Fresh setting for 'Everybody Loves Somebody'

A breezy, multicultural tale of modern day love complications, “Everybody Loves Somebody” is light as air - an enjoyable tale, if lacking a bit of grounding. Writer-director Catalina Aguilar Mastretta also penned the L.A.-set romance “Echo Park,” starring Mamie Gummer, and “Everybody Loves Somebody” is her second directorial effort. Starring “How To Get Away With Murder” actress Karla Souza, the film is a border crossing family tale, set in Los Angeles and on the sweeping, dramatic coast of Mexico.

Souza plays Clara, a successful, L.A.-based ob-gyn who is cynical about relationships thanks to her own romantic failings and from observing the romantic issues of her patients. She keeps boyfriends at bay, choosing instead to focus on drunken hook-ups that are low on intimacy and commitment. She's carefree and flippant, much to the chagrin of her sister and mother, who urge Clara to bring a date to her parents' wedding - an event 40 years, and two daughters in the making.

Clara randomly invites her “pretty” coworker, a floppy-haired, friendly Aussie, Asher (Ben O'Toole). She outfits him with a fake Mexican grandma to make him more palatable to her family, and off they set for the wedding. She just wasn't expecting her ex, her greatest heartbreak, Daniel (José María Yazpik) to be there too.

And therein lies the love triangle. Clara is torn between the longtime love who remains close with her family, and the newcomer, who offers a chance for real intimacy and connection. She juggles them both during a long weekend with her family, playing fast and loose and dangerously close to the precipice of romantic disaster.

The love story here is slight, and basic. Girl is burned, runs from love, torches real possibility of new love while getting tangled up with her ex. It's not very deep, and could be found in any sort of hapless lovers rom com. Drunken karaoke confessions inspire some giggles but aren't exactly groundbreaking.

The interesting part of “Everybody Loves Somebody” is the easy cultural fluidity that reflects a truly modern and progressive world. Clara hops back and forth from L.A. to her parents' sprawling oceanside compound in Mexico, and every character slips easily between Spanish and English, including the Aussie. This kind of cultural blend isn't always seen on the big screen, even if it is reflective of the kind of world that we do live in.

That cultural specificity is reflected also in the tight-knit relationship that Clara has with her family. They're all intertwined in each other's lives, loves and relationships, for better or for worse, and the multitude of romances on display reflects love at every stage: There are the lovers 40 years in, the couple struggling through growing pains, love's tender beginnings, and rough endings. It also demonstrates how Clara's choices reverberate throughout those around her - she can take a wrecking ball to her own love life, but there is going to be some collateral damage.

Souza demonstrates real chemistry with her competing lovers, and she's a charming leading lady.

If the story went deeper and darker into the depths of Clara's love issues, it might be more compelling, but “Everybody Loves Somebody” remains on the surface of this story, retaining a mostly bright and sunny outlook for all the heartache. Like a Valentine's candy heart, it's sweet but evaporates on contact.