MovieChat Forums > Love Story (1970) Discussion > Just a few thoughts...

Just a few thoughts...

posted 18 years ago by eriklove-1
4 replies | jump to latest

I don't think it mattered if Jenny died or not. The story could of been about any kind of love as long as the love seemed eternal. Death made that work best I guess.

The purpose of this story was to send a message. Love is transcendent, love is...something that happens and we can't help it.

It almost seems Brechtian, in that this movie was teaching a lesson before anything else. Once more, it even dissed the constrains of capitalism with Oliver disowning his father. Another Brechtian thing about it was the directing. If you notice, the camera focuses on Oliver's face when thinking about Jenny dying. While it may of had an adverse affect by making things too emotional, it also worked in Brechtian terms by pushing the actor on us rather than puling away in some panaramic view. The shot of Oliver and Jenny at her death bed was shown at a distance though and that was definately Brechtian, because the death needed to be as distant as possible for it to be put in proper perspective with the message...which is love. It is tough to do a movie about an emotion like love and try and seperate the other emotions from the matter. Frankly, I think doing that just sends the message that we are stupid and need one thing spooned to us at a time. But hey, I can appricriate being called dumb!

By the way, I just loved this movie!

[–] martinhe 18 years ago

Would you mind explaining "Brechtian" to me? I appreciate new ways of looking on film and this sounds interesting :)

When I look back at it I don't find many pleasure points and can't see what I liked about it, but I was truly caught when watching. I even cried at the end, which is something I rarely do to movies. I love it when they reach out to me like that!

And I guess you're on to something in your discussion. It is called Love Story after all. AND THE MUSIC ROCKS! :D

[–] eriklove-1 18 years ago

Brecht was a German playwrite and director. He was Communist and often dissed capitalism in his plays. This is probably best shown in "Mother Courage and Her Children".

Brecht always tries to teach a lesson in his plays. He tried to cut off the emotions by doing things like telling what happens before it happens in the form of summaries of what happens printed on boards. He also had his actors turn their back to the stage, which is totally forbidden in most cases.

I might be jumping the gun a little by calling Love Story Brechtian, but if this was about more than teaching a lesson, it should of played out like a love epic (like Forest Gump). That would of meant the movie would of lasted three hours and maybe they didn't want to spend too much to make it. I doubt that's the case though. 1970 was before the VCR, so there wasn't a demand for cookie-cutter movies that could fit on tapes. It seemed shorter on purpose.

I think Love Story could of been great as a love epic and it could of taught a lesson too. As a love epic however, Jenny dying would of totally killed the lesson teaching part of things and maybe that's why the movie was shorter. But again, I don't think Jenny had to die. Although, the book kind of demanded she die. It could of been rewritten. I could see an adaptation of this movie working very well.

I hope I answered your questions about Brecht.

[–] Vincenzo_Coccotti 18 years ago

This movie would not have worked as an epic 3 hour type film - IMHO.

The shortness of this movie emphasized the shortness of Oliver and Jenny's time together and the brevity of Jenny's life...

[–] lroy77 14 years ago

Am I the only one who thinks that it can also be a love of money? I mean, with the upper class Ivy League status, the mansion, the maid (presumably there's at least a chef too), Oliver III's distaste of Jennifer and her lower middle-class background, Oliver IV's refusal of making amends with his father to pay for college (forcing him to beg for a scholarship), forcing both of them to take petty jobs just to pay bills and Harvard, and ONLY when Jennifer's on her last legs dying...does Oliver literally grovel to his father to ask for a (mere) $5000.

It can also be a lack of love for the Church (particularly Catholic since Jennifer doesn't practice her faith), or in religion in general. You'd think once she's on her deathbed, this would be paramount (I know it would be for me), but no...she has to be Gdamnging to the end.