Ｍｙ Ｆａｖｏｕｒｉｔｅ Ｆｉｌｍ

I have always wondered: What’s the purpose of Christmas? Is it merely a traditional ritual to celebrate the birth of Jesus? Is it a perfect reason to plunge into an orgy of food and fun?Or， is it but a joke， bearing the intention to make those happy people happier and the lonely ones even lonelier?

Thanks to Love Actually， one of my favourite films， the answer to the mystery was finally unveiled. Following the paths of eight couples and the ways they cope with their ups and downs in love and relationships during the month of chaos preceding Christmas， this hilarious rom-com creates a unique evocation of Christmas: without any plan or agenda， to express， to confess and to reveal the existence of our deep-buried， long-forgotten， but most cherished emotion in the world， an emotion that makes us mad and miserable but manage to remind us that we are alive and why we are. Christmas is a time for us to rediscover the ubiquity of love. We endure the maddeningly complicated food preparation in steaming kitchens; we squeeze through the torrent of crowds and packed shops; we hunt for the perfect presents despite the hectic hustle and bustle of holiday shopping; and we crack our heads trying to figure out the first line on a Christmas card——not much because we need to or have to， but because we would love to.

Love is the ultimate answer. “Often it is not particularly dignified or newsworthy，” as the film tells， “but it’s always there——fathers and sons， mothers and daughters， husbands and wives， boyfriends， girlfriends， old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers as far as I know， none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate and revenge. They were all messages of love. If you look for it， I’ve got a sneaky feeling you’ll find that love actually is all around.”

Unfolding the love-maps of a heartbroken writer， a widowed stepfather， an aging rock star， two porn artists and even the “Prime Minister”， Love Actually is indicating， in the quest of true love， some seek it， some need it， some spurn it and some pay for it， but we are all involved. Some pour out their ardent hearts on notes and cards. Some reach out through the magic of music. As for those differentiated by the barrier of language， we see on screen how they try to utter the unutterable with their awkward gestures， beaming grins and nervous breathing variations when they look into each other’s eyes. It seems that miraculously， the inability to communicate in words turns out to be what helps them to know how much they really belong together.

The reason why I love this film so much is not simply the magic of Hugh Grant’s dance that threatens to spilt my face in half， or the power of the sight of the entire city following Colin Firth in search of his true love and cheering for the couple’s happy ending that fills my heart with almost aching joy， or the amazement seeing one group of instruments after another popping up amid the spectators， until an entire symphonic band is filling the church with lovely， lovely Beatles， or the blend of the relationships both sublime and ridiculous that takes me on an emotional roller coaster that one minute I’m on the verge of crying from sadness， and the next， crying again because I’m laughing so hard.

I love it for it speaks the universal language of love that ignores all the differences between peoples and nations and serves as the source of inspiration for all. I love it for it is telling me， no matter who we are， no matter where we are from， we all belong to the same species that can never ever escape the sweet agonies of love.

One scene that strikes me most comes when a young man， head over ears in love with his best friend’s new bride， fights down all his scrupulous assessing for possible consequences of his actions， and bursts free， finally， from the confines of worldly restraints， plucks up courage and speaks out his heart: “To me， you are perfect...and my wasted heart will always love you， till you look like this(the picture of an adorable mummy).” Watching him turning around， and strolling away into the frosty deserted winter street， the girl catches up， seals his lips with a friendly kiss， and runs back. As the actor stands motionless for a while， as though in great pain， my heart starts aching and weeping for the fruitless torments of unattainable love. However， even with a deep sigh and tears twinkling， he continues his walk again， murmuring to himself: “Enough. Enough now.” His faint yet angelic smile illuminates， all of a sudden， the gloomy world of mine.

From Shanghai to London， from Sydney to New York City， even in corners around the world where life is hard， love is always tattooed on our minds. Unlikely as it seems， any character that we come across in life’s drama has his or her own tale of love， which might not be thrilling to tell， but often gives thoughts that may lie too deep for tears.

Christmas， as all its other equivalents in different cultures， is a timely reminder of the fact that our world is not a place of hatred and greed， and our life is not about the prosperity in our bank accounts or the climbs up the social ladders; we are living for something called love， unconditional and overabundant love. Even though Christmas is mostly a time we do nothing but hang around with friends， killing time in cafe or gorging the night away on some not-so-mouthwatering feasts; even though we secretly complain all the time that the new sweater we receive is not impressive enough， or the holiday shows on “telly” are as tedious as usual; even though the greatest achievement that we accomplish during Christmas is probably getting ourselves drunk with tons of Guinness and crazy Christmas carols， we are feeling， more strongly than ever， that we are warmed by the sense of belonging and the knowledge that someone will always be there， reaching out for us， rain or shine， fair or foul.

Next time when snowflakes are kissing the evergreen， when street lights start glowing again， when the melody of Silent Night is dancing in the air and when Love Actually rebroadcasts on HBO， “without hope or agenda”， let’s tell each other in any language we want: “Merry Christmas， and you know， I love you.”

評委寄語:

By posing the question about the purpose of Christmas， the author reveals the true message behind the film. The judges are all impressed by the smooth flow of the language. The article also reflects the author’s understanding of western culture. It ends beautifully with a depiction of a lovely scene. It has a very touching effect which makes people want to see the film.