Valentine's Day Reviews

I wasn’t expecting much from this flick but since I have a weak spot for romantic-comedies, I thought I should check it out anyway. Basically, it follows the same template provided by ‘Love Actually’ (several small romantic plots are intermingled together) and the main attraction was the massive cast, one of the biggest ensemble of Hollywood stars put together. Unfortunately, except for this cast, this movie didn’t have much to offer, I’m afraid. To start with, even though ‘Love Actually’ was a decent rom-com, I wasn’t exactly a fan of this concept. Indeed, in my opinion, instead of getting one or two fully-fledged stories, you usually end up with 6 or more half-baked romantic tales, so I don’t find it really rewarding, at least that’s my opinion. With this movie, it was even worse because absolutely none of the sub-plots were either really interesting, entertaining or charming enough. Some actors managed to give a decent performance even if the material was rather abysmal (Shirley MacLaine being the best one) and some were just plain terrible (Taylor Swift being the worst of all by far). At the end of the day, the whole thing was just made to put together as many stars as possible without making sure that they had a proper script to start with. Basically, the whole thing was just a marketing stunt and the worst part is that it actually worked since it was rather successful when it was released. To conclude, I have seen worse movies but it still remain a really average romantic-comedy and it is not really worth a look, even if you like the genre.

I hate to admit that this wasn't a good movie, because I don't watch enough comedies. That's not *exactly* rational, and it's a little hard to explain. But, there it is.

And, yet, it wasn't...it wasn't, very good, was it?

Also: you might hate me, but I really think that I'm starting to develop this thing against Julia Roberts, or at least...many of her roles. That is, I don't have anything against our military people who keep us safe from crazy people, but--this is a comedy. This is (supposed to be) a comedy, and maybe a comedy is not the right place for this uptight, Air Force, mom...person...who...never...smiles.

Is it just me, or do most comedies seem...afraid of....not being dramas?

......

It's like when the bridge club is too good to play cards.

I'm so angry, I can't even talk about it.

Cretins.

(4/10)

"There you have it, folks. Young love. Full of promise, full of hope, ignorant of reality."

It is possible to amass a star-studded ensemble cast and pull off a great movie. Richard Curtis did it back in 2003 with Love Actually, for instance. Alas, 2010's Valentine's Day will most likely be remembered as one of the worst ensemble films in history. The strengths of Love Actually - telling interesting stories and generating appealing characters despite limited screen-time - are completely absent in the case of Valentine's Day, which feels more like a useless parade of famous faces than a motion picture. Essentially the Americanised version of Love Actually, Valentine's Day suffers from too many cooks in the kitchen, producing not a prime, hot chef's stew but a cold dish of mixed mash. Exceedingly mechanical and woefully uninspired, Valentine's Day does not contain a single truly romantic moment in its gruelling 120-minute runtime. After watching the movie, you won't be left with the sense that you enjoyed it...you'll be left feeling like you survived it.

In a nutshell, Valentine's Day is a collection of vignettes and short stories connected by a common place (Los Angeles) and a date (February 14). Some of the characters know each other or are connected in some way, paths occasionally intersect, and some stories cross. The closest thing the film has to a main character is a florist named Reed (Kutcher), who wakes up on Valentine's Day and proposes to his girlfriend (Alba) before spending the day bantering with his assistant (Lopez). Reed's best friend is a school teacher (Garner) who is dating a doctor (Dempsey) but is unaware that he's actually married. Also in the film is a man (Cooper) who bonds with a returning U.S. Army Captain (Roberts) over a long plane trip. And there's Liz (Hathaway), who's a phone sex worker in a new relationship... Wait, are you still reading? Do you care? Writing anymore about the "story" would be a waste of my time.

Nobody will mistake this dreck for a Robert Altman or a Paul Haggis flick, that's for sure. At the helm of Valentine's Day is Garry Marshall, who previously directed Pretty Woman but went on to direct more recent movies such as Raising Helen and Georgia Rule. Clearly, Marshall likes romantic fluff, and this would be okay if only he was able to generate charm or an emotional component. In this case, all of the characters are one-dimensional, and are composed of whatever character traits that are needed to propel their hackneyed subplots. There's no-one to relate to, leading to a creeping sense of boredom. The main crime perpetrated by the film is that the stories are far too superficial. As presented here, each of the vignettes are full-length films in themselves that are cut down to a few key scenes. It's possible to keep tabs on the characters, but impossible to care about them. The film simply snaps from one couple to the next, with no crackle or pop. Worse, a lot of the problems the characters are facing could be fixed with one sensible conversation.

Stale, cheesy and schmaltzy, Valentine's Day is a romantic comedy that's tediously low on authentic emotional and comedic elements. No ambition is present in director Marshall's work; no drama to pull on the heartstrings, barely any humour to keep us entertained, and no relationships that go beyond obvious or one-dimensional. See, the film deals with infidelity and broken hearts, but all of the exploration is surface-level stuff, with the characters falling prey to loathsome stereotypes. Seldom have so many likeable performers been so inherently unlikeable, too. Marshall evidently tried to spice up the movie with travelogue cinematography and a few pop songs, but it's hard to care about the characters when most of them act like irredeemable idiots. There are a few moments which shine, and some comedy worth smiling at, but this is hardly enough to make up for two hours of painful banality.

