Love Actually is another of those ‘modern classic’ films that is universally much loved and for whatever reason, I haven’t gotten around to seeing yet. I did know about some of the storylines and scenes due to the film’s mass appeal and it being nearly a couple of decades on! I had just never taken the time to sit down and watch it.

So in Christmas 2021 all that was going to change. I was committed to setting time aside to finally watch the film…then stuff happened. I got busy, other films popped up, and then Christmas passed. Therefore, I was adamant to try again in 2022 but still having to find time amongst a busy schedule.

Luckily, I noticed that my local cinema had a special Christmas screening of the film playing that also happened to be on a weekend with nothing planning. Seeing as I was already committed to watching the film, why not see it at the cinema?

I reached out to a friend who was distressed to recently hear that I hadn’t seen Love Actually before and she excitedly agreed to come along with me.

The cinema was filled with many people who had seen the film before, and it was clearly a favourite (particularly of the person sitting in front of us) but I did spot a couple others in a similar position to myself. I always love seeing films at the cinema, there is something about sharing reactions as well as seeing how others respond that enhances the experience. Much better than sitting home alone laughing out loud, or worse, pointing at the screen remarking “that’s funny”.

At this point you’re probably thinking, spare me the build-up, what did you think of it? So here it goes…

My initial reaction to Love Actually is that there were a lot of laugh out loud moments and that it was well written. All the independent stories which are running concurrently have a good pace to them, switch focus at the right time to give enough coverage between stories, and by the end all the stories wove together, what feels to be, seamlessly. No easy feat to achieve with such a large ensemble cast.

My favourite storyline of the couples from the film would be the relationship between Jamie (Colin Firth) and Aurelia (Lucia Moniz). Despite the language barrier between the two and the clear attraction, the fact they are on the same wavelength I just found adorable. They were practically having a conversation together or saying the same things to each other but just didn’t understand. And while I wasn’t a fan of the hasty marriage (come on guys just go on a few dates first) I do find it pretty romantic they both started to learn each other’s primary spoken language. Urgh that made me sick to admit!

I’d be here forever if I started to comment on each of the cast but before I make a quick couple of mentions, this is my blanket statement to say that I thought the cast was really well put together and all delivered equally good performances. By not making a specific comment, is in no way a negative reflection.

All the American actors that were chosen were a perfect fit. From Billy Bob Thornton as the American President to the girls the character Colin brings back home, Shannon Elizabeth and Denise Richards.

Then there is Rowan Atkinson as the jewellery salesman, who for me stole the scenes he was in. This just gave an extra lift to the film that I really enjoyed. Especially his distraction tactic at the airport towards the end of the film.

Hugh Grant has a typical performance from the time the film was released, that bumbling romantic fool. It works for him and it works for the film. I now live for the scene of him talking to a picture of Margaret Thatcher on the wall and calling her a saucy minx!

There is a scene however where his character as the UK Prime Minister takes action to speak out against the American President at a press conference, after a rather grotesque display of power against the girl he fancies. I would have hoped that the Prime Minister would have down the same thing for anyone who found themselves in that situation, not just the girl he likes.

That’s sort of when you think about a few of the stories having similar things that are a little uncomfortable or cringey that I didn’t much enjoy. While some of those moments have a place within the film, there is also quite a lot of questionable behaviour that doesn’t. For example, I found there to be a lot of fat shaming which really felt out of place. This might be something that just hasn’t aged well, like the sitcom Friends.

Putting aside some of the negatives I experienced, I found myself enjoying the film. And while it hasn’t become my favourite Christmas film, I can see it being added to the rotation of movies that I have playing in the background while putting up the Christmas tree in years to come.