Romancefest 2019: Howards End

Directed by James Ivory
Written by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala
Based on the novel by E.M. Forster
Starring Anthony Hopkins, Vanessa Redgrave, Helena Bonham Carter and Emma Thompson
U.K./Japan/U.S., 1992

In early 1900s England, a dying woman leaves her cherished family home, Howards End, to a new found friend. Upon her death, however, the woman's husband and family decide to destroy her will and keep the house for themselves. Through a series of meetings, the widowed husband eventually falls in love with and marries the woman the house was intended to go to.

It's hard to come up with a synopsis for this film because so much happens in it. I've left out all the stuff with the main character's free spirited sister, their lower-class friends who they try to help out and accidentally thwart, and several other affairs. It was hard for me to figure out what the movie is really about -- I wasn't sure if it was just one damn thing after another, or if the patriarch of the family had some devious scheme up his sleeve, or what. In any case, it didn't really matter in the end because I enjoyed the movie, anyway. I guess it's hard not to enjoy these Merchant Ivory productions, which seemed boring to me as a kid. I now know they're full of great performances, beautiful scenery, charming attention to period detail, lovely music and compelling plots. I just wish some literary expert could explain to me whether or not I'm missing something as far as the overall story is concerned. Maybe I'm not and I just think I am. Anyway, it was still good.

Romancefest 2019: God's Own Country

Written and Directed by Francis Lee
Starring Josh O’Connor, Alec Secareanu, Ian Hart and Gemma Jones
U.K., 2017

Two farmhands in rural England find themselves falling first in lust and then in love with each other, despite their differences – one has never left the farm and is resigned to a dreary life of half-assing and drinking, and the other has left his Romanian home and takes pride in his work as he tries to build a new life for himself.

Of all the movies I’ve watched for Romancefest this year, I feel like this one has the strongest transition for a central character. It’s a rough watch at first – the film is unblinking, gritty, realistic and unflattering when it examines what the main character’s life is like at the start of the story. The sex is graphic, the hangovers are graphic, the farm work with animals is graphic. But then, as he falls in love, an at first subtle and then obvious change comes over both the character and the movie and it becomes an uplifting story of how one person can spread affection to another, and then that one get spread affection, until affection in general just starts spreading all over the place. Without giving too much away, I will say the ending is not as bleak as the beginning, and the bleak beginning is sort of what ends up earning the ending in the first place. It’s hard to belive this is the writer/director’s first feature because it’s an instant classic – or should be, anyway.

Romancefest 2019: The Time Traveler's Wife

Directed by Robert Schwentke
Screenplay by Bruce Joel Rubin
Based on the novel by Audrey Niffenegger
Starring Eric Bana, Rachel McAdams and Ron Livingston
U.S., 2009

A man with a genetic mutation that causes him to randomly travel backwards and forwards in time embarks on a romance, marriage and parenthood with a woman he appears to throughout different periods of their lives.

Time travel stories have to strike a delicate balance. You don’t want to explain the rules of time travel too much because it’s inherently nonsensical and would be a waste of time, thus boring the audience with stuff that ultimately doesn’t matter. But, you don’t want to not explain the rules at all, because then the audience becomes confused or the story feels contrived or, worst case, both. So you have to have it both ways – explain just enough to get the audience to trust you, like BACK TO THE FUTURE and ABOUT TIME.

The problem with THE TIME TRAVELER’S WIFE is that it does next to no explaining of its rules of time travel, and the explaining it does do just creates more mysteries (it’s genetic, he loses his clothes every time he travels). In fact, the clothes thing is a good example – I guess it’s a complication built into the story to make it so things aren’t too easy, but it also reminds me of a time travel classic, THE TERMINATOR, in which we’re given a rational explanation as to why time travelers must travel naked, and there’s also a rational explanation why they can get away with it – they’re either robots or super soldiers from the future, and aren’t making a habit of time traveling for their entire lives.

Spoiler alert: the dramatic ending of the movie revolves around the lead’s death, but is preceded with the knowledge that he can travel through time to dates after his own death, so ultimately who cares? Yes, the time travel is random and can’t be controlled, so that sucks, but in general, if you can jump anywhere, death is just a minor inconvenience, isn’t it? If my Dad traveled through time, and died, I’d just wait until the next time he showed up again, which I guess is exactly what they do in the movie, but not after a lot of handwringing about the lead’s impending doom.

