Love Story

Plot synopsis:
The film tells of Oliver Barrett IV, who comes from a family of wealthy and well-respected Harvard University graduates. At Radcliffe library, the Harvard student meets and falls in love with Jennifer Cavelleri, a working-class, quick-witted Radcliffe College student. Upon graduation from college, the two decide to marry against the wishes of Oliver's father, who thereupon severs ties with his son.Without his father's financial support, the couple struggles to pay Oliver's way through Harvard Law School with Jenny working as a private school teacher. They rent the top floor of a house near the Law School at 119 Oxford Street, in the Agassiz neighborhood of Cambridge, adjacent to a local laundromat (still in existence today - MyOxfordLaundry.com). Graduating third in his class at Harvard Law, Oliver takes a position at a respectable New York law firm.With Oliver's new income, the pair of 24-year-olds decide to have a child. After failing, they consult a medical specialist, who after repeated tests, informs Oliver that Jenny is ill and will soon die. Oliver then tries again. While this is not stated explicitly, she appears to have leukemia.As instructed by his doctor, Oliver attempts to live a "normal life" without telling Jenny of her condition. Jenny nevertheless discovers her ailment after confronting her doctor about her recent illness. With their days together numbered, Jenny begins costly cancer therapy, and Oliver soon becomes unable to afford the multiplying hospital expenses. Desperate, he seeks financial relief from his father. When the senior Barrett asks if he needs the money because he got some girl "in trouble", Oliver says yes instead of telling his father the truth about Jenny's condition.From her hospital bed, Jenny speaks with her father about funeral arrangements, then asks for Oliver. She tells him to avoid blaming himself, and asks him to embrace her tightly before she dies. They lie together on the hospital bed.The novel also includes the double meaning of a love story between Oliver and his father, highlighted by the scene between Oliver and his father at the end of the book. When Mr. Barrett realizes that Jenny is ill and that his son borrowed the money for her, he immediately sets out for New York. By the time he reaches the hospital, Jenny is dead. Mr. Barrett apologizes to his son, who replies with something Jenny once told him: "Love means never having to say you're sorry."

Tags: tragedy, cult, romantic, sentimental

Review:
A box office phenomenon at the time (this was one of those movie that people reportedly waited in line for hours to see), LOVE STORY has continued to be ridiculed by cynics and adored by romantics for decades.
The film even manages to make subtle commentary on class struggles, personal identity, and even the changing attitudes of religion, all of which while never appearing preachy or obvious under Hiller's unpretentious direction.Ali MacGraw brings an undeniable spunk to her characterization here which helps undercut the potential sentimentality of the picture, and lends the finale a greater emotional punch.
A movie like 'Love Story' could have easily gone wrong but kudos to director Hiller for his fine execution and for pulling all the ingredients together so effectively with the help of whimsical cinematography, impressive soundtrack and fine actors.
My parents always say that they don't do movies (or music, for that matter) like they used to, and on this occasion, I had to agree.The movie's premise is simple: the typical boy meets girl love story, with the cliché rich boy, poor girl angle.
In a way "Love Story" was bare raising and set the standards for many later romantic movies.
Everybody have been through similar events in their life at one point, in one way or another.Now days lots of people actually complain about the tag-line and famous quote from the movie; 'Love means never having to say you're sorry'.
By today everybody knows the story for this film; boy meets girl, boy and girl fall in love, boy discovers girl has terminal illness.Even though I am a guy, I cried at the end of this (something very rare).
I am not very good at analyzing actor performances and other aspects of the movie but judging from the Academy Award and nominations and the 709 other people that has given this movie a 10/10 rating I would guess that I am not the only one to like the movie.Finally, I would not have lost any sleep if they had left out the part about "Love means never having to say you're sorry." Nice Feel-good/Break-your-heart movie..
Start with "Romeo and Juliet," remove the soaring Shakespearean language, the interesting characterizations and plot intricacies, and keep Romeo alive at the end, and you might get something approximating this gloopy 1970 blockbuster."Love Story" made temporary box-office stars out of Ali MacGraw and Ryan O'Neal, who both fooled American movie audiences into thinking they could actually act based on their performances as star-crossed lovers whose socioeconomic status threatens to keep them apart.
