Well It's All About Love, Actually

Rating: 8/10 (16 December 2003)

When a film has the creators of, and actors from, the likes of Bridget Jones' Diary, About A Boy and Four Weddings And A Funeral to its credit, it promises to be something quite funny. But in his directorial debut, Richard Curtis has done something different from his past works. While still creating a riotous comedy and including the usual provocative storyline, Curtis has made the latter far less subtle. In fact, he uses Love Actually as a vehicle for some very powerful messages.
The film presents several different people, their various relationships and associated problems. These are all of varying qualities with married couples suffering from the complications of an affair, single people finding each other and even those suffering from simple sexual desperation. Through these variances, Curtis delivers the same message: that `love actually is all around'. This message and its use in the film can only be described as sentimental, perhaps even mushy, but Curtis' sense of direction and comic timing never let it get out of hand and even at some of the films saddest moments he injects the necessary humour reminding the audience that they are watching a comedy, albeit one with a message. Love isn't the only message, with others coming across as far more subtle, though the recent War in Iraq is also used to provide a strong message, that of peace, with Hugh Grant's British Prime Minister shown standing up to America's push for war.
The actors respond well to their material with Grant providing his usual solid performance, full of quirky faces and eye-lid batting but his limited screen time prevents him from giving something of stellar quality along the lines of About A Boy and gone too is his new-found selfishness. Other noteworthies include a hilarious performance from Bill Nighy as the drugged-out ageing rocker and Rowan Atkinson's minor appearance. However, it is Emma Thompson whom really steals the show, providing one of the most solid performances as a mother struggling to keep her family together while her husband verges on having an affair.
While the multiple story lines allow for some fantastic onscreen presence, the film does feel a little bloated at times. Part way through you can't help but wonder where certain characters have disappeared' as their own storylines haven't been looked at for some time. This is particularly true of the odd-sex-groping' couple (you'll understand that term should you see the film) who appear sporadically and the exclusion of such characters wouldn't have been amiss and always could have been saved for the films DVD release.
And while such flaws exist, Curtis succeeds with his directorial debut thanks to a witty script and a brilliant cast, all able to inject something special into their performances. While there are attempts to avoid it, at times Love Actually does feel far too sentimental, but even with its sheer mushiness, and my natural desire to throw something at the screen in response, Curtis succeeds with his message of love. For I left the cinema more in love than when I entered.
Don't you just hate that?