Love Actually follows the lives of various people, all of whom are related in a "six degress of..." sort of way, during the five week run up to Christmas.
It's hard to write a summary for Love Actually as so many different stories occur within the film:
- The newly elected British Prime Minister finds himself attracted to one of his employees.
- A writer travels to France in search of solace after discovering his girlfriend has been cheating on him with him brother.
- A devoted wife discovers that her husband's affection may be misplaced in the workplace.
- A recently windowed man encourages his young step-son to go for the girl of his dreams.
- A burned out rockstar, trying to revive his music career, takes out a somewhat desperate bid for the UK Christmas number one. His effort being a cover of The Trogg's classic "Love is All Around", "Christmas is All Around".
- A newlywed tries to understand why her new husband's best friend can't seem to stand her presence.
"Hiya, kids. Here's an important message from your Uncle Bill - Don't buy drugs... Become a popstar and they give you them for free!"
The opening monologue of Love Actually, narrated by Hugh Grant, is perhaps the best monologue I've ever heard in a film. It's not particularly clever. It doesn't tell us anything that we don't already know. What it is, is simple; A person's simple, poignant view on love and how it's evident all around us, all of the time.
Despite its happy premise and seasonal setting, Love Actually is not as happy and cheery as it may seem. A few rather devastating things do occur in the film, which, believe it or not, isn't such a bad thing. Too much of a good thing is never, well, a good thing. If Love Actually had been based entirely around happily-ever-after stories, it would have lost its credibility. Real life, even at Christmas, isn't always happy. It pained me to type that, but it's true. I'm glad that Richard Curtis, the writer and director of Love Actually, realized this and incorporated sad events into the screenplay as well as happy ones.
I generally do tend to like Curtis' work. He's written some very good, if slightly corny, things. I believe that this may be his best. I'm sure that a lot of people would disagree with me on this, and claim that Four Weddings And A Funeral (1994) is Curtis' best work, but I've never particularly liked that film. There's just something about it that never really hit me like it seemed to hit everybody else. I am, However, a HUGE fan of the television show "The Vicar of Dibley", which is also written by Curtis. Now, that's funny stuff. If you love Love Actually, you'll love "The Vicar of Dibley".
Apart from having a great opening monologue, Love Actually also features one of the most romantic (Yes, I used that word. I promise I'll try never to use it again) scenes I have ever seen in a film. It involves giant flashcards and practically no words at all. It is a very sweet scene that's beautifully subtle. The irony of it is that it occurs between two people who have, until that point, not gotten along very well with each other. It's a great scene. It's almost worth watching the film for this scene alone.
"It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly dignified or news worthy, but it's always there."
Love Actually features a ensemble cast of brilliant actors. And, though everybody pulls their weight, there are a few key players that outshine the rest. Liam Neeson and Thomas Strangster are very touching as father and son duo Daniel and Sam. They bring real emotion to the film and have great chemistry. Emma Thompson, who plays a woman wronged, is excellent as Karen. Thompson has some of the more serious scenes in the film, and she plays them with complete honesty. And then we have the man that stole the picture: Bill Nighy. This man is funny, and, boy, can he act! He is incredible as Billy Mack, the aging rocker with a heart. I loved him in this film. I loved everybody in this film. The cast was great.
Love Actually is not a Christmas film about love; it is a film about love that just happens to take place at Christmas. And the love in question isn't always "romantic"; As in life, the love in this film is shown to us in numerous forms: the love of a parent; the love of a child; the love of a friend. I hope I've managed to show to you my love of this film. 10/10
Trivia: All of the airport footage from the very beginning and the very end of Love Actually is genuine. Love Actually's director, Richard Curtis, sent cameramen to Heathrow airport's arrival gates for a week to film real reunions between loved ones, and later obtained their permission to use the footage for the film.
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