If you’re in the mood for a time travel romance starring Rachel McAdams, skip this one and watch ABOUT TIME instead.

Romancefest 2019: Like Crazy

Directed by Drake Doremus
Written by Drake Doremus and Ben York Jones
Starring Anton Yelchin, Felicity Jones and Jennifer Lawrence
U.S., 2011

The budding romance of two college students becomes complicated when one of them overstays her visa and finds herself stuck in the U.K. and unable to return to the U.S.

This movie was a little sad to watch because it stars the late, great Anton Yelchin who died young in a freak accident. He doesn’t have much to work with here, and yet he shows exactly why he had a long, promising career ahead of him, imbuing an underwritten character with maybe not something you’d call depth, but definitely three dimensions. That’s because the character himself might be a little shallow – to the movie’s credit, it’s ambiguous, almost as if the filmmakers don’t want to take a side. This is either the story of how difficult it is for two young lovers to be separated from each other, or it’s the story of how difficult it is to commit when you sort of have one foot out the door. I imagine if these characters were in their 30s instead of their 20s it would play differently, but as it is, we’re left wondering if what we’ve just seen is the triumph of love or just two people experiencing their first bout of settling for “good enough.”

Romancefest 2019: Love Affair

Directed by Leo McCarey
Written by Delmer Daves, Donald Ogden Stewart and S.N. Behrman
Starring Irene Dunne, Charles Boyer and Maria Ouspenskaya
U.S., 1939

A painter and singer meet on a transatlantic cruise and begin to fall in love. The problem is, they’re both already engaged, and need some time to sort things out. They agree to meet in six months at the top of the Empire State Building, but on the fateful day disaster strikes and their meeting is postponed.

I saw the arguably more popular “An Affair to Remember” as a kid because it’s one of my mom’s favorite movies. I guess that’s the one people remember because it’s in color and has bigger stars – Deborah Kerr and Cary Grant. But “Love Affair” has one thing its remake doesn’t have – a running time of only 87 minutes! So you get the whole romance, the songs, the sad parts, the happy parts, in a half hour less! That’s my kind of movie. Plus, I’ve rarely seen Maria Ouspenskaya outside a Universal horror film, so that was fun, too.

Romancefest 2019: Set It Up

Directed by Claire Scanlon
Written by Katie Silberman
Starring Zoey Deutch, Glen Powell, Taye Diggs and Lucy Liu
U.S., 2018

Two struggling young assistants conspire to match up their two successful but difficult bosses in order to get some time for themselves only to realize the real match they’re making is a love connection between themselves.

I wasn’t sure of this one going into it because although I was familiar with Lucy Liu and Taye Diggs as the bosses, I’d never heard of the young leads and unknown leads plus fluffy Netflix rom-com could equal boredom. It turns out the leads I’ve never heard of are not only likable and funny, but also have great chemistry. So, the rest of the movie was easy to like. My only complaint might be that I wanted both bosses to be more three dimensional – I wouldn’t have complained if everyone worked everything out in the end, and not just the young couple. But, that’s a minor complaint for an otherwise better than average romantic comedy.

Romancefest 2019: Top Five

Written and Directed by Chris Rock
Starring Chris Rock, Rosario Dawson, J.B. Smoove and Gabrielle Union
U.S., 2014

A former standup comic turned movie star in recovery puts up with a day-long interview on the eve of both his wedding to a reality TV star and premier of his latest film – a historical drama. Throughout the day, he unexpectedly falls for his interviewer, who has relationship problems (and secrets) of her own.

Chris Rock’s endlessly funny, his co-star Rosario Dawson is endlessly likable and the list of cameos from recognizable stars (either as themselves or otherwise) is endless. Although heavily fictionalized, you can tell this showbiz story is close to Rock’s heart, which makes this comedy more personal than your average rom-com and worthy to be mentioned in the same breath as Woody Allen’s best (or at least Woody Allen’s second best). The plot gets a little creaky in the third act – this is the kind of flick that might have been better off plotless, taking a page from Linklater – but by then I was wrapped up and it was too late to matter.

