Larry Mantle and KPCC film critics Lael Loewenstein of Variety and Henry Sheehan of henrysheehan.com discuss the week’s new film releases including Valentine’s Day, Percy Jackson and The Olympians: The Lightning Thief, The Wolfman, North Face, Red Riding Trilogy and Terribly Happy. Larry will also discuss the Santa Barbara Film Festival that runs through this weekend. Later, do romantic films distort our ideas about love?
Skeptics say Valentine’s Day was invented to make us miserable. What about movies? Whether we like it or not, many of us get our ideas about love from Hollywood. In most romantic comedies, boy meets girl, and a few silly events later, wedding bells chime happily ever after. If we look beyond the cinematic surface, what’s often revealed are a host of crazy characters whose actions would never fly in real life—or would result in a restraining order (High Fidelity). Have your favorite romantic comedies (Princess Bride, Pretty Woman) raised unrealistic expectations about “soul mates” and “destiny"? Do films of this genre hurt or help in our quest for love? Add your comments on the AirTalk page.
Guests:
Lael Loewenstein, Variety
Henry Sheehan, henrysheehan.com
Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor
Claudia Puig, USA Today