Rewatching the film with fresh eyes made me realize that beyond aiming to be the ultimate romantic comedy ever made, Love Actually is even more so trying to be a musical.
that “Love, Actually” shouldn’t be compared to other romantic comedies. Instead
To be honest, if you’re going to compare it to any one film you should probably compare it to Crash, the working title of which I’d like to think was Racism, Actually.
…it offers up at least three disturbing lessons about love. First, that love is overwhelmingly a product of physical attraction and requires virtually no verbal communication or intellectual/emotional affinity of any kind. Second, that the principal barrier to consummating a relationship is mustering the nerve to say “I love you”—preferably with some grand gesture—and that once you manage that, you’re basically on the fast track to nuptial bliss. And third, that any actual obstacle to romantic fulfillment, however surmountable, is not worth the effort it would require to overcome.
Dude, seriously, lighten up. It’s just a movie. Also, not to refute your thesis or anything, but…
And, unbelievably, FiveThirtyEight takes a shot, too.