Romancefest 2019: Tootsie

Directed by Sydney Pollack
Written by Larry Gelbart and Murray Schisgal
Starring Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Lange, Teri Garr, Dabney Coleman, Charles Durning and Bill Murray
U.S., 1982

A struggling actor disguises himself as a woman in order to snag a part on a soap opera and ends up taking the nation by storm. Meanwhile he juggles romances with his beautiful co-star who doesn’t know he’s a man and his acting student who doesn’t know he’s dressing as a woman. He’s also got his hands full keeping lecherous men off of him and sparring with his misogynistic director.

This is one of those movies I either saw all of or part of at a young age, but I remember so little that I allowed myself to watch it again for Romancefest. I’m glad I did. For instance, I totally forgot Bill Murray has one of his best roles in a supporting part as the writer Hoffman lives with. Also, although there might be some dated jokes, in general, the subject matter is perfect for the climate in Hollywood today. Of course, that’s because everyone involved in the production already knew what Hollywood was up to, not least of all Hoffman himself, who has had some accusers. Still, it’s a funny rom-com that isn’t content to just rest on the cross-dressing gimmick – in fact, Hoffman’s idea to cross dress is handled in just one cut without any kind of montage or waste of time at all, freeing up more time for a wide variety of interesting supporting characters who are well drawn and memorably cast.

Romancefest 2019: This Property is Condemned

Directed by Sydney Pollack
Written by Francis Ford Coppola, Fred Coe and Edith Sommer
Based on the one-act play by Tennessee Williams
Starring Natalie Wood, Robert Redford, Charles Bronson and Kate Reid
U.S., 1966

In a depression-era Mississippi town dependent on the railway business, a stranger comes to town in order to lay off the railway workers. He falls in love with the daughter of the owner of a boarding house, who is desperate to get out of the small town and move to big, bustling New Orleans, and escape her scheming mother who wants to use her youth and good looks for financial gain and security.

I was looking forward to checking this movie out thanks to the huge names attached to it: Pollack, Coppola, Williams, Wood and Redford. Unfortunately, it wasn’t that great. It’s almost a parody of a Tennessee Williams-style play, with all the trappings but none of the heart or meaning. Yes, it’s hot out and everyone’s sweaty and everyone’s sexed up and pent up and so on. It’s fun to watch Wood because she’s beautiful and Redford because this made him a star, but the movie’s overly long and doesn’t have much to say, beyond being a soap opera.

Romancefest 2019: The Crucified Lovers

Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi
Written by Yoshikata Yoda, Matsutaro Kawaguchi and Chikamatsu Monzaemon
Starring Kazuo Hasegawa, Kyoko Kagawa, Yoko Minamida and Eitaro Shindo
Japan, 1954

In feudal Japan, a scroll-making apprentice finds himself on the run with his miserly boss’s wife when they’re mistakenly accused of adultery, a crime punishable by crucifixion. On the lam, the two fall in love for real.

This movie has a Criterion release but unfortunately I watched a DVD-R from the days before Criterion and it appeared to be a recording of a VHS version. So, the sound was bad, the image was bad, but I still gave it a fair chance. I’ll have to watch it again some time under better circumstances because it appeared to have beautiful cinematography. The story itself was entertaining, although so soap opera-esque in the first act that it was hard to keep things straight every now and then. But, once the soon-to-be lovers are on the run it’s easier to track.

Romancefest 2019: Tabu

Directed by Miguel Gomes
Written by Miguel Gomes and Mariana Ricardo
Starring Teresa Madruga, Laura Soveral, Ana Moreira, Henrique Espirito Santo and Carloto Cotta
Portugal/Germany/Brazil/France, 2012

A love story told in two parts – the first in present day Lisbon, in which a woman becomes involved with her elderly neighbor and the neighbor’s care taker, and seeks out an old acquaintance on behalf of her neighbor during the last days of her neighbor’s life. The second takes place in 1960s Portugese Africa and tells the tale of the neighbor when she was a young woman and had an affair that led to tragedy on the eve of a colonial war.

This film is beautifully shot in black and white and plays out like a classic of cinema. So how come no one’s ever heard of it? I mean I guess enough people have heard of it to get it on some best-of lists and into the video store, but it’s a shame it has gotten so little exposure. It moves a little slowly, but if you let yourself be pulled along by its narrative as it unfolds, you’ll be rewarded.

