreed to critique Natalie's portfolio.Netflix

Natalie's boss Lucy reviews Natalie's portfolio to give her feedback on her art.

When Lucy tells Natalie to consider leaving her job to spend time finding a unique voice that will help her art become more personal, Natalie is deeply offended.

She tells Jake that Lucy insulted her work and basically fired her when Lucy was actually trying to help Natalie in her career.

Jake acts put out when Natalie calls him in Nova Scotia.

Jake acts put out when Natalie calls him in Nova Scotia.
Jake isn't very helpful during their video calls.Netflix

Jake moving to Nova Scotia wasn't in his and Natalie's original plans.

They try to continue with the long-distance relationship while he's away, but it's made difficult by the lack of cell reception on his end. Plus, he looks put out and annoyed on their video calls.

Jake also makes the relationship seem like a burden the way he's uninvested in listening to Natalie describe different apartment listings. And he further pushes her away when he goes into career-counselor mode while she's trying to vent about Lucy.

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Natalie is rude to everyone she talks to at Nicole's baby shower.

Natalie is rude to everyone she talks to at Nicole's baby shower.
Natalie is a little bitter during her visit home.Netflix

Natalie is embarrassed about being single and unemployed when she goes to Nicole's baby shower and ends up being rude to everyone she interacts with there.

She only talks about herself when interacting with Nicole, pulls Cara away from someone mid-conversation, and seems annoyed that Cara won't leave with her.

Natalie is somehow able to just walk right into the house she had her pregnancy scare in.

Natalie is somehow able to just walk right into the house she had her pregnancy scare in.
The movie comes full circle at the end.Netflix

At the end of the movie, the Natalies from both timelines have a symbolic moment together in the bathroom of the college house she took the pregnancy test in on graduation night.

There are other college kids around the house, so it's clear that it's currently occupied, but Natalie is somehow able to walk right in without question, which seems like a little bit of a safety concern for the people living there.

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