This Year's Love (1999)

Great movie, even if the plot is a bit flimsy. I straight-away rated it a 10 because it meets all five of my tests 1. I can follow the story, I never have to ask "what is happening here". That is good writing and directing. (both David Kane) 2. I know who the characters are. I don't have to ask "who is this and what are they doing here". 3. Superb acting, not only the seven main characters, but the others and even the uncredited extras too. That takes good directing to make sure it all happens. 4. Several memorable scenes that stand out for their meaning for the whole movie. 5. Really good dialogue. The right words at the right time. OK, it's not really a story, more a lot of incidents that are skilfully, if loosely tied together. Do real people live like this? I don't, but I've enjoyed watching and listening. Three men and three women rotate partners over the course of two years, and a seventh has a girl-girl incident which fits in with all the other events. It starts with such a happy wedding, but that crashes at the reception when Danny(Douglas Henshall) trashes the wedding cake and storms out. The bride Hannah (Catherine McCormack) is in tears and heads of to the pub to get 'steamboats'. Two years later, they reconnect and head off for the much delayed honeymoon. How sweet. In between, there is an especially good scene on an escalator at a tube station. Hannah going down, Danny going up. They try to chat for a bit, then both turn to take a second look as the stairs take them apart. Very telling. Later, Danny comes to the Supermarket where Hannah is on a check-out and makes a moving, emotional speech. It works. A great performance from Jennifer Ehle too, especially a rather sad scene. There is only one silly scene, Marey and Liam bed-wrestling, with Liam still in his undies… and I 'm wondering, maybe that's how they do sex in Camden? Silly, but hilarious too. A final brief dialogue clip, Danny at the airport bar "She's not going to come…" and the guy next to him says… "I can't imagine why". But Hannah does run in and off they go to Corfu. Great.

This Year's Love was released at a time in the fit of madness that followed Four Weddings And A Funeral, when everyone was desperate to rush out their very British romantic comedies. This Year's Love sadly got lumped it with all of these (generally poor) movies, which is a pity because it's one of the finest British films of the nineties.It's not cute, although it does have charm. It's not a comedy, although there are some very funny bits in it. It's not particularly romantic, although it's probably a lot more honest about love than anything Richard Curtis has ever written. What it is is an example of the kind of movie Britain can do like almost nobody else: a small, dense, focused study of well-written characters being slowly destroyed by their own flaws, unfolding gradually like a really great novel. It's dense and meaty and thoughtful and sad, and essential viewing for anyone who's left cold by the more treacle vision of the Four Weddings... school of movie-making.It does have a frantic dash to the airport at the end, I must admit. Although even that defies normal expectations.

Just as in real life, we are introduced to characters who are not going anywhere, have only vague goals in life, and are still experimenting, most of them being fairly young. Because the film is set in Camden Town, the characters we are introduced to are fairly extreme in the above respects, but such are exactly the sort of people I met and got to know in places in London like that. The choices of relationship reflect the immature experimentation. The cinema viewer can see that the relationships cannot possibly work out. The whole film was so realistic that I sometimes did not know whether to laugh or to cry. Sophie (Jennifer Ehle), the upper class lady living in a down-trodden environment but loath to cut off her ties with her roots, was particularly well played.After getting to know the characters through their interactions with each of the others, the film then steered to an end which, on reflection, seemed to be the only possible solution for everybody.This film is brilliant. It is far more realistic than The Full Monty, let alone Notting Hill.

Well, I have read other comments less than flattering but my wife and I loved it. I don't care about the coincidences and any small contrivances, the characters were so well portrayed that by the end I knew them all personally and could relate them to people in my past. Don't get picky, do you want more of this or more 'You've got Mail'? I know what I prefer.