Romancefest 2019: The Fault in our Stars

Directed by Josh Boone
Written by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber
Based on the novel by John Green
Starring Shailene Woodley, Ansel Elgort, Laura Dern and Willem Dafoe
U.S., 2014

Two teenagers with terminal cancer fall in love and travel to Amsterdam to seek out answers to the ambiguous ending of their favorite author’s novel.

I wanted to like this tragic romance about articulate, precocious teens dealing with love in the face of their own mortality, but aside from having an appealing cast, this movie doesn’t have much else going for it. The most confusing sequence is also arguably the most important sequence in the film, in which the teens meet the reclusive author they’re seeking and demand answers to the ending of his book. He is alcoholic and abusive towards them, which is not great, but at the same time, why should he have to say anything more than, “That’s just the way the book ends” when someone demands to know what happens next? After this the teens visit the Anne Frank House, where they kiss in the attic to APPLAUSE from the other tourists. What’s that about? It has to be seen to be believed, or better yet, not seen.

Romancefest 2019: About Time

Written and Directed by Richard Curtis
Starring Domhnall Gleeson, Rachel McAdams, Tom Hollander and Margot Robbie
U.K., 2013

On his 21st birthday, a young man learns that every male in his family has the ability to time travel into their own pasts to relive days and change the things they want to. He decides to use his new found power to find himself a girlfriend, and as his relationship blossoms and his life changes, he comes to look at his time travel power from several new angles.

This is probably the best movie I’ve watched for Romancefest 2019 so far, dethroning the also great “I’ll See You in my Dreams.” The best thing about this movie is that I was waiting or its entire run time for the plot to get in the way of the characters, for the time travel premise to somehow lead to a crisis where the character must sacrifice or choose one thing over another or learn a lesson about the power he wields – and it never really came. And I’m glad it never really came. Yes, the main character grows and changes and learns from his time travel experiences, and the time travel premise is explored to its full potential in many different ways, but it ends up being used to teach lessons about appreciating the little things, approaching our days with our eyes open and a positive attitude, and taking advantage of what we have while we can before it’s gone. It’s an outlandish premise but one of the most human movies I’ve seen in a long time.

Romancefest 2019: Cloudburst

Written and Directed by Thom Fitzgerald (based on his play)
Starring Olympia Dukakis, Brenda Fricker, Ryan Doucette and Kristin Booth
U.S./Canada, 2011

An elderly lesbian couple is split up when one of them is put in a retirement home against her will be her daughter. Thus follows a “prison” break and road trip to Nova Scotia, where the couple plans to get married. On the way they pick up a young male hitchhiker and form an unexpected bond with him.

This was another nice surprise. Olympia Dukakis steals the show as the crankier of the two elderly lovers, but the rest of the cast is great as well in an emotional (and funny) road trip filled with beautiful scenery and locations we don’t normally get to see explored on film. We also get to hang out with characters we don’t normally get to see on film, in combinations we normally don’t see – here’s a relationship between a young man and two elderly women that doesn’t involve romance and doesn’t involve blood relations, but is a straight up friendship. I guess the power of friendship in general sometimes gets short shrift in movies.

Romancefest 2019: Me Before You

Directed by Thea Sharrock
Written by Jojo Moyes (based on her novel)
Starring Emilia Clarke, Sam Claflin, Jenna Coleman and Charles Dance
U.K./U.S. 2016

A fired barista who helps support her working class family snags a job as a caretaker for a rich 20-something quadriplegic. Romance blossoms but runs into conflict when it turns out time’s running out for the young man, who plans to end his own life.

I watched this one right after “Love, Rosie” and instantly got worried – it’s from the U.K., also stars Sam Claflin… am I in for more bullshit? Turns out I was not in for more bullshit. This one was pretty good. Mostly because of the lead, who up to now I’ve only ever seen play action heroes, but turns out to have a knack for comedy. Note to Emilia Clarke: play more normal people moving forward. Without giving too much away I’d like to say I admired the movie’s conviction to stick to its premise and not move off into fantasy territory. That lead to an ending with a little more substance for our heroine than you might normally find in a fluffier romance.

Romancefest 2019: Love, Rosie

Directed by Christian Ditter
Written by Juliette Towhidi based on the novel by Cecilia Ahern
Starring Lily Collins and Sam Claflin
U.K./Germany, 2014

Two life long best friends miss the boat on a relationship after a minor misunderstanding leads to one of them getting pregnant and foregoing college and the other moving to the states to pursue his dreams. Will they eventually get together? Won’t they? Who knows!

