Alas, Valentine’s day, the first Hallmark© holiday of 2018 has arrived. If you’re a bit of a cynic like me and view this day as a capitalist scheme to squeeze yet another penny out of you, then you’ll be doing everything in your power not to be bombarded with mushy love stories, heart-shaped foods and red roses. What better way to avoid such a list than to curl up and practice some self care? Pour a glass of wine, order a pizza, gather your single friends (dare I say host a Galentine’s day) and indulge in a movie that will justify your lack of warm fuzzy and feelings for the holiday. And so you don’t have to search too hard, here is a curated list of movies that will do just the trick:
- The Lobster
In what is basically a satire of relationships, marriage and society, Collin Farrell, a man who’s been freshly dumped by his wife, is subjected to finding true love in 45 days. Should he fail, the dystopic society in which he lives dictates he be turned into an animal of his choice (spoiler alert: it’s a lobster) and released into the woods. I’ll admit it’s an obscure concept, but the film examines the artificiality of love in a society that applies time constraints, and tells you the only way to be happy is to have a partner and children, not all too dissimilar from pressures faced in reality.
- Get Out
If there is any film to watch on this list, despite it’s anti-valentine’s day status it is this one, and there are four Oscar nominations to back this claim. Get Out chronicles the horrors ensued when a young black man visits his white girlfriend’s family for the first time. While a horror movie by genre, this film gives a creative and thoughtful take on important issues regarding race. The film will leave you intrigued and most definitely unresentful of your distaste for this romantic holiday.
- Blue Valentine
Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams depict the downward spiral of a cold and loveless marriage. This film juxtaposes the cheerful and tender fruition of a love that seems very real, to the gloomy, depressing reality of the two in “present day”, through its non-linear narrative. The movie really drives home the message that even the best of relationships can end miserably. It’s definitely a film for those seeking catharsis.
- How to be Single
You’re in New York City and newly single, who better to guide you through the freedoms, and nuances of life unattached than Rebel Wilson? How To Be Single allows you to experience this vicariously through Dakota Johnson (that girl from Fifty Shades), while also intertwining a few other storylines along the way. Admittedly, this does have some stereotypical rom-com elements (namely some happily ever afters, so be warned), but this movie is really an anthem for the singles: a fun lighthearted comedy, which confirms that with the right attitude, being single can be the best time of your life.
- Gone Girl
Correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m fairly certain there is nothing less Valentinesesque (totally just made up that word) than a woman’s disappearance on her fifth wedding anniversary for which all roads point to her scummy cheating husband as the culprit. This psychological thriller based on the novel by Gillian Flynn will leave you physically having to pick up your jaw which will undoubtedly drop. As another of David Fincher’s works it leaves you questioning who is the victim and who is at fault, and has indeed been referred to as “Fight Club squared”.
- Bachelorette
When three high school friends reunite for their friend’s wedding, it becomes apparent that it really isn’t a good idea to host a bachelorette party on the eve of the big day. In the female equivalent of The Hangover, everyone’s pasts come to light revealing just how distant these friends have become, as they race against the clock to render destroying the bride’s dress.
- Ex-Machina
A young programmer essentially wins a contest, which brings him to the isolated fortress that is his fictional CEO’s private “lab”, if you will. He is tasked with performing a Turing Test on his revolutionary robot, Ava. This is a film that not only takes your mind far far away from mushy gushy love stories sung on Valentines day through its overt seclusion from a society that celebrates the like, but also in its ability to evoke thought on philosophical questions pertaining to consciousness and the ever developing field of Artificial Intelligence. Also, Alicia Vikander embodies the most elegant depiction of a robot I’ve ever seen.
Images Obtained from:
http://www.arteviste.com/arteviste/2016/3/17/a-review-of-the-lobster
http://madison365.com/get-now-highest-grossing-debut-original-screenplay/
https://therabbitfilm.wordpress.com/2012/02/29/blue-valentine/
http://www.comingsoon.net/movies/trailers/634065-how-to-be-single-traile…
https://www.bustle.com/articles/42056-is-gone-girl-based-on-a-true-story…
http://www.cosmopolitan.com/sex-love/a6753/bachelorette-parties/
http://www.indiewire.com/2015/04/watch-ex-machina-boots-up-another-trail…