Love Actually / Tatsachlich... Liebe (2003)

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Love Actually / Tatsachlich... Liebe (2003)

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The characters are falling in love, falling out of love, some are with right people, some are with the wrong people, some are looking to have an affair, some are in the period of mourning; a capsule summary of reality. Love begins and love ends. They flirt a lot. They are all flirting with love. At all ages and social levels, love is the theme. Romantic love and brotherly love is the hotchpotch through out the movie. Most of the movie is filmed in London, during Christmas and the characters all ended up at Heathrow airport a very uplifting note.

London Heathrow: Der gigantische Flughafen gilt nicht gerade als Ort der Romantik. Stress und Hektik bestimmen das Treiben zwischen Terminals und Rollbahn. Doch wer einmal einen genaueren Blick in die Ankunftshalle wagt, wird sie finden: Freunde, Verwandte und Verliebte, die sich nach Zeiten der Trennung leidenschaftlich in die Arme fallen. Tatsachlich… Liebe ist einfach uberall!

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Love Actually / Tatsachlich... Liebe (2003)

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Ein abgetakelter Schlagerbarde und sein liebenswerter Manager versuchen, mit einem scheu?lichen Remake an bessere Zeiten anzuknupfen. Ein ein von seiner Freundin betrogener Schriftsteller verliebt sich in sein portugiesisches Hausmadchen – obwohl sie nicht ein Wort Englisch versteht. Familiare Routine treibt einen gestressten Verlagsleiter geradewegs in die Arme seiner verfuhrerischen Sekretarin. Und dessen Frau befurchtet, dass sie ihren Ehemann nun endgultig verliert. Ein Zahnjahriger ist das erste Mal verliebt – und sein Stiefvater kann das erste Mal wieder nach dem Tod seiner Frau an die Liebe glauben. Ein Hochzeitsvideo bringt ans Licht, dass der beste Freund des frischgebackenen Ehemanns unsterblich in dessen Frau verliebt ist. Ein bei den Girls erfolgloser Aufschneider ist fest davon uberzeugt, in den USA als unwiderstehlicher Liebhaber Karriere machen zu konnen. Eine schuchterne Angestellte bringt es einfach nicht ubers Herz, ihrem Arbeitskollegen zu zeigen, was sie seit Jahren fur ihn fuhlt. Ein Parchen lernt sich ausgerechnet am Set eines Pornodrehs kennen. Und last but not least verliebt sich der neue und noch ziemlich chaotische Premierminister Hals uber Kopf ausgerechnet in eine Bedienstete.

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Love Actually / Tatsachlich... Liebe (2003)

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Sie alle erfahren die Macht der Liebe mit allen Verlockungen und Enttauschungen, allem Gluck und allem Leid, aller Energie und allem Frust. Sie alle sturzen sich ins Chaos der Gefuhle und erleben schlie?lich ihr ganz personliches Wunder…

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Love Actually / Tatsachlich... Liebe (2003)

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Recounting Love Actually's cast of lovable losers and lovelorn romantics is a daunting chore sure to leave some readers overwhelmed before they even sample the film. Rest assured though, Curtis' steady hand keeps everything in check, making his rather sprawling romcom a seemingly effortless endeavor. It all begins with Billy Mack (Bill Nighy), an aging rock star struggling to insert the words "Chirstmas" and "snow" into a classic Troggs song and, to the dismay of his longtime manager (Gregor Fisher), being transparent with every radio host and television personality he encounters. From there we meet Jamie (Colin Firth), a dimestore novelist who discovers his girlfriend is sleeping with his brother. Heartbroken, he retreats to the countryside where he meets Aurelia (Lъcia Moniz), a softspoken maid who doesn't understand English. Liam Neeson plays Daniel, a recent widower tasked with burying his wife and raising his young, reclusive stepson, Sam (Thomas Sangster). However, he soon learns Sam isn't depressed because of his mother's death (which had been expected for some time), but because he's in love with a girl (Olivia Olson) that doesn't know his name. Daniel's sister Karen (Emma Thompson) is facing a personal crisis as well. As Christmas quickly approaches, she begins to suspect her husband (Alan Rickman) is falling for the wiles of his secretary (Heike Makatsch), a suspicion that proves to be all too true.