Spoiler: they get together. I didn’t like this movie. I didn’t understand why (or how) the lead female character (Rosie!) hid her pregnancy from the male lead and it was annoying how most of the story was kept rolling with understandings that could be easily explained if anyone communicated like humans. Which is too bad, because the two leads are appealing. One nice thing is the Blu-ray has an aggressive sound design so it gives your subwoofer a workout and the soundtrack features lots of fun pop songs. So that’s cool for a while but then it gets to be a little much, like the rest of the movie.

Romancefest 2019: I'll See You in my Dreams

Directed by Brett Haley
Written by Brett Haley and Marc Basch
Starring Blythe Danner, Martin Starr, June Squibb, Rhea Pearlman, Mary Kay Place and Sam Elliott
U.S., 2015

A retired and widowed singer finds two unexpected new relationships when she bonds with her much younger pool boy and tentatively dates a smooth and laid-back contemporary who has just moved in to her friends’ retirement center.

This was probably one of my favorite films of Romancefest 2018. It’s just a nice, good natured, cute romantic comedy/drama where nothing too bad or too good happens (if you don’t count death, which, when you’re dealing with a cast of a certain age, is kind of a given subplot). The leads are all great, plus there’s a great cast of supporting players that could have had a movie all their own that would be just as worth watching as this. I’m waiting for the sequel where they all go on a cruise. The ending’s bittersweet and tear-jerking, but in a heartwarming and hopeful way, which just leaves you feeling good.

Romancefest 2019: Revanche

Written and Directed by Gotz Spielmann
Starring Johannes Krisch, Irina Potapenko, Ursula Strauss and Hanno Poschi
Austria, 2008

An ex-con turned brothel strongman plots a bank robbery so he can run away with his prostitute girlfriend. Unfortunately things don’t go their way and he finds himself taking refuge in the country with his grandfather, who lives near a cop and his wife who are embroiled in this crime as well.

Going into this movie, based on the title and the subject matter, for some reason I assumed it was going to be a blood and guts fueled revenge story, so I was braced for an unpleasant time. And there are a couple of unpleasant scenes, but for the most part this film was very beautiful with lots of contemplative shots of nature and quiet, introspective moments. I’m always happy when something like this comes out of nowhere and surprises me because it makes stunts like watching 28 movies in 28 days feel worth while. I probably would have never watched this movie otherwise, and now that I have I know it will stick with me for being an original, thoughtful, suspenseful and character driven twist on the revenge genre.

Romancefest 2019: Masculin Feminin

Written and Directed by Jean-Luc Godard
Starring Jean-Pierre Leaud, Chantal Goya, Marlene Jobert and Michel Debord
France/Sweden, 1966

A literary dilettante chases romance with a rising pop star in 1960s France, against a backdrop of political upheaval, pop culture and sexual confusion. This is considered one of Jean-Luc Godard’s most important films from the equally important French New Wave movement.

I think if I had been 16 in 1966, I would have loved this. As it is, now I feel like I’m too old to care about the kind of endless politics/sex/whatever discussions that go on late into the night and loop back in on themselves that used to seem fascinating in high school and college. And, if I had seen this as a teenager in the 90s, I probably would have been too bored to enjoy it. So I think I missed the boat on it. Still, it’s easy to pick up on all the ground-breaking stuff in this movie, because Godard makes sure to put it right in your face, complete with gunshot sound effects.

Romancefest 2019: Your Name.

Written and Directed by Makoto Shinkai
Starring Michael Sinterniklaas, Stephanie Sheh, Laura Post
Japan, 2016

Two teenagers, a boy from the big city and a girl from a small rural town, find themselves inexplicably switching bodies and living out whole days of each others’ lives in this cartoon from Japan. One is from the big city and the other is from a rural small town. As they become more involve in each others’ lives, it becomes clear that they must change the course of history in order to avoid a cataclysmic disaster.

After a little bit of a confusing start, “Your Name.” hit full stride and had me wrapped up in its body-swapping, time-traveling romance. The impending doom of an approaching comet looming over the story adds weight and beauty to a premise normally reserved for simple rom-coms. The story and premise work as a great illustration of the empty longing estranged lovers feel, and the ultimate conclusion stands in for the relief of finally being together.

