Review of Love Story (2011) by Bradley F — 16 Nov 2013

Remember when I talked about the simplicity of Dracula? Well "Love Story" is just that.. a simple love story. There is no villain, no plot twists and no real moral here. In this film, it's just two people living their lives together. Oliver Barrett (Ryan O'Neal) meets and falls in love with Jennifer Cavilleri (Ali McGraw) a music student who is not rich like he is. Though coming from different worlds, they have a chemistry and a love they both cannot deny. And really.. that's all you need. One of the greatest things about this movie is how simple and yet wonderful it is. Love Story is definitely a movie based on emotion and relatable situations. This couple, though sometimes so opposite and other times so alike, find comfort in each other when the obstacles of their own lives come crashing down upon them.

A lot of people seem to hate on this movie. I have 2 theories why. Firstly, it seems like another tearjerker chick flick. Well, I thought about and came to a disagreement with this. It seemed like other films were mimicking Love Story, the closest that comes to mind is "A Walk To Remember". But Love Story is far different and far better than that film for one major reason: the maturity factor. In "A Walk To Remember" Landon Carter pretty much acts like an immature teenager who just doesn't want to feel anything For Jamie because of his popularity status in High School. In "Love Story", Oliver doesn't care about his social status or his wealth, in the end he'd rather be with Jennifer. Same goes for Jennifer too, even though she has a Scholarship to Paris and wants to be a famous musician like Mozart, at the end of day the only thing that matters is the true love she has found with Oliver.

The other reason I think not a lot of people like this movie is because some parts of the film seem to be unrealistic Well, the only minor problem I have with the film is how fast the love grows between the two main characters. I mean come on, it only took like 3 or 4 scenes before they finally give in to their love and sleep together. I think maybe if the script took maybe another 3 scenes to develop each of their characters a little more, maybe it wouldn't even be an issue. Still, it's a minor problem in an otherwise flawless film. Just because we real can't find love like that, doesn't mean it doesn't exist. It just means we haven't found it yet. And I think that's the main reason my colleagues and movie fans in general hold a grudge against this movie. In our own lives, we haven't found our Jennifer or Oliver yet. If anything, this movie succeeds in the field that many other romantic comedies or romantic dramas fail at, a belief in True love. After watching this movie, I believe that True Love can be accomplished as long as we keep our eyes and minds open to different kinds of people, just like Oliver and Jennifer did.