Subverting My Expectations: Weird Valentine’s Day Movie Picks
Let’s talk about Valentine ’s Day, shall we? Well, since this was our (mine and Martin’s) first Valentine’s Day as a married couple, we decided to make it special. To spice things up a bit, in our movie picks and stay away from the usual rom-coms. Not a good idea? Au contraire, my friends.
It turned out to be one of the best decisions ever. And what are the subverting expectations movie picks you might ask? Well, for one we made the Valentine’s Day into Valentine’s weekend. An anti-Valentine’s Day marathon with the most unlikely movie selection ever.
And just what that entailed? Well, we stared Friday night with The Negotiator. That’s right. Nothing screams Valentine’s Day as a high suspense hostage themed thriller am I right? Oh yeah. I’ve never even heard of this masterpiece, let alone seen it but it was soooo much worth the wait all these years. Seriously. Amazing direction by F. Gary Gray, fantastic cast led by Samuel L. Jackson and Kevin Spacey and brilliant supporting cast (David Morse, Paul Giamatti, Ron Rifkin and the late John Spencer and J.T. Walsh make one hell of a movie. It was nail-biting and intense and frankly it was the thing that we needed. Saturday was more mellow and relaxed and since we were both home, Saturday was turned out to be weird/fucked up love stories gone wrong type of a day. A post Valentine’s Day just because we had some pizza and wine leftover from the day before.
Gone Girl, Harold and Maude and Freeway – the 1996 cult movie with Reese Witherspoon in the lead. Awesome right? We thought so too. I’m a sucker for David Fincher’s movies, Martin loves Kiefer Sutherland and Harold and Maude was a coin-toss result. The other option was Shampoo (another Hal Ashby’s classic).
And what these movies taught us about Valentine’s Day? Well, for one you don’t need cheesy rom-coms to fully appreciate Valentine’s Day. As long as you’re together with your partner, boyfriend, husband or loved one in general you’re bound to have a great time. Secondly, setting the mood is crucial. Martin was working until 9 PM and although very tired, he managed to relax and enjoy the day. And last but not least…. You don’t need a lot of money in order to have a great Valentine’s Day. A cheap wine, awesome pizza and fantastic movies are all the things you need.