Romancefest 2019: The Young Girls of Rochefort

Written and Directed by Jacques Demy
Starring Catherine Deneuve, Francoise Dorleac, Gene Kelly and Danielle Darrieux
France, 1967

The fair comes to the seaside town of Rochefort and brings with it romance for a pair of singing and dancing twin sisters. Meanwhile, the romantic lives of several other town inhabitants twist and turn through various meetings and break ups, centered around the café in the town square, where the fair is setting up for the weekend.

I have to admit, when this French New Wave flick started up, and I saw the model-caliber actors and actresses singing and dancing on their way to Rochefort, I rolled my eyes a little. Here we go, a couple hours of a bunch of people cooler than me doing cool things, great. But then, the movie settled down and Deneuve and Dorleac hit the screen, and everything was fine. It was a new experience to read-along with a foreign language musical, and I’d like to see it again so I don’t have to bother with the subtitles, because the colorful song and dance sequences deserve full attention. Plus, Gene Kelly’s in it, which is never bad (unless we’re talking about XANADU… yikes).

Romancefest 2019: Emma

Written and Directed by Douglas McGrath
Based on the novel by Jane Austen
Starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Toni Collette, Alan Cumming and Ewan McGregor
U.K./U.S., 1996

In 19th century England, a young woman who fancies herself an amateur matchmaker sets her sights on setting up a minister and an awkward acquaintance from the fringes of society. Of course, wacky hijinks ensue, including an unexpected romance with her sister’s husband’s brother.

Normally I reserve Romancefest for movies I’ve never seen before, but I made an exception for this one since it has been so long and since I remember it being so good. It was a favorite of Siskel’s and Ebert’s back when it came out, so I remember them talking about it all the time, and why wouldn’t they? It takes, again, what could be stuffy period stuff and makes it seem totally relevant, with an endlessly appealing star right in the middle of everything. You can’t stop watching the character because she’s incorrigible and you can’t stop watching the actress because she’s a natural.

Romancefest 2019: Three Colours: Red

Directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski
Written by Krzysztof Kieslowski and Krzysztof Piesiewicz
Starring Irene Jacob and Jean-Louis Trintignant
France/Poland/Switzerland, 1994

The final chapter of the THREE COLOURS TRILOGY, this romantic mystery revolves around an unlikely friendship between a model and a retired judge. They’re brought together when she accidentally hits his dog with her car and discovers that he is a voyeur who listens in to his neighbor’s telephone conversations. There’s more to it than that, but this is one of those movies where the story is so twisty and turny and there are so many little coincidences and goings-on that it’s hard to encapsulate in a short paragraph.

I remember the THREE COLOURS TRILOGY from when I was a kid. My friends’ parents had a group that got together, and it was a favorite series of movies among them. Back then it seemed like the first chapter, BLUE, was the most popular, probably because it starred Juliet Binoche who was just making it big in America at the time. In any case, I remember watching BLUE back then and wondering what the big deal was. Watching RED this time, I appreciated the filmmaker’s style a lot more, so I should probably go back to BLUE (and also check out WHITE, which I’ve still never seen). My favorite thing about this movie is how it just sort of unfolds like one damn thing after another, the way life does – it is convoluted in the sense that there are many strings that eventually tie together, but it is not convoluted in the way the story is told, and that’s great.

Romancefest 2019: Only Yesterday

Directed by Isao Takahata
Produced by Toshio Suzuki
Starring Daisy Ridley, Dev Patel and Alison Fernandez
Japan, 1991

A young woman reflects on her childhood as she takes a vacation from work in the big city to travel to the country and help with the safflower harvest in this Japanese cartoon. She was in 5th grade in 1966, and her memories of that year come flooding back and are intercut with her vacation in the country as she is nostalgic about some things and regretful about others.

About halfway through this movie I suddenly realized that while it is romantic in the sense that it romanticizes the country life, the scenery, the harvest and some of the main character’s memories, there is really no core romantic relationship. So, I began to wonder if I had been watching the film under false pretenses. But then it all came together at the very end (during the end credits, even). The movie’s slow and while the scenery is beautiful and the attention to detail is astounding, some sections dwelling on the safflower harvest get to be just a little too much. But, that’s the way the movie was meant to be – meditative and mindful.

