One day

Went to see One Day yesterday. As I usually do after watching a movie, I next went to wikipedia to read up more about it.

Was shocked to read that it received 'mostly negative' reviews. I thought it was pretty good.

After reading a few of the aforementioned reviews, I understand what the problem is, and though I disagree with the resulting negativity in the review, I can see where it's coming from.

You see, One Day is a novel-turned-movie. As with most movies that were sourced from a novel, the movie is a disappointment to those who read the book, mainly because there's always going to be more material in the book, and therefore some of your favourite passages from the book are going to be removed, or changed so that they'll lose some of their original goodness. This is even true for beyond-feature-length movies sourced from novels; for instance, when I saw the horse whisperer after reading the book, I found it a disappointment too, even if my brother and sister who saw it at the same time as me did like it.

Ignoring that, there's a second problem; while it's a love story, I don't think it qualifies as a 'romantic comedy'. For it to be a romantic comedy, you'd expect 'happily ever after', and you'd expect a story about two people quickly (or slowly, as the case may be) falling in love with eachother, overcoming some problems that stand in the way of their relationship. Most importantly, you'd expect it to be lighthearted and funny—you'd expect it to be a comedy.

One day doesn't deliver that; if you go see it, expecting a romantic comedy, you'll be sorely disappointed. But if you accept the fact that it isn't a romantic comedy, it's still a very interesting film. It's not lighthearted, but that doesn't mean there isn't a laugh or a cry in there. And, without wanting to spoil the plot, while the movie doesn't bring 'happily ever after', it does still come up with a believable, emotional, and very compelling ending.

The plot takes you through the 15th of July in the lives of the two main characters, every year for two decades. Sometimes they're spending that day together, sometimes they're not. Sometimes they're calling, sometimes they're fighting, sometimes they're kissing. The days shown are snapthots of both their lives; this adds an interesting angle to the plot, as much of the story, much of what is going on, can't actually be shown on-screen, since it happened in between the two 15ths of July.

While, as said, I wouldn't describe the movie as a romantic comedy, I think it can be accurately described as a romantic drama. It's not going to be a legendary movie, a must-have-seen, one which you'll grow to hate over watching it on every TV station's prime time over the next few years. But it's a charming, novel, and interesting piece of drama.

Did I like it? Definitely. When I go to the movies, sometimes I want a silly movie, some action flick that I can have a bit fun laughing at; but sometimes I want a movie that touches my heart and makes me reflect on my own life while feeling for the characters. When I went to see The Expendables, I have a lot of fun for one night, and then promptly forgot about it. But 'One Day' rang true with me on an emotional level; and for that alone, I can recommend it.

Even if that wasn't the reason why I chose to pay €8 for this movie rather than anything else. I'll be perfectly honest: Anne Hathaway. Good actress, and sporting the most interesting pair of bright eyes you've ever seen; what more could one want?

A film that allows these two—eyes, and acting talent—to shine, of course. And One Day delivers.