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SALT LAKE CITY — Sometimes I go to the movies and have no idea what to expect. Sometimes that’s good. Sometimes not so much.

I knew from the start that it was a romantic drama starring the radiant Blake Lively. I was convinced that was all I needed to know. As it turned out, I may have been the only one who didn’t know that it was partly about her character’s traumatic childhood and how that affected her later relationships as an adult.

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The first sign of trouble comes when Lily Bloom (Lively) hesitates to go home for her father’s funeral. Then, when she’s asked to speak at the funeral, she just can’t. What on earth is going on here? The tone of the film gives the impression that we’re being told to just put that thought aside, and that they’ll come back to it.

Back in Boston, a handsome stranger enters the stage

Now back in her adopted home of Boston, Lily is sitting quietly on a rooftop overlooking the city when an attractive stranger bursts out of the door, obviously disturbed, kicking over a lawn chair and unaware that he has company watching his antics.

They start talking. He is a neurosurgeon and had a rough day at the office. Ryle Kincaid (Justin Baldoni) apologizes for his behavior. They chat. He makes awkward advances. She withdraws. But as fate would have it, they meet again, this time when his sister Allysa (Jenny Slate) is working for Lily, who has just opened a flower shop in a chic neighborhood in Boston.

Meanwhile, we are suddenly transported back to when Lily was still in high school. She has befriended a homeless boy named Atlas, who has moved into an empty house behind Lily’s house. Their friendship develops into a secret romance. It becomes her first love.

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We switch back and forth between the past and the present, and each new scene gets to the heart of why Lily is struggling to enter into a meaningful relationship.

The fight (with “It Ends With Us”) begins

This is also where the story begins to falter. I realize that this film is based on a hugely successful novel by Colleen Hoover. Those who have read the book described it to me as “strange.” Since I can only speak about the film, I must admit that there were a few puzzling things.

Lily, for example, insists that she and Ryle can only be friends, but then does and says other things that strongly suggest the opposite. And when she finally does meet the adult Atlas (now played by “1923” star Brandon Sklenar), she flirts with memories of their time together while now in a committed relationship with the handsome doctor. And when a few misunderstandings arise, she does little to explain why this or that wasn’t the case.

That’s not to say I’m excusing the behavior of the reactionary men in this drama. They screwed up big time. It’s just that if she had been as open, strong-willed and direct as she is in other moments in the film, she could have helped to mitigate the escalation.

It felt like she was suddenly out of character, even though it suited the theme of the film.

I’m going to keep my mouth shut now because I feel like I’ve really put my foot in it. But that’s how “It Ends With Us” felt to me.

IT ENDS WITH US (B-) Age rating: R due to domestic violence, sexual content and some strong language. Cast: Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni, Jenny Slate, Hasan Minhaj and Brandon Sklenar. Director: Justin Baldoni (“Five Feet Apart”, “My Last Days” TV series) – filmed in New Jersey and New York. Running time: 130 minutes.

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