Trailer: Larry Crowne

Ok, this looks like a run-of-the-mill drama/rom-com, the only reason I'm posting it as an interest is the talent involved and the mildly topical subject matter. Tom Hanks plays a man who, having just lost his job, goes back to college to find some qualification, and ends up finding himself along the way, as well as Julia Roberts, his class teacher. Sound familiar? Hopefully Hanks and Roberts can make it interesting by returning to their previous superb form in this, Hanks' first directorial role since his debut back in 1996 with That Thing You Do!. At least we can hope.

Review: Blue Valentine

Although a basic concept in theory Blue Valentine manages to transform the simple love story into something altogether more complex. Not an easy watch, but certainly a rewarding one.

They say love and hate are different sides of the same coin. A thin veil separating feelings of strong adoration and strong detester. But what is left when both of these feelings are gone? The answer is indifference, a feeling more corrosive to a relationship than dislike or disdain can ever be. This is the area that Blue Valentine exposes, as well as everything in between. Not only are all these phases of a relationship shown, they are in shown in tangent to each other. This could have ended in disaster but is actually one of the elements of the film that makes it stand out from the crowd of other romantic dramas. It’s directed in a way which uses jumps in the timeline very effectively showing the beginning and the end of the relationship simultaneously. This makes the story more than just a linear process tracking a relationship. Depending on your preference, this can either provide an interesting prospective or complicate a rather simple narrative. It is a concept that allows us to see the striking changes that the relationship goes through. Showing scenes from the beginning and the end really serves to emphasise the message of the film, that passion fades.