Romancefest 2019: Middle of Nowhere

Written and Directed by Ava DuVernay
Starring Emayatzy Corinealdi, Omari Hardwick, Edwina Findley, Lorraine Toussaint and David Oyelowo
U.S., 2012

This subtle slice-of-live drama explores the lonely days of a woman whose husband is in prison. She’s put her career on hold so she can be available for visits and phone calls, and is instrumental in helping stay on top of his ongoing court case. Her mother and sister believe she should move on, but she’s not quite ready to yet, even when she meets a nice bus driver she seems to click with.

The first film I ever saw by DuVernay was SELMA, shortly followed by 13TH, so I’m glad to have finally seen one of her earlier works. The cast is so good in this movie it is surprising that only Oyelowo really went on to greater success, but hopefully it’s only a matter of time for the rest of them. This movie is sort of the inverse of THE YOUNG VICTORIA – where that movie’s relationship hinged on learning when and how to trust, this movie’s relationship hinges on finding the power within yourself to finally say “no” to someone you can’t trust anymore.

Romancefest 2019: The Young Victoria

Directed by Jean-Marc Vallee
Written by Julian Fellowes
Starring Emily Blunt, Rupert Friend, Miranda Richardson, Jim Broadbent and Paul Bettany
U.K./U.S., 2009

This period drama examines the early years of Queen Victoria’s reign, from her unlikely rise to power as a young woman who refuses to give power over to her mother and stepfather. Along the way, various interests attempt to woo her onto their sides, including the Prime Minister and the nephew of the king of Belgium, who is instructed specifically on how to seduce her and ends up winning her heart, anyway.

Sometimes period pieces like this can be a little stuffy and boring, but not this one. After a little bit of confusion in the beginning, the movie settles down, and we get to watch with joy as Victoria twists and turns through a maze of intrigue in an effort to get her way, and to be a good ruler for her people. There’s nothing too awful at stake here, the movie’s main source of drama and suspense is seeing just exactly how Victoria will come out on top, and never whether or not she’ll succeed. The love story is sweet because it’s about two people who are drawn together naturally, despite outside forces attempting to intervene, but who are unable to fully trust each other at crucial moments. The payoff comes when they do learn to trust, and that is a valuable lesson for any couple.

Romancefest 2019: Testament of Youth

Directed by James Kent
Written by Juliette Towhidi, based on the memoir by Vera Brittain
Starring Alicia Vikander, Kit Harrington, Taron Egerton and Colin Morgan
U.K., 2014

In this World War I drama, a young woman dreams of breaking out of her traditional life and attending Oxford with her brother and his friends. Unfortunately, as soon as she achieves this goal, the war breaks out. Her brother and his friends find themselves on the front lines while she devotes herself to a career as a nurse, first in the relative safety of England and later on the front lines, herself. Throughout it all, she pursues a doomed relationship with her childhood friend, who is on the Italian Front.

This was a hard watch as the misery was unrelenting. But, that is undoubtedly how life was for the people who found themselves destroyed by the World War, and this movie doesn’t shy away from it. What’s really interesting is to see the story play out through the point of view of a woman – a point of view we often don’t get to see when it comes to war stories. Although this is told partly through the losses of loved ones she suffers, she is also an active participant in the war, and eventually, an activist for peace.

Romancefest 2019: Ruby Sparks

Directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris
Written by Zoe Kazan
Starring Paul Dano, Zoe Kazan, Annette Benning, Antonio Banderas and Steve Coogan
U.S., 2012

It’s time for Romancefest again and you know what that means: 28 romantic movies in 28 days. This year I started things with RUBY SPARKS, the tale of a blocked-up writer who had early success with his first novel but now can’t seem to write anything. When he starts writing about a woman who comes to him in his dreams, she miraculously manifests in reality as his brand new live-in girlfriend.

I remember seeing trailers for this movie back when it came out and although it has an interesting premise, I was worried it’d be a little too wish-fulfilly for my tastes. I judged incorrectly, and the movie actually ended up being an interesting deconstruction of boundary and dependence issues in relationships, using the fantastic premise as a lens to look at these things indirectly. It also works as a study about how men attempt to control women, not just in relationships, but also in works of art. Writer and star Zoe Kazan has a lot of insight into this, being an actress herself, who has probably been at the mercy of lots of unimaginative white men who wanted to use her for wish fulfillment.