Tag Archives: Shannon Elizabeth

2003 Films, British, Chick Flicks, Christmas, Comedy, Romantic Comedy

Love Actually-2003

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Love Actually-2003

Director Richard Curtis

Starring Hugh Grant, Emma Thompson, Liam Neeson

Scott’s Review #1,438

Reviewed September 8, 2024

Grade: B

Love Actually (2003) is a British romantic comedy that’s perfect to watch around the holidays, especially on Christmas Eve.

Perhaps even on Valentine’s Day, the setting is tinsel-laden and filled with holiday merriment and sweetness.

It features an ensemble cast of dozens, but it is surprisingly easy to follow. The myriad of stories had me naturally more invested in some than others, preferring the heavy drama to the silly side plots.

The film begins beautifully as a voice-over narrator sets the stage and message of love. He ruminates about pure and uncomplicated love of lovers and friends and points out that the messages from the 9/11 victims were messages of love and not hate.

The story then switches among the interconnecting “love stories” of many people.

The quick segment nearly left me in tears, and I let the poignant message sink in.

I was pleasantly surprised to find nine stories, some of which intersect with others. I am a fan of this type of storytelling, but not all of them connect with others, which might have made it too confusing or even better layered.

Some stories are not given a lot of exposure, but the balance feels close to right.

I preferred the first half of Love Actually to the second. I had heard of the film and finally watched it twenty years later. Still, I anticipated more of a sappy romantic comedy than anything substantive, especially since the rom-com master Hugh Grant stars.

I immediately felt an emotional connection to stories like that of the United Kingdom Prime Minister (Grant) and his romantic relationship with Natalie (Martine McCutcheon), a junior member of his household staff.

This ‘boy meets a girl from the wrong side of the tracks’ felt authentic and laden with possibilities.

Another win is the love story between Sarah (Laura Linney) and handsome creative director, Karl (Rodrigo Santoro). Their buildup and near-tryst after a Christmas party had me in their corner and rooting for the pair to overcome an obstacle involving Sarah’s dependent brother.

Finally, my favorite couple is writer Jamie (Colin Firth) and his Portuguese housekeeper, Aurélia (Lúcia Moniz). Their sweetness and innocence are gleeful and true, and rooting for them to get together despite language barriers was easy. 

Richard Curtis, who directs and writes the screenplay, misses an opportunity when he creates an unfulfilling love triangle between newlyweds Juliet (Keira Knightley), Peter (Chiwetel Ejiofor), and best man Mike (Andrew Lincoln).

Initially unclear if Mike is smitten with Juliet or Peter, the traditional route is chosen instead of an LGBTQ+ presence.  

In one story, the horny British lad named Colin (Kris Marshall) unsuccessfully tries to woo British women and decides to go to America to get laid. Predictably, he meets one hot woman after another in the Midwest USA.

This story is hokey and could have been dropped altogether in favor of more screen time for the more interesting stories.

In the final act, I was disappointed when the film teeters too much towards cheesy, with a tepid Christmas pageant where many stories come to a head.

This culminates in a silly chase through Heathrow Airport, where one character jumps security and outwits inattentive airport personnel to catch his love interest before she boards a flight to New York.

Since 9/11 is mentioned in the beginning, this tired plot device is surprising, given the times of heightened terrorism and deserved respect for airport security.

Curtis rips off Paul Thomas Anderson’s Boogie Nights (1997) in the epilogue by using the same song, ‘God Only Knows’ by the Beach Boys, and the same wrap-up of what happens to the characters.

Despite the thievery, I did enjoy seeing what happens in my favorite stories.

Love Actually (2003) wobbles a bit by trying to have all nine stories pack a punch, but the effort is nice, and the message of love closes out the film.

We know happiness and Christmas miracles usually don’t pan out, but it’s nice to escape and pretend they do.

1999 Films, Comedy, Screwball Comedy, Teen Comedy

American Pie-1999

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American Pie-1999

Director Paul Weitz

Starring Jason Biggs, Eddie Kaye Thomas, Chris Klein

Scott’s Review #813

Reviewed September 23, 2018

Grade: B+

With each generation of film, there seems to be a gross-out comedy that speaks to a young, coming-of-age generation, mostly male and jock in persuasion.

American Pie (1999) finishes the 1990s strongly with a raunchy story that feels fresh and genuinely funny, with precarious situations facing the cast, specifically the protagonist and “everyman”, played by Jason Biggs.

The film is a teen sex comedy of the crudest nature yet engulfed with characters audiences like, not mean-spirited, but rather fun-loving and endearing.

An enormous box-office hit at the time, the film was all the rage and brought a tawdry new meaning to the Americana staples of apple pie and band camp.

Spawning several sequels over the next decade, the franchise successfully revived the teen comedy genre with strong, highly recognizable characters.

American Pie also brought back the fun to R-rated films and put a nice cherry on top of a creative decade in cinema. The film is not high art, but it does what it aims to do quite well.

Living a middle to upper-middle-class existence in the suburban USA (presumably Michigan), five high school seniors make a pact to lose their virginity by the time they graduate. Most of the group are nerdy, insecure, and sexually naive, the central character being Jim Levenstein (Biggs).

Most events are taken from his point of view, and he is continually advised by his very nerdy father, Noah (Eugene Levy).

The setup is an age-old premise with lots of room for jokes and precarious situations in hilarious form. As Jim has the hots for a sexy foreign exchange student, Nadia, she is out of his league.

In a hilarious scene, a “warm apple pie” incident leads to an attempt to set up a webcam to watch Nadia change clothes. When events go amiss, everyone gains access to the webcam link, and Nadia is sent back to Czechoslovakia in shame.

This leads to a new pursuit for Jim, a geeky band camp girl, Michelle (Alyson Hannigan). Surprisingly, they fall madly in love and have fantastic chemistry.

Some of the supporting characters add energy and sometimes hilarity. Jennifer Coolidge is great as the mother of Stifler (the jock of the group), who has eyes for younger men, specifically Finch.

As they finally consummate their relationship on a basement pool table, Stifler walks in at the worst time and faints in horror. These antics are genuine and fresh, with great acting by all principals.

Coolidge, Hannigan, and Levy are arguably the best secondary characters. Each, in a different way from the others, provides comic relief by crafting interesting nuances to the characters.

Levy, as Jim’s father, is well-meaning, yet bumbling. Every teen cringes at the thought of having a father like Noah, yet the pair share a close bond and a classic father-son relationship, making the character endearing.

American Pie was successful at coining new pop-culture phrases such as “warm apple pie, “milf” and “this one time in band camp…” that the young generation of the time (myself included) enjoyed giggling over and repeating in glee.

The film set the tone for similar genre films, but none of them matched the chemistry and charm of American Pie, and it was better than it ever should have been!

The turn-of-the-century version of Animal House, American Pie (1999), introduces a new generation of young people into the world of comedic, R-rated, raunchy fun. The numbers have churned out films like this, but rarely are any as authentic as this film feels.

The franchise sustained its popularity with well-written sequels, most notably American Pie 2 (2001), which further developed the storylines. Still, the original remains a fine blueprint for what good comedy can achieve.