In Love and War
Sandra Bullock has made a couple of poor career moves since she shot to stardom after outshining Keanu Reeves in Speed. In Love and War, however, shows that given the right role she can be more than just a pretty face. Richard Attenborough’s latest film is based on the experiences of a youthful Ernest Hemingway, one of America’s most influential novelists, during first World War Italy. After volunteering to work with the Red Cross, Hemingway (Chris O’Donnell) is injured whilst bravely rescuing a wounded soldier, and is taken to a hospital where he is nursed back to health by Agnes von Kurowsky (Bullock). She is also a volunteer from America and, despite her being eight years his senior, he falls in love with her and doesn’t rest until she gives in to his boyish charm.
The film focuses on Kurowsky’s choice between the budding author and a mature Italian doctor offering an extravagant and more stable lifestyle in Venice. Bullock is excellent as the kind-hearted nurse eager to keep her options open and experience life to the full. She is understandably hesitant to risk it all for an immature kid she is not sure she even loves, and whose only vision of the future is " You’ll be making the old place spick-and-span, while I write great words." The viewer is made to understand her dilemma and share her doubts about the romance, even to the point where the audience no longer wants the relationship to go ahead. This is heightened by a slightly dodgy performance from O’Donnell who is clearly a beginner when it comes to character acting.
In Love and War is unpredictable and doesn’t rush the plot; it is over an hour before there is even a kiss. Unlike similar films it is not embarrassingly corny, excluding perhaps the inevitable line "Little did I realise that this time would change my life forever." There is not enough detail for it to be regarded as a true biography but the content is thoughtful enough to make up for this. There are also some memorable scenes which help to raise it above the average, such as when a tranquil grassy hill on a Summer’s day is suddenly engulfed by thousands of fighting soldiers.
So long as you don’t mind a film in which the main characters are called Aggy and Ernie it is well worth seeing for those interested in relationships. Chris