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Love Actually / Tatsachlich... Liebe (2003)

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Meanwhile, we learn Karen's brother David (Hugh Grant) has recently been elected Prime Minister. He's not only been tasked with cleaning up after a timid administration, he begins to grow fond of one of his staff members (Martine McCutcheon), has to contend with a stubborn American President (Billy Bob Thornton), and navigate the tricky political waters of a country desperate to embrace new policies. Along the way, we meet a variety of other anxious lovers. Newlyweds Peter (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and Juliet (Kiera Knightley) are forging a happy marriage, but Peter's best friend Mark (Andrew Lincoln) isn't as enthused about their pairing as he lets on. A meek graphic designer (Laura Linney) is forced to choose between love and family; a choice she dreads but knows she'll have to make. Bumbling waiter Colin Frissell (Kris Marshall) becomes convinced that a trip to the US will give him opportunities he doesn't have in the UK. And unassuming sex-scene stand-ins John (Martin Freeman) and Judy (Joanna Page), two of the most disarmingly sweet characters in the film, fall in love in the strangest of circumstances (or positions, as it were). Everyone is connected in some way or another, and everyone is poised to finally find love. After all, it's Christmas.

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Love Actually / Tatsachlich... Liebe (2003)

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For all intents and purposes, Love Actually shouldn't work. It has too many characters, too many storylines, too much of everything. Yet it does. It not only works, it works smashingly, dissecting love, lust, and loss with startling precision and scoring a healthy mix of tears and laughs at every turn. While barbed gags dot each affair, truth dominates the storylines, granting the film a relevance most romantic comedies forgo in favor of easy one-liners and contrived couplings. Nothing is as it seems in Love Actually. Cliches are present, but are ultimately skewed; convenience is an operating force, but each connection develops quite naturally; and romantic love, while a primary element, isn't the focus of each relationship. Counsel and friendship are just as important to Curtis, as are restraint and loyalty. Whereas most writers and directors would concentrate on the expression of love, he pulls back the curtain to reveal the innerworkings of the emotion itself. He never settles for the obvious (other than the obvious pairings), and he rarely gets sidetracked by lesser subplots.

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Love Actually / Tatsachlich... Liebe (2003)

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Unfortunately, Curtis should have trimmed a few more scenes from the film. I'm sure hacking apart his initial three hour cut was a painful process, but further editing would have made Love Actually a near-perfect genre classic. Frissell's Wisconsin adventures are aimless, silly distractions; Grant's downtime is amusing, sure, but otherwise a complete waste of time; Rickman's brushes with his character's secretary grow repetitive long after having made their point; and some of the musical interludes could have been chopped in half. That being said, other storylines could have used more screentime. I love the Peter/Mark/Juliet subplot, but it feels like it's missing two or three additional scenes. Likewise, Mia is a total conundrum. Is she a villain? A vixen? A woman who gets her kicks pursuing married men? I have no idea, nor does Curtis. While other characters are given backstories, conflict, and motivation, she's little more than a forbidden fruit. Still, Neeson and Sangstar are magnificent, Grant and McCutcheon are perfect together, Thompson and Linney provide emotional gravitas, and Nighy and Fisher reignite the film's fuse every time they appear.

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Love Actually / Tatsachlich... Liebe (2003)

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Is love actually all around us? Love Actually pleads a convincing case, shaking its characters' foundations, finding humor in everyday encounters, and unearthing romance in the unlikeliest of places. Curtis doesn't pander to his audience (well, too much); he simply invites them into a cozy little world where paths cross, stars align, and all a man or woman needs is love. I for one am fairly smitten with the results.

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown (blu-ray.com)

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Love Actually / Tatsachlich... Liebe (2003)

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