‘Love Actually’ makes most viewers feel warm, happy
Slightly naughty and extremely nice, “Love Actually” is a feel-good romantic movie with a holiday setting guaranteed to make most viewers feel warm and happy, something particularly comforting during these troubled times. If the R-rated British import suffers from anything, it’s the way debuting director Richard Curtis, a screenwriter who previously penned the romantic hits “Four Weddings and a Funeral” and “Notting Hill,” offers too much of a good thing. He presents too many stories in the ensemble picture, causing the running time to stretch beyond two hours.
But the key to getting the maximum comfort and joy from the London-set “Love Actually” is to simply forgive any missteps and be carried off by the characters, nicely played by gifted performers in the ensemble cast.
Set just prior to Christmas, the film, which deals with the way the power of love can excite, heal and renew people of all ages and backgrounds, intertwines a number of stories, all of which climax on Christmas Eve. The characters include:
– A new prime minister (Hugh Grant of “About a Boy”) who only has eyes for a young worker (27-year-old newcomer Martine McCutcheon) in his office.
– An unlucky-in-love man (Colin Firth of “Bridget Jones’s Diary”) smitten by a foreign-speaking housekeeper (debuting singer-turned-actress Lucia Moniz).
– A loving wife/mother (Emma Thompson of “Sense and Sensibility”) fearing that her husband (Alan Rickman of the “Harry Potter” series) may be sexually involved with much-younger office worker.
– A widower (Liam Neeson of “Schindler’s List”) attempting to help his young stepson (newcomer Thomas Sangster) adjust to the death of his mother.
– A single woman (Laura Linney of “You Can Count on Me”) trying to balance caring for her unstable brother with establishing a romantic relationship.
– A beautiful newlywed (Keira Knightley of “Pirates of the Caribbean”) discovering that the best friend (Andrew Lincoln of “Gangster No. 1”) of her caring husband (Chiwetel Ejiofor of “Dirty Pretty Things”) has a secret agenda.
– An aging rock star (scene-stealing Bill Nighy of “I Capture the Castle”) whose cynical fa?ade fades as he discovers who’s really important in his life.
There’s also a single British guy (Kris Marshall of “The Four Feathers”) who believes love-starved American women will throw themselves at him during a visit to the United States, a couple (Joanna Page of “From Hell” and Martin Freeman of “Ali G”) who share a physically revealing job that leads to an emotional attachment, a U.S. president (Billy Bob Thornton of “Monster’s Ball”) who possesses a wandering eye, and a clumsy clerk (Rowan Atkinson of “Bean”) who comes to the rescue in a most unexpected way.
No one can accuse Curtis, who also wrote the script, of tackling an easy project for his directing debut. “Love Actually” requires a sure hand to tell all of the stories, to keep all of the elements moving along and to maintain the interest of viewers.
The climax nicely goes against some expectations as different characters must come to terms with disappointing aspects of their romantic lives, but “Love Actually” is ultimately a warmly realized picture.
Best of all, it’s punctuated by an unexpected Hugh Grant solo dance (inspired by the Tom Cruise bump-and-grind scene in “Risky Business”) that has the charming actor making all of the right moves and inviting the audience to sit back, lighten up and groove along with him.
FILM REVIEW
“Love Actually”
Grade: B+
Starring: Hugh Grant, Emma Thompson, Laura Linney, Liam Neeson, Colin Firth, Alan Rickman, Bill Nighy, Keira Knightley, Martine McCutcheon and Rowan Atkinson; written by Richard Curtis; produced by Duncan Kenworthy, Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner; directed by Richard Curtis.
Running Time: 128 minutes.
Parental Guide: R rating (nudity, sex, harsh four-letter profanity, adult themes).