Rom Coms and the Now

Sentimental movies have a serious role in these times.  Films with pretty people working through problems that could be real, but which are readily resolvable, are like a cup of hot chocolate and a sofa fleece blanket on a cool evening.  Being within the four walls of your home or being within the four walls of a formulaic piece of cinema there is comfort to be found from the raging world outside.

 

I just watched a film called “A Long Way Down”.  It had Imogen Poots, Pierce Brosnan, Toni Collette and Aaron Paul.  Good cast, claptrap writing.  Nick Hornby conceived of the original idea but the scriptwriters were pretty ham-handed. The conceit was that four people all opt to commit suicide on New Year’s Eve at the same time, well midnight of course. 

 

Each person has a backstory or two and that was interesting.  But from the start you basically know that despite the horrors that have beset their lives they are going to make it.  There will be tears and angst and the problems will linger, but….they will survive with love and knowledge. Yeah, that is a good place to be at the end of a movie.  Right now I am not sure how the real world is going to play out.  But at least I have movies.

 

This morning all over MSU’s campus the telephone poles were plastered with racist and anti-Semitic.  A concentrated effort has been made to remove these offensive pieces of trash.  We should be offering kudos for the quick response from the university. Like I said rom-coms and sentimental movies, these are better things to watch than the news.