I enjoy most movies or books which tell a richly romantic story. To me there is something profoundly compelling about a romantic story. There is true drama in the situation. There are obstacles to be overcome, misunderstandings to be sorted out. Two lovers must often have to deal with difficult or painful situations. But in the end, in the more optimistic scenarios, love wins out and the two lovers come together to build a life together.
I know. At moments we are tempted to look at the some of the romantic situations and say to ourselves, "That is just a little sappy." But if you have ever been caught up in the euphoria of falling in love, those feelings aren't sappy at all. The emotions and the drama, the joy and the angst, are all too real. I remember what it felt like to fall in love. When I met my wife, I was maybe 19 years old. Life was very confusing and full of uncertainties. But one thing was beyond doubt in my mind. I was in love. Head over heels in love and each day, I lived for the moment I was going to be with my girl that day. Not many things mattered more than that. Life was glorious and wonderful and I felt more alive than I had ever felt before that.
Even when a movie utilizes a comedic take on romance, as in
Romancing the Stone, or in the Rock Hudson/Doris Day light romantic comedies, it was still great entertainment fare. In the end, something good came out of all the misunderstandings and misadventures.
I would say that one of my favorite romantic films is
Somewhere in Time, with Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour. The storyline is wonderful and rich. The playwright has to travel back in time to find his true love and having found it, after numerous obstacles, has that love taken away much too soon. The last rendition of
Titanic tells an equally lovely love story, set against the backdrop of the loss of that magnificent ship. The Broadway production of
Wicked presents a story of true love that is won only at great cost and enormous sadness and sacrifice. It is a story told in soaring drama and with music that will evoke sadness, joy, a sense of loss, and a realization that love and friendship transcend anything else we might strive to possess. And of course, I very much enjoyed the movie most aptly named
Love Story.
I am at heart a hopeless romantic and will remain one until the day I die. I have been blessed to have fallen in love twice in my life. I know that falling in love is as much a result of a temporary chemical concoction in the brain as it is the stuff about which poets write. Nonetheless, if I had my choice of being famous or rich or very much in love with the people who mean so very much to me, and I could have only one, I'd rather be in love. I have been there twice. Nothing, bar none, can compare with that state of mind. So you can begin to understand my taste in movies and musicals.
Life is just too short and loving and being loved is about all that holds our lives together. Without that, our lives won't mean very much. Our lives will not be happy ones. Romance, of the good sort, reminds us what is really important. Reminds me every time I see a romantic movie or play, that I'd rather be in love.
