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 "Illuminations" Vol 1 | Issue 3
It was Valentines Day over the weekend, as we all know. Yes, even those who try to avoid it cannot miss the candy hearts and cuddly toys in the grocery store—and so I decided what better way to celebrate than to watch some of my favourite romantic films and watch a few new romantic comedies.
Ever After (1998)
4.5/5
Oh Drew Barrymore, I am pretty much in love with you. Your role in Ever After inspires me time after time to follow my heart and do what I was meant to do against all odds, even against Anjelica Huston’s evil Baroness Rodmilla de Ghent and her simpering daughter Marguerite. Ever After is most definitely a film you can immerse yourself in without feeling guilty about being overly romantic. This film follows the adapted fairy tale of Cinderella, with Danielle de Barbarac (Drew Barrymore) playing the part of Cinders. Lusciously shot and witty to no end, Ever After can be forgiven for the occasional odd comedy moment that doesn’t quite fit the historical approach to the fairy tale; this is a definite watch for anyone who enjoys costume dramas, and even for those who just want an engaging love story to absorb.
Shakespeare in Love (1998)
4.5/5
I forgot how much fun this film is to watch: I love a good costume drama here and there, and this is no exception. Our minds and hearts hearken back to the times when we felt that love—real love—existed in copious amounts. From Romeo and Juliet to Shakespeare’s various sonnets, we are enamoured with the life and writings of a man who was essentially a womanizer but also the romantic. I may be a simple romantic myself, but this film reduces me to puddles; I swoon for love like this, even if I know it can never be. Joseph Fiennes and Gwenyth Paltrow are electrifying in their parallel roles to Romeo and Juliet, and the journey they take as William Shakespeare and Viola De Lesseps is a witty, romantic and heartbreaking one.
The Ugly Truth (2009)
2/5
When this film first came out in theatres there was a lot of buzz surrounding Gerard Butler’s appearance in a romantic comedy following his role in 300, and so I was interested to finally see the results of this, expecting a different approach considering Butler’s reputation. Unfortunately, I was fairly disappointed. This follows, once again, romantic comedies almost step by step:
Step 1) Insert fairly successful if bitter and/or unlucky in love female figure.
Step 2) Introduce a fairly prospective suitor that female protagonist can see herself being with.
Step 3) Pepper up this mix with a bad boy type—the guy that does whatever he wants, when he wants, and ends up getting under our female protagonists’ skin.
Step 4) Insert obstacles, and lo and behold female protagonist ends up with the bad boy.
Honestly, can we be done with this setup now? As someone who is most definitely focusing on her career, I understand that it might be lonely climbing the top and keeping priorities in order, but this doesn’t mean that women will go fawning over the guy who drops into her life and turns her world upside down. She might, but it’s extremely unlikely that the pest will end up in the nest. It’s also extremely unlikely that a guy will just fall in her lap; this is one fairy tale ending I can live without.
Gripes aside, Katharine Heigl and Gerard Butler have fantastic chemistry and look like they’re having so much fun, so there are some funny moments, including a scene mixing a kid, remote controlled vibrating panties and a restaurant. It sounds worse than it actually is!
The Invention of Lying (2009)
3.5/5
I couldn’t believe I hadn’t seen this yet! Ricky Gervais, creator and award winner of the BBC’s The Office, developed this high concept romantic comedy that, despite following many of the romantic comedy tropes, was highly inventive. Mark Bellison who works for Lecture Films stumbles upon a curious thing: lying to others in a world where everyone tells the truth all the time. As you can probably imagine, this results in some frank conversations between those telling the truth to one another, and when Bellison sees how far he can take his lying.
The film had me laughing all the way through, but it did start to lose its momentum when Bellison introduced the concept of religion, and the man who lives in the sky—i.e. God. Perhaps if the story had been different the concept may have entertained for the entire 100 minutes. Either way, The Invention of Lying was a fun and fresher take on this genre—a must watch!
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