Never fear though -- love always triumphs in the end, unless of course leukemia triumphs first.O'Neal's star would last a little longer, and at least he would choose a couple of very memorable films throughout the next few years ("Paper Moon," "Barry Lyndon") even if his performances would be instantly forgettable.
I know she recently appeared in the play "Festen," based on the Danish film "The Celebration," which opened on Broadway and quickly tanked.Some 37 years later, the only truly memorable thing about "Love Story" is its musical theme.Grade: C.
I somehow saw this in the theater during it's initial release as it must have been the allure of Ali McGraw and I've seen it probably three times since over the years to make sure I didn't miss something about this film but I don't think I did.
It was nominated for most of the biggest awards in Best Picture, Best Director for Arthur Hiller, Best Actor in Ryan O'Neal, Best Actress for Ali McGraw, Best Supporting Actor for John Marley and Best Screenplay for author Eric Segal as well as Best Score and Best song for Francis Lai. Well, Lai was a deserved nomination and in fact won those two Oscars but the rest of the nominations were a cinematic joke.
Ryan O'Neal had made a couple of minor films before and was most noted for his television roles and he like McGraw turned in a stiff, wooden performance here and there was no on screen chemistry between them.
Director Arthur Hiller had made the leap from television to feature films with a string of mediocre movies until moderate success with the Out of Towners before Love Story and after would see more moderate success in comedies in The Hospital, The In-Laws and Silver Streak but any success he ever had were in comedies.
Now that I'm "all grown up" I cannot believe that 1970 America got mesmerized by such schmaltz.For Love Story to garner a Best Picture nomination must mean that 1970 was a weak year for films.
You may live in your own airbrushed utopia where everything smells of roses and girls as beautiful as Ali Macgraw never get sick, but "Love Story" is here to gleefully stomp on your idealism and shake you awake to the realisation that the world is actually a pretty grim place.
Once this stunning revelation has been uncovered, we can all have a good cry and get on with our lives, eh?!For those few individuals who actually lived in the real world before they watched this turgid sapfest, I'm afraid only tears of anger await.Anger at how we're expected to identify with two wannabe rich snobs who don't share a single likable quality between them and don't even act as if they're on the same planet as other humans half the time; anger at glib catchphrases dutifully trotted out so the smug middle-classes can put down their relationship manuals and parrot them while pretending to be Dr. Ruth; and great floods of anger leading to murderous thoughts every time Jennifer is vacuous enough to mistake the term 'Preppie' for a cutting insult.
Ali Macgraw is nice to look at, but after hearing the *exact* same syllables fly out of her mouth countless times, it'll be a brave soul indeed who doesn't feel close to the edge of sanity.Above all, anger at the millions who were naive enough to buy wholesale into this shameless commercial formula and actually believe that the film they were watching invented our noble visions of grand passion.
This treacly, contrived "romance" about a snobby rich boy who falls in love with a poor girl (two awful performances, by the way) jerks tears only from the softest, dullest moviegoers.
Jenny played by Ali MacGraw is a glib music major at Radcliffe who falls in love with the boorish Oliver III.
Personally, I'm with the latter group, but I do love this movie because it makes for great conversation (it's also made for some of the best, and funniest, negative films reviews I've ever read).
**plot giveaway but the first spoken line in the movie will do it too**It's amazing considering all the hype that surrounded Love Story, first as a novel by Erich Segal, and then this film directed by Arthur Hiller, that thirty years later it is hardly thought of at all.
When the first line of your novel or screenplay, tells the audience that one of the main characters is going to die at the end, you had better put that death and what leads up to it on the screen in such a way that it will pull some kind of emotion out of those watching.
More about that later.Many reviewers have been extremely critical of both Ryan O'Neal and Ali MacGraw in their criticism of Love Story.
And in this film, it's always fun to watch.Ray Milland plays Oliver Barrett III, and does it with a cold austere demeanor, but yet we can still sense his love for his son.
His scenes near the end of the film, are the best Love Story has to offer, and won him an Academy Award Nomination.So what went wrong?
