Happily ever after is great, but it’s not always like that. Actually, almost never is. As we grew up, lots of movies taught us about love stories, happy endings and prince charming, just so we can finally reach the moment where we are thrown into the real world; which is tough.
And that is the reason why is good to have a glass of reality and have fun with movies that portray love close enough to what it really can be like. So here are some films that can do the job.
- Blue Valentine (2010)
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(On Netflix)
Does love fade? For some people, something like that happens; maybe they just get used to each other and forget to appreciate what’s right in front of them, or perhaps what they felt once isn’t there anymore. These options can be sadly real, and quite often, are the case for many couples.
Blue Valentine shows that love can be slowly replaced by the comfort zone of being with someone and being so used to that situation that the perception of the discomfort is affected, and the signs of insatisfaction are just common.
Cindy and Deans story represents one of the true facets of a real life relationship, alternating between the past, which holds the freshness of falling in love, and the present, which holds the end.
- Someone Great (2019)
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(On Netflix)
Breakups can make people feel free, as much as they can cause the sensation of loneliness, of an unbearable pain that feels permanent for a while; sounds dramatic, and that’s because it actually is.
To be with someone you love and belong with feels good, but recovering from the end of this relation is usually hard, but possible. Someone Great shows not only the process of acceptance that the main character, Jenny, has to go through once her boyfriend ends their years long relationship; but also the situations surrounding Erin and Blair’s, her friends, lives. With reality and hollywood drama enough, the movie shows a lot of what a real breakup looks like, how important the process surrounding it is, and how friends are one of the main pillars of our existence.
- Closer (2004)
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The story goes around Dan, a wanna be writer; Alice, a stripper; Anna, a photographer and Larry, a dermatologist. The four main characters are connected by their troubled and, many times, superficial relationships. In a way different than usual this movie talks about love.
Sometimes we think that people will love us despite of everything: despite of hurting, despite of disappointments, despite of a broken heart, but it is not true. Love can hurt, love can make us vulnerable because the closer we are to someone, the bigger is the chance of us getting hurt in some point. But mostly: this movie teach us that love isn’t enough. Love demands honesty, bravery, deepness, intimacy and commitment. Otherwise, it’ll only bring pain to our lives.
It is a sensitive movie about the transitivity of our relationships and definely should go to your “what to watch” list!
- Comet (2014)
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Some people come to our lives just to teach us something and in no way it reduces the meaning of them in our path. Not all relationships are meant to last. A beautiful love story isn’t beautiful only if it is a “happily ever after” story. We may not spend the rest of our lives with our biggest love, and that is okay.
In this movie, the two main characters are highly insecure in their relationship. Actually, it remembers Bauman’s idea of “Liquid Love”, as their bonds are fragile and unstable. We go trough many situations with this couple, some happy moments (when they first met, as an example) and dark ones. Dell and Kim came to remember us how fragile relationships are! We must take care, spend time and give attention if we want this to grow.
- (500) Days Of Summer (2009)
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It begins like all romantic comedies we know: Tom mets Summer in a work appointment, she is beautiful, she likes The Smiths and, obviously, he immediately falls in love with her. They start dating, everything is good but suddenly Summer break up with Tom, with no reason apparently.
We are introduced in this story in a way that makes Summer looks like a heartless girl who left poor Tom alone with his feelings, without even care. But the truth is: she didn’t have the obligation of loving him back (and no one does). Some of us are deeply romantics, believe in eternal love and think that all relationships are meant to last, but this is not true. Summer isn’t a bad person just because she didn’t love him back. Neither are you. Or the person who did this to you.
It’s okay to move on. It’s okay if you don’t know whether you want to spend the rest of your life with that person. It’s okay if you don’t love him/her back. You just need to be true about it and life goes on.
Don’t get Summer wrong, she was just trying to discover herself in this crazy-romantic-world. As me and you.
We hope you enjoyed our list!