It's tough to either complain about or praise the acting, since not many of the stars have enough screen-time to make an impression, be it positive or negative. One of the only possible exceptions is Ashton Kutcher, who at least appears dedicated to the material. Jennifer Garner also impresses, while other actors like Jessica Alba, Kathy Bates, Jessica Biel, Bradley Cooper, Eric Dane, Patrick Dempsey, Hector Elizondo, Jamie Foxx, Topher Grace, Queen Latifah and Julia Roberts carried out their duties well enough. On the other hand, the two Taylors of the cast - Taylor Swift and Taylor Lautner - are unbelievably atrocious. Even though she was playing an airheaded bimbo, Swift delivered a performance that the Razzie committee will remember for years to come. Only Anne Hathaway manages to redeem the movie in some capacity, as her phone sex calls are at times laugh-out-loud funny.

With the right handling, Valentine's Day could have been the cinematic be-all-and-end-all for hopeless romantics across the world. Instead, the film is a bland, tedious, by-the-numbers Hollywood invention. It's unable to rise above a turgid crawl, and completely lacks a spark of sweetness or charm. If you wish to see a bunch of famous people falling in love, watch Love Actually. Unlike Valentine's Day, Richard Curtis' British rom-com does not just talk about hearts; it has one.

3.2/10

One of the worst films I've every seen! I was expecting something that would rival Love Actually but instead I found it dragging, endlessly trying to create laughs that had nothing to do with the sketchy storyline that was all over the place! It says it has all these great actors in it, but Bradley Cooper is only partially involved (No doubt busy making the A-Team, awesome movie) and I actually found Ashton Justcher the main character. Not worth watching, even on Valentine's Day.

Well, my first immediate impression of Valentine's Day was 'this looks just like Love Actually. It looks very predictable, acting doesn't look brilliant but it does look like a bit of fun'. Now, that is EXACTLY what it turned out like. It is pretty much the same as Love Actually but is focused on a different occasion. It is a very girly film seeing as it is soppy romance and most girls love Valentine's Day. I mean, I think Valentine's Day is the most pointless occasion ever but the film made Valentine's Day quite a generous and nice occasion so that's the best bit of credit I can give it.


The ensemble cast is one of the largest film ensemble casts in film history. It indeed does feature some great Hollywood actors from the 90s and some of the good ones (but some unnecessarily overrated actors). Set in Los Angeles, florist Reed Bennett (Ashton Kutcher) proposes to his girlfriend Morley (Jessica Alba) who accepts, much to the surprise of Reed’s closest friends Alphonso (George Lopez) and Julia Fitzpatrick (Jennifer Garner). Julia, an elementary school teacher has fallen in love with Dr. Harrison Copeland (Patrick Dempsey), but does not know that he is married to his wife Pamela (Katherine LaNasa). On an airplane to Los Angeles, Kate Hazeltine (Julia Roberts), a captain in the U.S. Army on a one-day leave, befriends newly single Holden Bristow (Bradley Cooper). One of Julia’s students, Edison (Bryce Robinson), orders flowers from Reed, to be sent to his teacher. Edison's babysitter Grace (Emma Roberts) is planning to lose her virginity with her boyfriend Alex (Carter Jenkins). Grace’s high-school friends, Willy (Taylor Lautner) and Felicia (Taylor Swift), are experiencing the freshness of new love, and have agreed to wait to have sex. Edison’s grandparents, Edgar (Hector Elizondo) and Estelle (Shirley MacLaine) are facing the troubles of a long marriage. Sean Jackson (Eric Dane), a closeted gay professional football player, is contemplating the end of his career together with his publicist Kara (Jessica Biel) and his agent Paula (Queen Latifah). Liz (Anne Hathaway) who has started dating mailroom clerk Jason (Topher Grace). Jason is first shocked when Liz turns out to be moonlighting as a phone sex operator. So, yeah there are a lot of stories. My favourite one was the story between Reed Bennett, Jessica Alba and Jennifer Garner. So glad that overrated fake Taylor Lautner wasn't in it much so I think that has increased my rating of the film a little bit. Best performance in the film was definitely Jennifer Garner!


Garry Marshall (director of Pretty Woman, Runaway Bride and The Princess Diaries) tried something that I knew wasn't even possible and that was to try and receive a better critical response than Love Actually but it didn't. I would be ashamed of myself if I were him despite it was neither good not bad. Script was alright. Pretty cheesy most of the time but I was sort of expecting that to be honest.


Overall, Valentine's Day is an averagely entertaining film that I think is more for girls. Guys, I would give this one a miss.

全片重點就在最後，何謂愛？愛不過就是包容對方一切，無論是否喜愛或厭惡討厭與否，因為愛對方願意包容，願意體諒，懂得退讓，而非自私只看到自己。

"There are only 36 seconds left until it'll be just another day. Now count with me, ladies and gentlemen, and let's say those three words we would all like to hear.

Let's get naked."

So, just saw this movie today (February 20, 2010) with three of my mates. I really didn't expect to enjoy this movie, since normally I'd go for the Greek mythology flick or the werewolf movie which were also showing in the theatre. But as the film progressed, I found myself laughing and enjoying myself, and I chastised myself for being so judgmental.
The film is basically about a set of people who, on the day of hearts, go through issues about their love lives (non-existent or otherwise). All the characters are connected to each other, and the good thing about it is that you don't get confused about the ties which bind these people together. The storyline is easy to follow, and the actors were all fun to watch. But it was Anne Hathaway's performance that really blew me to bits; everytime she came on screen and said her lines as a phone entertainer, I kept choking and doubling up in laughter. She was really, really good, and even the audience loved her. The ending was startlingly funny and sweet, there were certain revelations that might make you go "WTH?" The perfect movie to see if you're with your sweetie; both of you will certainly enjoy it. I know I did; and I don't even have a boyfriend! :DDDD