10 Films Capturing True Aspects of Love
500 Days of Summer
The Hardships of Love
500 Days of Summer
It’s easy to discuss the pleasantries of love, but the heartache of love is rarely discussed. “500 Days of Summer” represents the splendor of young love followed by the depressing disarray of broken love.
Breakups rarely end in mutual agreement. Usually one person is heartbroken and they have to carry more of the emotional baggage that accompanies a failed relationship. This film shows the infatuated joy of Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) who wins the heart of Summer (Zooey Deschanel) and how painful it is when that joy is abruptly ended by losing her interest. His love and idea of Summer (rather than who she actually is) turns into an obsessive infatuation and disbelief that she is the only one for him. The times of hardship showcase an emotionally driven individual absent of logic or reason which is relatable to anyone who has been on the bad end of a break up.
Lost in Translation
Misplaced Love
Lost In Translation
“Lost in Translation” explores the relationship between two totally different people that find common ground in an abnormal culture. Being two “fish out of water” they discover that despite their age difference, they find solace in in each other’s company.
The title explains the film well as both Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson) and Bob (Bill Murray) are lost in their own lives and in this foreign land (Japan) with each other being the only form of engaging conversation. Even though they have their own relationships that they remain faithful to, they build a love for one another through experiencing Japanese culture together. Like I mentioned with “Before Sunrise,” this relationship is reminiscent of a “vacation love” but by remaining faithful to their own relationships, it’s more of a misplaced love as it can never be.
Moonrise Kingdom
Young Love
Moonrise Kingdom
While many Wes Anderson films are based around a quirky style of comedy in an eclectic setting, “Moonrise Kingdom” is something more. “Moonrise Kingdom” represents that childhood love/crush that we’ve all experienced.
Even though they are children, Sam and Suzy exhibit their own style of romance from a child’s perspective. They are not old enough to know the logic and reasoning that comes with love, they are acting entirely from the heart. Their innocence, uncertainty, and idealism are all reminiscent of our own childhood experiences with love. “Moonrise Kingdom” is a quirky yet charmingly warm reminder of a less complicated time when love was much easier.
True Romance
Crazy Love
True Romance
Written by Quentin Tarantino, “True Romance” represents that couple that moves too fast yet everything seems to work out. Clarence (Christian Slater) and Alabama (Patricia Arquette) have a bit of desperation in their lives and are also a bit abnormal compared to the rest of society. It’s this abnormal desperation that brings them together and keeps them hopelessly in love from the time they meet and well into their impromptu marriage.
Many of their friends and family think that they’re too impulsive and crazy for moving so quickly but despite everyone’s disbelief, Clarence and Alabama both make it work. We all know of an impulsive couple like this and somehow they worked out better than we ever could have expected. This type of wildcard love is a rarity but every now and then a couple like this slips through the cracks and makes it.