This was a popular novel back in the day and the film was a blockbuster that propelled Ryan O Neal and Ali McGraw to stardom.It is a simple tale of two people who meet, fall in love, get married and then one of them becomes ill.Oliver is a rich kid who comes from a family of wealth and privilege.
The doctors do not tell her but tell her husband what is wrong with her.It's an interesting film of its time, nice music, a few stars making their early screen appearances but nothing much more except a famous line that has now part of everyday language: "Love means never having to say you're sorry.".
Absolutely the greatest romance film ever made, "Love Story", broke all kinds of records at the box office becoming the biggest movie ever made to date in 1970.
This is at least one story which will never get old.To be honest, many critics did compare this to French director Claude Lelouch's style of film, due to the fact that French composer Francis Lai (who did score most of Mr.Lelouch movies) did the music for this movie.To watch, and re-watch again if you believe "Love means never having to say you're sorry...".
The success of "Love Story" relies heavily on the acting of Oliver and Jenny (Ali McGraw) and the chemistry they had together.
"Love means never having to say you're sorry!" Probably one of the most ridiculous lines ever spoken by a leading lady, and could have destroyed the movie had it not been for the rest of the movie being such a wonderful experience.One thing I really liked was the relationship between Ali McGraw's character and her father, played by John Marley.
I agree on the issue of the grainy film, the esoteric elitist, Cambridge atmosphere evoked here, the two actors in a simple story of young lovers with a sad ending.It is not perfect, but Ali McGraw looks believable and honest as "down at heel" Jenny a "poor" Radcliffe student (I assume she is on scholarship then), for her music studies.Ryan O'Neal, not a great actor but has a few scenes here like the Christmas church scene, as he views his wife teaching choir to young students.
"Harvard Law student Oliver Barrett IV (Ryan O'Neal) and music student Jennifer Cavalleri (Ali MacGraw) share a chemistry they cannot deny - and a love they cannot ignore.
Soon, what began as a brutally honest friendship becomes the love story of their lives." That DVD sleeve summary also notes that this film was nominated for seven "Academy Awards"; not sure how that happened, but it won the most deserved "Oscar", for Francis Lai's excellent musical score.
You keep wondering what MacGraw's problem is - there is simply nothing to really fill out the characterization of the scripted "conceited Radcliffe bitch." It might have better if MacGraw knew about her illness from the start, and hid it from O'Neal.******* Love Story (12/16/70) Arthur Hiller ~ Ryan O'Neal, Ali McGraw, Ray Milland, John Marley.
this is an unorthodox romantic drama.it doesn't follow all the typical conventions of the genre.the characters and their action aren't typical.and the movie isn't overly maudlin or sentimental.in fact,it has almost none of that.but it works.sure it does tug on the heart strings,but in a way that doesn't feel like manipulation it's very subtle.credit that to the writing of Eric Segal.the the two main characters,Jennifer Cavalleri(Ali MacGraw)and Oliver Barrett IV(Ryan O'Neal)aren't what you would call likable,yet they tend to endear themselves to you through the course of the film,enough that you do end up caring about them.overall,i was drawn in to the story from the get go right to the end credits.for me,Love Story is an 8/10.
Originally it was supposed to be "Love means not ever having to say you're sorry" as mentioned in the best-selling novel of the same name.I have seen a lot of romance films released before, during and after Love Story, but none deliver the same emotional impact this one did to me.
With only a few minor differences, the premise and development of the film's story is the same as that of the best-selling novel it is based on: Jennifer Cavalleri (Ali MacGraw) and Oliver Barret IV (Ryan O' Neal) are two Harvard students (just like the screenwriter and novel author Erich Segal) from entirely different backgrounds who fall in love: she is a poor, brilliant but sometimes foul-mouthed "Social-zero Radcliffe Bitch" , he is a muscular, smart and polite "Harvard Preppie Millionaire ".
Their love for each other even outweighs the cold war between Oliver and his authoritarian father (Ray Milland), economic hardships and then the unthinkable.Ali Macgraw and Ryan O'Neal shine together, their chemistry is spot-on perfect and they are 100% believable as you laugh at the jokes they make to each other and cry at their trials and tribulations.
Ryan O'Neal (Oliver Barrett IV) and Ali McGraw(Jenny Cavilleri) play Ivy League over-achievers who fall in love.
