A critique of Love Actually Movie

Love Actually is a movie based on the theme of love. The story builds on a handful of separate relationships intertwined to form the complete love story. Love Actually begins at the airport where the orator says that love is everywhere. He mentions that even during the 9/11 bombing, the people were only sending a love message to their loved ones. The movie depicts different kinds of love. It also shows different attitudes and views towards love and the different shapes and forms love takes. The film is also set at the time of Christmas which is always assumed to be a season of love, therefore, a unified connection of the theme.

Different attitudes and views towards love

During the introduction part of the movie, we are shown the different people who are in love or fall in love from the moment they lay eyes on each other. One of the is the newly elected prime minister who falls in love with Natalie a new employee at his residence as his personal secretary. During their first meeting, Natalie introduces herself, but she is very nervous therefore she ends up swearing, but she cannot stop. The prime minister finds her interesting and intriguing at the same time, and he immediately falls in love with her. He shows this by the moment he gets into his office and says “Oh no… That is so inconvenient.” The prime minister knows what he feels about Natalie, and so does Natalie, but they do not want to admit it. Same thing happens to Peter’s friend. He is in love with the bride, but he acts like he does not like her. Everyone believes that Mark hates Juliet, but in the real sense, he is obsessed with her. Mark films Juliet alone in the whole wedding then when Juliet realizes it; he admits that he does not hate her at all. The same attitude is seen when Jamie Bennett fall in love with his house help from the moment he meets her but he does not admit this until he goes back home and realizes that he cannot let her go. The movie dictates that love is scary and people are afraid to admit this until they are unable to hold back then they bust and does something rash like the prime minister moving from door to door looking for Natalie and Bennett flying back to France immediately after getting home

Different shapes and forms of love.

The movie presents different characters from different levels in life in love. For example, there is the love between a prime minister and the secretary, the love between Bennett and his Portuguese house help Aurelia. The two are examples of relationships of a boss and a subordinate employee. There are also relationships depicted between co-workers like Karl and Sarah. However, this two don’t get to be in a relationship due to Sarah’s commitment to her brother. I the end the movie depict that love goes beyond language and even someone’s social status. Everything else does not matter when one is in love, and the movie makes it sound like the perfect thing in life.

Sex and Sexuality

The film does not rely so much on sex as there is only one instance where Karl and Sarah try to have intercourse but they don’t get to do it because Sarah’s brother keeps calling hence interrupting them. Mia also seems interested in having sex with his boss Harry, but this does not take place. The movie, therefore, portrays sex being the last thing to think and love should come first, which is the traditional way of thinking. Nowadays people are only interested in hook ups just for the night. The movie insists on the need to be patient at taking things slowly where Sarah tells his boss that he has been in love with Karl for the past two years, seven months three days and one hour thirty minutes. The movie does not show any other sexuality apart from the straight relationships where the man and woman are supposed to be in a relationship. They make being a member of the LGBT community weird especially in the scene where Billy Mack leaves the Christmas Eve party to spend time with his manager Joe. When they hug, they make the whole scenario look all weird just because it is a guy hugging another.

Gender.

The movie has stereotypical ideas one of which an ideal woman to marry should be slim. Aurelia’s father after seeing Bennett and tells him that he wants to marry his daughter, he tells his daughter that he would pay Bennett instead for marrying her. Aurelia’s sister also refers her as “skinny moron.” There is a clear distinction of the slim and plump. Earlier on Aurelia had refused to take the pie because she did not want to become as chubby as her sister. The movie also portrays the role of a woman being taking care of the children and being strong even in the toughest situation. They dictate that a woman can be able to handle the worst of situations that they should be able to keep calm and in control of their emotions. The Harry family portrays this very well where she takes care of the children while her husband is at work. Harry’s wife Karen also after discovering that the necklace her husband bought was not hers, she goes to the bedroom cries then comes back pretending to be cheerful, yet she is in pain, therefore, caging her emotions. Sarah has to give up on love to take care of his sick brother.

Although the movie takes us back to those days when love meant something and patience was an important aspect of every individual in love, it also takes as back to the days when being gay was a crime and dictated the role of a man and that of a woman in any relationship. It was an appealing movie to those who love romance and that overshadowed everything else.