When Love Actually was released way back in 2003 the world marvelled at how Richard Curtis had managed to assemble such a stellar cast, featuring the cream of British talent, and plonk them all in to one romantic comedy. Now it’s Hollywood’s turn and director Garry Marshall has pulled out all the stops to secure the likes of Ashton Kutcher, Jessica Alba, Jessica Biel, Julia Roberts, Jennifer Garner, Emma Roberts, Bradley Cooper Patrick Dempsey, Kathy Bates, Taylor Swift, Anne Hathaway, Eric Dane, Jamie Foxx, Topher Grace, Queen Latifah, Taylor Lautner, Shirley MacLaine and more. So with a cast featuring everbody who’s anybody in Hollywood and a director who has shown his hand at rom-coms in the past (Pretty Woman, Runaway Bride) you’d expect Valentine’s Day to be an unprecedented success.
Unfortunately it isn’t, but it’s not as bad as many people would have you believe. The trouble with these ensemble pieces is that they all too often rely on star quality to make the most out of a dodgy script and that’s what we’re left with here. The different threads of the film weave together successfully enough and there are a few nice touches and surprises at the end, most notably involving Julia Roberts and Bradley Cooper, but inevitably some of these threads are much stronger than others. While Taylor Lautner and Taylor Swift produce a few funny lines in their roles as overly loved up teenagers, they are completely unneccesary and only tenuously linked to the other stories, likewise the thread where a young boy has crush on his teacher (Jennifer Garner). It seems that these have only been inserted to bump up the running time.
However, the two threads that are most prominant are both done well. Ashton Kutcher is seemingly the main protagonist within the film and he excels as Reed, a florist whose girlfriend leaves him on the day he proposes to her. Kutcher brings a warmth and charm to the film as he struggles to deal with his emotions for the women in his life and it’s clear that he genuinely cares about the people around him. Elsewhere a thread involving Jason (Topher Grace) and his girlfriend Liz (Anne Hathaway) comes to a head when Edgar and Estelle (played fantastically by Hector Elizondo and Shirley MacLaine) teach him that you have to take the rough with the smooth in a scene of surprising poignancy.
Whilst Valentine’s Day might have a healthy dosing of the cheese and corniness that comes as part of the territory that comes with romantic comedies, it also has enough heart and genuinely touching moments to ensure that it doesn’t descend in to farce. The performances of many of its stars including Kutcher, Elizondo and MacLaine make it worthwhile viewing.
Valentine’s Day is out on Blu Ray and DVD now (July 12th)
