Love Actually - Hasn’t dated so well…

[SMAJJ]

Following on from an earlier thread regarding Four Weddings, I watched Love Actually a few years back and can remember a few things that made me think it’s not dated so well!
Fat shaming, misogyny, homophobic but the worse one for me personally was Colin Firth’s character using an offensive ableist slur…
AIBU and overthinking it - it’s what it is yadda yadda even though it makes me cringe and is slightly triggering ( child has a disability)

its on over Christmas and it’s annoying me that it’ll be lumped in as a great Christmas film but I find it really outdated and offensive!

I really hate that kind of stuff: it’s nasty and outdated!!
Someone give my head a wobble but be kind if you do….

I didn't like Pretty Woman when it came out. Rich man buys sex worker.

🙄

no I don’t.

However

1. i wonder if many mumsnetters poured scorn on the film’s language at the time. Tell you what, go back through all the threads saying how much they loved the film when it was released. See how many posts you see from people decrying the language used. It was a different time.
2. if you have an issue with this film, then you must be exhausted from all the many many many tv programmes and films that are the same and worse

I remember being really embarrassed at the cinema at Joanna Page’s nude pretend sex scenes wtf was that about. Not one to watch as a family Christmas film purely because of that

I just think it shows that all the good looking people can pretty much do that they want. HATED the scene with Laura Linney’ love interest not sticking around.

Woah @Rancidaluminiumhold your horses…. I just said the ableist slur triggers me… I totally take on board others who love the film, people who don’t like the film, people like me that need to just get over it, don’t watch it again etc no one’s getting arsey!!!
But in answer to your question it is exhausting being me but that’s just because I’m always tired!!!

So you must be triggered by watching so much on tv from, let’s say 1995 and backwards?

Jesus get a grip. Fun sponge much?

Out of interest, I’m going to check out some of the mumsnet threads on Love Actually around its release date

and I reckon there won’t be even one reference to the language deployed. And many of those posters will have disabilities themselves and / or have children with disabilities saying how much they love the film.

Projecting much.

He didn’t stick around because there was nothing to stick around for.

I get where you’re coming from, honestly! Maybe it’s Love Actually that I’ve always remembered since having my son… another poster was spot on, it was just as triggering back then for people but I didn’t have my son back then so ‘didn’t care’ - that poster earlier in this thread was spot on!!

S—z was not ok twenty years ago. I remember hearing an American describing something jagged looking as “sp—zed out” and being quite shocked - that was early 2000s. I think in the US it was more of an “ok term to use culturally” then, but hadn’t been in the uk for a while before that.

I agree with you OP, I put it on a couple of days ago as I wrapped up some presents for some familiar Christmassy background noise and I thought wow I can't believe we used to watch this crap, it's horrible. It doesn't deserve this popularity and success. Full of insults, phobias and isms.

And I wonder if a single mumsnetter expressed disdain on mumsnet at the time about the language.

because I’m looking at some threads from back then and literally not ONE mention about the language. Not one have I come across.

The only storyline I like is Bill Nighy and Rab C. Nesbitt. Funny and touching.

Really like Bill speaking to one of “Ant or Dec”.

I always wonder if Colin in the USA with the sex mad beautiful girls is really a dream sequence. It surely ought to be. Pure fantasy. I never think of that as real; I’d be shouting at the telly “ this would never happen “.

Most people aren’t bothered now but we know not to say certain words . I’m really of the view if you don’t like something just switch off .

I google searched and found this from 2004

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/special_needs/21339-lou-i-ve-got-a-response-re-letter-about-love

did you read it?

it is 21 posts from a handful of posters talking about a complaint they made re use of the word, and then the Op says the response to the complaint may start WW3.

I imagine meaning how dedicated to many mumsnetters were at the time to the film!

The thing I've always found weird is all the comments about Martine McCutcheon being fat! She doesn't look fat at all! I had a similar issue with Bridget Jones, really a feature of the time period

Well as BeNoisyFish has just demontrated, there was at least one.
They discuss getting letters of apology from the director, so at least he acknowledged even back then that it was in bad taste.

It's an absurd comedy, not a thought-provoking drama.

**says:
"Dear xxx(my real name)
I'm very sorry for the offence caused to you and other members of mumsnet.com by the line in Love Actually. I absolutely didn't think it through and made a mistake.
Thank you for your letter, which I agree with, and appreciate your writing - I trust I won't be so casual and careless with such a thing again.
Yours sincerely
Richard Curtis"

this is the personal hand written letter that RC sent each of those mumsnetters

Well you did wonder if anyone objected on MN

Yes he did acknowledge
really impressed with his response actually!

Yes I should have realised that there would quite obviously be at least someone!

The first time I’ve heard someone call Love Actually triggering!

It’s just a film, watch it or don’t. Should we never watch old films because they are out dated? What shelf life do films have?