Poor Things (5*)
Maestro (4.5*)
Killers of the Flower Moon (4*)
Past Lives (3.5*)
Elemental (3*)
So what exactly makes for a ‘romance’ movie? I would think that it has to be more than just a relationship between two people, otherwise there would be a lot more of them. And clearly, some films are more romantic – whatever that term might mean – than others. If you need any further evidence of that, just look at the five 2024 Oscar romance films.
Elemental doesn’t even make my ‘recommended’ list, continuing an unfortunate trend from the Disney/Pixar studio. The movie is strongest in its incredible world building where each of the four major elements have their own little cosmology. In the fire world, for example, babies are carted around in little barbecues, not strollers. Details like this, coupled with some terrific and colorful animation, are the major reason to see the film. But the story of a budding relationship between a young fire person, Ember, and a water person, Wade Ripple, really just doesn’t go anywhere interesting, especially for adults. As I concluded, Pixar “took a really exciting idea and turned it into a safe, mundane, and totally inconsequential story that feels more like a sloppy TV sit-com episode than a real movie.” Watch at your own risk.
A better movie is the very highly rated Past Lives, “a story of three characters in a whirlwind of fond memories, painful regrets, and doubts of self-worth.” From a very young team of filmmakers, this movie was rated by the critics to be the best of all 38 nominated movies. It reflects a balanced and thoughtful reflection on emotions from the past and how they become part of us in unexpected ways. I thought it was a good movie but, perhaps because of my own history of moving very frequently, I didn’t quite understand why the two main characters felt their reconnection was so powerful. I suspect part of the love of this movie is coming from people who haven’t experienced the uprooted-ness of moving and who, therefore, don’t appreciate change and “moving on”. Although it reminded me in its simplicity of one of my favorite films, The Quiet Girl, I found the emotions in this film “evident, but misplaced”. (But I am apparently in the minority here, so…)
And a totally different kind of romance is found in Killers of the Flower Moon. With ten Oscar nominations, the film is an important part of this year’s filmography. But despite lots of acting, story, and technical credits, “the movie is just too damn long.” But the “portrayal of the growth in the relationship between Ernest (DiCaprio) and Mollie (Gladstone) is handled perfectly.” If there is anything that can straighten the twisted morality of these men, it might be the capacity to learn to love. So if you like setting endurance records, this isn’t a bad movie for romance.
And for a “well told story of a romance between two individuals over decades and how it developed in the shadow of fame” view Maestro. The story of Leonard Bernstein, the movie is another heavy Oscar hitter although it ranks at the bottom of all 24 general interest movies nominated for Oscars. Although I always have problems with biopics because it is difficult to tell what is fact and what is fiction and, therefore, whether you are getting a true picture of the subject. But I said about the movie’s portrayal of the relationship between Bernstein (Cooper) and Felicia (Mulligan) that “it does give us a powerful feeling of the emotional connection two people felt for each other and that, in itself, is worth the suspension of doubt.” Maestro is a romance over the long haul.
One of my favorite films of all time and one of the strangest I’ve ever seen is the twisted film Poor Things. Emma Stone won the leading actress Oscar playing Bella, a newly created “woman” made by transplanting a baby’s brain into a fully developed woman’s body. Stone’s convincing portrayal of what that might be like is the most important reason to see this film, but couple that with committed supporting actors and incredibly complex sets, costumes, and hairstyling, and you have the makings for an experience that transports you to another world. But Bella’s relationship with Duncan (Ruffalo) is romantic only in some rather unconventional ways. She discovers the pleasures of sex and the way it is often used to dominate women, which she learns isn’t particularly a good thing. So if romance is thought of as how sex and relationships are so inextricably related, then imagine a baby’s mind developing in a woman’s body and think of how sexual feelings might develop under those conditions. It is a powerful movie, but not your typical romance. “The movie will challenge your senses, your intellect, and your heart. It is the most bizarre film I have ever seen. It is also one of the best of this year, or any year!”
Five very different movies with five very different approaches to romance. Enjoy any or all of them. And if that isn’t enough, I can recommend Blonde (3.5*) from last year. The movie is about Marilyn Monroe, although not really a biography, and, even though I liked it better than most folks, it is still flawed. Despite a surprising and amazing performance by Ana de Armas, Blonde ends up exploiting her in much the same way that the movie depicts men exploiting Marilyn. The film is also highly sexual, so it will not work for all audiences.
So there you have it, five recommended Romance films, each with a different take on what it means to be “romantic”.
