DVD Review: My Summer of Love
This movie is one hundred percent drama, no doubt about it. And anyone who knows me knows I am not a big fan of the drama. However, every once in a while, on very rare occasions, a film of this genre shines brightly enough to light the way past my dislike, thus providing me with an unexpected enjoyment. This film is not one of those movies. Obviously other people love it, as can be seen by the average Amazon.com score 4½ out of 5 stars, but as typical with most dramas, I found it to be dull and boring. Yes, the acting was very good, the scenery was excellent, and the cinematography was well done, but when all the characters do is hang around and talk talk talk talk talk and hang out and talk talk talk talk talk... it just makes me want to turn on something, not stick around and see what happens, like... oh, let me guess... more talking? Yeah, thought so.
So the story is about two teenage girls. First up is Mona. She is your normal everyday working-class girl who lives in the room above her brother's pub... or at least what used to be his pub. You see, her brother, Phil, recently found God while in prison, and now that he's out, much to Mona's dismay, he's decided to dump out all the alcohol and turn the area into a place of worship. Anyway, Mona gets around on her little red motor bike, and on this one fateful summer's day we find Mona laying next to her bike in a field off the side of the road. And with that, along comes our second main character, Tamsin, riding in on her white horse. She looks adamantly at Mona, trying to figure is she's injured or just relaxing. Of course, she was just resting, so the two get to talking as they head down the road to Tamsin's hugely gigantic castle-like mansion. Tamsin invites Mona in, but Mona declines, and so Tamsin heads up the driveway to the house, which probably takes like an hour. I mean seriously, the place is freakin' huge!
We then find Mona later that night "in relations" with Ricky, her married boyfriend, who then happens to dump her as soon as he finishes. The bastard! Anyway, Mona finally decides to take Tamsin up on her offer and heads to her place. On her hour-long walk up the driveway, she runs across Tamsin's father leaving, and although he has no idea who she is, he also doesn't seem to care that much and tells her to go head, that Tamsin is in her room. Inside, Mona finds Tamsin playing the cello, and the two get back to talking and hanging out. Apparently Tamsin was kicked out of school for the semester and is considered a bad influence. When Mona reveals that her dad left early on, and her mom died of cancer, Tamsin reveals that she too has a sibling, a sister, whom she says died from anorexia. Lets see, then they hang out some more and talk, and... oh, eventually they go to the area where they believe Tamsin's father is having an affair with his secretary or some such lady. Anyway, after Mona decides that a garden gnome would make a good decoration for the driver's side window, they both take off running.
Then comes more hanging out, they dance a little, sleep in the same bed, ride on Mona's motorbike, and go hiking. Ah, but after all that, we are treated to a little bikini action as they jump in a river and start splashing each other. Plus, they kiss. That part was nice. Then they hang out some more, Mona tries on some clothes that Tamsin has, uh... what else... oh yeah, and Phil's been working on building this big huge cross that he's going to put up on some hill. Anyway, then we're given another little treat, Mona and Tamsin back in bed, and this time their neither clothed nor sleeping, if you know what I mean. You don't really see anything though. There is some brief nudity and a little kissing, but that's about it. When they hear a car outside, Tamsin goes to the window and see's Phil, but they just let him leave without going down to see what he wants.
Later on the two decide to make up some abortion story and go confront the wife of Mona's ex-boyfriend. Then we find them hanging out... again. This time they're just laying out on a hill, but hey, at least Tamsin's topless. No, nudity can't completely vanquish boredom, but it does help. Anyway, Phil finds them, and asks that Mona come to his cross raising thingy. So later, at the cross rasing thingy, we find them hanging out again. And then, lets see... they're in a bathroom with Mona in the bath pretending to be possessed by the devil... then later they do some wigi board thing... then... uh... oh yeah, they eat some mushrooms that Tamsin had stashed away. Then we find them at some dance or something where the effects of the mushrooms start to kick in and make them all act the fool, so much so that they are thrown out. Then more stuff happens until we finally reach the end. Now, sometimes movies that are fairly boring break out in the last few minutes with a surprise ending that picks your interest right up off the floor and stuffs it back inside your skull... well, this movie started to, but then it ended.
I'm sorry I made it sound so boring, but I just have to write it like I feel it. This is a drama, so obviously there's not going to be aliens, gun battles, or fancy martial arts feats, but there also wasn't enough erotic scenes which can sometimes help to keep my interest. This movie is really about the emotional bond that these two girls form, how they meet, become friends, and fall in love even though they are from two different worlds. Does it succeed in that respect? I have no idea. Like I said, I was bored most of the way through, so it didn't hit me with any other emotional impact. All of the reviews at Amazon.com seem to rave about it though, so I would guess that it does in fact succeed.
My Summer of Love was released on October 4, 2005 by Universal Studios Home Video. It was directed by Pawel Pawlikowski, and stars Nathalie Press as Mona, Emily Blunt as Tamsin, Paddy Considine as Phil, Dean Andrews as Ricky, Michelle Byrne as Ricky's wife, Paul Antony-Barber as Tamsin's father, and Lynette Edwards as Tamsin's mother. Check out the official My Summer of Love website for more information.
