Valentine’s Day (5/18/2010)

Rated PG-13 for some sexual material and brief partial nudity.

Directed by Garry Marshall (Runaway Bride, Pretty Woman And Dear God)

Starring Julia Roberts, Patrick Dempsey, Jessica Alba, Kathy Bates, Hector Elizondo, Jamie Foxx, Anne Hathaway, Jennifer Garner, Jessica Biel, Topher Grace, Bradley Cooper and Eric Dane

TODD’S WORD: The “Crash” of chick flicks.

JONATHAN’S WORD: That’s an insult to chick flicks. This is Sex in the City with a major typo on the front cover: PG-13.

An all-star ensemble cast comes together in Valentine's Day, which follows the intertwining storylines of a diverse group of Los Angelenos as they navigate their way through romance and heartbreak over the course of one Valentine's Day. Couples and singles experience the pinnacles and pitfalls of finding, keeping or ending relationships in a day in the life of love.

TODD’S WORD: It’s no secret that Jonathan is a big fan of chick flicks, but I tend to avoid them like the plague. I’m truly blessed to be married to Lynda. She is beautiful, smart, funny, sensitive…and doesn’t really care for chick flicks. So even she was surprised when I came home from Blockbuster with Valentine’s Day.

JONATHAN’S WORD: You are correct. I do like a good romance, your wife Lynda is awesome, and I too am surprised that you came home from Blockbuster with Valentine’s Day instead of Ninja Assassin.

TODD’S WORD: I couldn’t help think of the movie Crash when I watched this.

JONATHAN’S WORD: I had the same thought, but I’d go back even earlier to Robert Altman’s Short Cuts, probably the first story of its kind, weaving the stories of different characters whose lives intersect throughout the film.

TODD’S WORD: Crash did a great job of weaving several different stories of several different people together into one big story with some a few twists and some big surprises. Valentine’s Day tries to do the same thing. Unfortunately the stories aren’t that original (friends become lovers, husband is a cheater, the nice guy gets the girl and a homosexual surprise character), the twists and the surprises can be seen a mile away.

JONATHAN’S WORD: Yes, the surprises really weren’t that surprising. I probably drove my wife nuts with my constant commentary, “Okay, now his mom’s going to walk in.” “The kid is going to end up with that box of flowers.”

TODD’S WORD: If you have seen the trailer, you know this cast list reads like the who’s who of Hollywood. And while most of them are fun to watch (Ashton Kutcher being the exception), they really don’t have much to work with. As far as Kutcher goes, I’m just going to say it…he is a terrible actor. It should be no surprise that he plays a dimwitted heartthrob with a sensitive side. I know I was shocked too.

JONATHAN’S WORD: I have to completely disagree with you there. Although I’m not a fan of Kutcher, I didn’t feel that way at all. As a matter of fact, he was one of the few character’s I liked, and I thought his performance was genuine.

The “few likable characters” was the big problem for me in this flick. I don’t mind if a film shows real characters with real flaws…but this film had a bunch of turds—people that just irritated me. Out of the entire ensemble cast, I can count maybe three likable characters in the entire story, probably only accounting for about 15 minutes of screen time.

TODD’S WORD: I can’t argue with that.

JONATHAN’S WORD: And I also found the film just plain discouraging of how depraved our society has become. Here’s another PG-13 film that crosses the line by a mile. I’m all for pausing movies and talking with our kids about real issues…but this movie is over the top. Hookups, phone sex, scene after scene of unmarried lovers waking up together. And don’t forget the theme I’ve seen in SO MANY films in the last decade—the situation where the man pledges his love to his girlfriend after they wake up together, only for the girl to say, “I’m sorry, I’m just not that serious.” In other words, I’m okay with sex, but not commitment.

TODD’S WORD: Hookup 101.

But I was glad to see that a few characters seemed to have a more traditional conviction about what true love is.

JONATHAN’S WORD: True. And those FEW characters (heavy emphasis on the word ‘few’) were the film’s only redeeming moments. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to redeem the entire movie for me, so I say, SKIP IT!

TODD’S WORD: Valentine’s Day could have been great, instead just more of the same. I say rent it…but ONLY IF IT’S FREE.

SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
No way. This is a typical PG-13 movie where almost every scene is talking about sex or something sexual. The overwhelming majority of couples are either living together or involved sexually.

Side Note:
As said above, we don’t recommend your kids see this film. But on the occasion that they actually have already seen it, you may want to dialogue about the film with them. These questions below may be a help to you.

Conversation Starter
Three Simple Questions (with Answers You May Be Looking for):

1. What are some of the messages or themes you observed in this movie?
2. How do you suppose we—as serious Christ-followers—should react to this movie?
3. How can we move from healthy, Bible-based opinions about this movie to actually living out those opinions?