I was struck by my curation of “best love films” not including a single movie that ends with a “happilyever- after.” I guess I care more about films in which the characters kill, die, and suffer for their love instead of living happily together forever. Films that deserve a place on this list -such as “Betty Blue”, “Brokeback Mountain”, “Passione d’amore,” and “Kırık Bir Aşk Hikayesi”- all have “unhappy” endings. Of course, the “Malady of Love” (Maladie d’amour) which gives its name to this list is also one of them. Let the movies that I only mention here be the subject of another article. Here is the list of my “Favourite 5 Love Movies.”
1.IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE
If I had only one chance to choose a film about love, it would definitely be “In the Mood for Love”! Set in the background of Hong Kong in the sixties, this masterpiece by Wong Kar Wai is the exact equivalent of the “magic of cinema.” It’s about a man and a woman, whose spouses are having an affair, and how they gradually fall for each other. However, this love doesn’t involve sexuality. They make love by gazes, small caresses, and the cigarette smoke they exhale.
It may not be convincing to most people but falling for a love like this is one of the biggest dreams of us pathological romantics! With the help of the most moving soundtrack in film, extraordinary visuals, wonderful costume design; the breath taking performances of Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung become unforgettable. This is the movie for the people who whisper their love to trees and rocks, the people who never protest loudly. Make sure to watch it if you haven’t already!
2.ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND
I wonder how many people writhing in the pangs of love have wondered if it were possible to forget the person that burned them, simply by taking a pill or with the help of a machine.Offering the answer to that question, “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” is one of the most impressive love films despite its quirkiness. Following their breakup, the protagonist learns that his ex-girlfriend has erased her memories of him and decides to do the same. However, the more he thinks about it, the more distant he grows from the idea. Despite the anguish of the breakup, he believes one shouldn’t ever forget the beauty of memories, the exaltation of happy times, and what it feels like to be in love. Pain fades away, but memories stay! Created by Michel Gondry and Charlie Kaufman and directed by the former, this memorable film is a contemporary masterpiece in spite of its love/hate relationship with the viewer.
3.DEEP CRIMSON
1950s in Mexico... A man and a woman put up an advertisement, in search of a partner, in the Lonely- Hearts section of a newspaper. The widow with two kids is looking for a gentleman who looks like a French actor she adores; while the well-off man wants to meet a widow to ask her hand in marriage. In truth, the man is a gigolo and puts up the advertisements to lure wealthy widows into his trap. They are brought together by their advertisement and fall into deep crimson love. The woman is overcome by her weakness - she leaves her children at an orphanage and sets off with the man on a journey which would end in murder. Based on a true story, Deep Crimson is a wonderful film directed by legendary Mexican director Arturo Ripstein. Looking for an answer to “What can people give up or dare to do in the name of love”, the film tells the story of risking self-destruction, including the most cardinal of sins (thou shall not kill).
4.HEAVENLY CREATURES
The film begins with a portrayal of paradise. A bird’s-eye view from the verdant nature of New Zealand to a calm city... Then, we meet Juliet and Pauline, and they meet through our testament. These two young girls, who love each other very much, tread between the boundaries of love and friendship. They invite one another into their imagination and create new worlds together. This paradise gradually turns into a dark and bloody world with the pressure and misunderstanding of adults (yes, the young ones are always misunderstood). Eventually, the two girls decide to kill Pauline’s mother, whom they regard as the only obstacle in their love. This debut by Peter Jackson, who became one of the “lords” of cinema with The Lord of the Rings series, is a miniature masterpiece. It shows us how first love can cast you into dreams and how it can make anything, even murder, possible with those dreams. Melanie Lynskey and Kate Winslet perform superbly in their first appearance on the silver screen in 1994!
5.MASUMİYET
An isolated hotel in Basmane, Izmir. Uğur and Bekir are two of the customers. They’re in separate rooms.
Bekir has been in love with Uğur for 20 years while Uğur is in love with Zagor for whom he sold his body. Zagor is a criminal who is in prison more than he is free. Whichever prison that Zagor is sent to, Uğur follows and starts working at a night club and lives in a shabby hotel in the same city.
I doubt there’s any other Turkish film that has such a deep and melancholic portrayal of the malady of love as Masumiyet.
The minutes-long single take in which Bekir, portrayed by Haluk Bilginer, talks about his love for Uğur stabs the audience in the heart and can never be forgotten! Directed by Zeki Demirkubuz in 1997, Masumiyet is one of the most special films in Turkish cinema.