Happy Valentine's Day - Page 4

Hi Minty

How was the movie?

I liked it.

Yes, it was a bit too erotic and didn't stick to the book's scope
But there was passion, lots of it, and the dark brooding atmospheric feel which made the Gothic elements come alive.

maybe it just interpreted the book a bit differently

The acting was really good, especially Margot Robbie

Originally posted by: asmitamohanty

You know Most people make fun of me because I tend to judge films regardless of genre , by how they treat relationships, especially romantic ones.But for me, emotional integrity is non-negotiable. I can’t fully enjoy an action film, a thriller, or even a suspense drama if the emotional under-current feels hollow or underdeveloped.Spectacle alone doesn’t impress me. Grandeur, VFX, scale .. they may dazzle for a moment, but they don’t make me care.

At the end of the day, storytelling is about investment. You want someone to win. You want the stakes to matter. And that only happens when you’re emotionally connected , when you understand what a character stands to lose, who they love, and why it matters.Without that emotional anchor, even the most technically brilliant film feels distant.

For me, relationships,especially romantic ones are the pulse of the narrative. They humanize ambition, soften rage, complicate morality, and raise the stakes in ways no explosion ever could..so I am like "chalo.. laugh on me but that's my way of watching movie"lol

Another mention,Since we are talking about romantic subplots, so even though Shahrukh Khan is called The King Of Romance but his most mature love story comes from a movie which is not about Romance....

I am talking about Mohan-Geeta in Swadesh...What makes their dynamic special is that it’s built on respect before attraction.Geeta isn’t dazzled by Mohan’s NRI status.She challenges him. Questions him. Pushes him.And Mohan doesn’t fall for her because she’s gentle or ornamental,he falls for her conviction. Her rootedness. Her refusal to compromise on education and self-respect.Their romance grows through debates about brain drain,discussions about responsibility,disagreements about tradition and progress,shared silences that feel earned

There’s no dramatic confession scene.No sweeping background score declaring destiny.Just a gradual realization.

Geeta has agency. She makes it clear she won’t leave her village simply to follow him. Mohan’s love, in turn, doesn’t shrink her ambition. It evolves him.And when Mohan ultimately chooses to come back & stay, it doesn’t feel like sacrifice for romance.It feels like emotional and moral clarity...

I loved how the movie honoured their love...

Have you seen Swadesh?

Yes I watched Swades and I think Mohan and Geeta are one of the most underrated onscreen couples...Their romance is real worldly and based on love and mutual respect.. If Geeta made Mohan introspect about his choices, Mohan too made Geeta realize that her world is not as perfect as she claims it to be...Such pairings which are built on such strong foundations will flourish and become eternal....

Originally posted by: catchm-ifucan

Yes I watched Swades and I think Mohan and Geeta are one of the most underrated onscreen couples...Their romance is real worldly and based on love and mutual respect.. If Geeta made Mohan introspect about his choices, Mohan too made Geeta realize that her world is not as perfect as she claims it to be...Such pairings which are built on such strong foundations will flourish and become eternal....

I so so so agree...Mohan and Geeta's romance is different than any other romance because it is not about love as a journey towards anything else. They go into it knowing that it will probably never be anything more than it is. Geeta has her home and her life and will not be leaving it. And she would not ask Mohan to leave his life, just for her. They are two people of equal strength and intelligence. And equal independence. There is no guilt over leaving someone broken hearted behind, or worry over hurt feelings at the end of it. Just peaceful happiness with what they can have while they have it. No worry for the future because they knew they will both be fine, too old for simple broken hearts, too centered for passionate love affairs. It is love for the sake of love, nothing else..

When Mohan was leaving, Geeta didn't ask him to stay... neither did he ask her to come with him..Not because they didn't want to be with eachother.They did but they knew that That option is always there,they didn't need to ask for it..but it should be chosen from the bottom of the heart with complete understanding, realisation,introspection and conviction.They also knew that their world is a very much integral part of their personalities and they would be incomplete without it at that point... Patience,wait and separation was the way for them.

Hii ... first toh I had missed this beautiful post....and I am sorry for that... apologies 🥹

And OMG This is such a generous message....thank you. Truly.❤️

I completely agree with you. Love stories aren’t fixed texts; they shift depending on who we are when we encounter them. The same film can feel rebellious at one point, bittersweet at another time, and quietly profound sometime. Our emotional vocabulary evolves, and so does our reading of love.

Maybe that’s why I tend to look at romance beyond “who ended up with whom.” I’m always more curious about what the characters reveal about longing, timing, freedom, or fear and how that mirrors different phases of our own lives.

As for the millennial or Gen Z question,by definition I am GenZ but I am close to millennial side .. , that's why I think I’m emotionally a little bit of both. I carry a millennial softness for grand, aching romance, but I also appreciate the Gen Z insistence on emotional clarity and self-awareness.

And yes, I’m very much a reader,I am not being able to read as much as I would like to,still I love reading. But if I had to choose, I lean slightly toward movies. There’s something about watching emotion unfold in real time,in silences, glances, background scores that moves me deeply. Books give me interiority; films give me presence. I love both, but cinema feels immediate in a way that’s hard to replicate.

Thank you again for noticing the depth... I think films deserve that kind of attention. They hold more than just stories.They actually hold versions of us.🤗