I first saw this film as a little girl and fell in love with it that very minute.I don't care what anyone says, its wonderful.I cry my eyes out each time and enjoy every minute of it.Ryan O'Neal was so handsome in it and Ali McGraw was Beautiful.They don't make films like that anymore, a gentle weepy with such romance.To those of you who love the film with me, isn't it the best.To those who don't, don't watch it, just use your remote.We will be the lucky ones.Another favourite of mine is The Other side of the Mountain, which in England was called " A window to the Sky " another weepy.
The best part is the chase between the two principal characters (Ollie, Ryan O'Neal & Jenny, Ali McGraw) and the war between Ollie and his father (Ray Milland).
In the movie Oliver Barrett, a rich Harvard jock, falls in love with Jenny Cavilerri, a poor Radcliffe music major.
This movie is amazing and it truly is the best love story of all time.
The cast led by Ryan O'Neal, the stunningly beautiful Ali MacGraw, Ray Milland and John Marley is truly unique to other romances.MacGraw and O'Neal turned in their BEST performances with "Love Story," and they will always be remembered as the most romantic couple ever to come on the big screen.Segal's story is the type of story, which makes me want to live within that world and never leave.
"Love Story" is the type of movie one says to themselves that this is a place I never want to leave and a movie I want to watch over and over.These are the feelings I have toward "Love Story." True love and chemistry has not radiated from two characters on screen as "Love Story" did with Ryan O'Neal's character Oliver and Ali Macgraw's Jenny.This film covers the good times, bad times, sad times and everything in between.
It is true testament to the talent of the fine actors involved, the writer who penned the novel and the director who turned the novel into a movie."Love Story" set the standard for which other romance dramas should strive to become.
Although I wasn't even born in 1970, but I think Love Story is the best romance movie ever made.
I`m not what you would call an avid fan of the romance genre and the majority of the films I have seen with 'love' as the main theme I have usually viewed in the company of others (the movie having been their choice).
Love Story is one of my favorite books and movies of all time.
Last and certainly not least, all films must have credible and believable plots.MacGraw and O'Neal turned in their BEST performances with "Love Story," and they will always be remembered as the most romantic couple ever to come on the big screen.This film covers the good times, bad times, sad times and everything in between.I have not seen more love radiate from two individuals on or off screen as I did with Ryan O'Neal's character Oliver and Ali Macgraw's Jenny.
I loved the scenery (wintry New England in a college setting), the great chemistry and acting of Ali MacGraw and Ryan O'Neal, and the gorgeous music!
Maybe people could not identify with rich preppy kid Oliver Barrett IV but there were certainly a lot of folks who identified with scholarship kid from Providence.Who meet at Harvard and I guess opposites do attract because it really is love at first sight for Ryan O'Neal and Ali McGraw.
The "love story" involves two students from Harvard: The guy (Ryan O'Neal) is a likable hockey player from an incredibly rich family who doesn't get along with his rigidly high-class father (Ray Milland); the gal (Ali MacGraw) is an intelligent musician from a working-class family who strangely calls her father "Phil" and cusses a lot.When I first saw the film, over four years ago, I didn't much like Ali MacGraw's character.
Love Story (1970) ** 1/2 (out of 4)Rich law student Oliver (Ryan O'Neil) falls in love with poor girl Jennifer (Ali MacGraw) and even though the two have nothing in common they end up in a wonderful love affair that leads to marriage and tragedy.
LOVE STORY is a film that I just watched for the first time and it's one that I knew about the ending long before.
Sometimes I watch movies and don't see what others see in it but there's no doubt that I fully understand the love some have for this film.
The movie's story is simple: the story is about very rich millionaire's son Oliver (Ryan O'Neal) who happens to fall in love with the poor girl Jenny till the day the doctor diagnosed her with cancer.
It is true testament to the talent of O'Neal and McGraw, the writer who penned the novel and the director who turned the novel into a movie."Love Story" set the standard for which other romance dramas should strive to become.
When the film reached the part where Jenny tells Oliver "Love means never having to say you're sorry!" I sort of responded with Oh yeah, I remember this part.
This is Love Story, and it's a good one at that.The film doesn't hold back.