Valentine's Day

Who told me that Valentine's Day was a good film that I should watch? I know someone did. Will anyone own up?

OK. It's not actually dreadful. It's just tediously formulaic in a "Modern" kinda way. On the plus side, the relentless twists and overly calculated lack of sentimentality mean that the film just about avoids getting too... sentimental. Even then it's a close-run thing though.

To say the film is an Americanised version of Love Actually is so obvious I can't imagine anyone not saying it. Nevertheless, it's also a statement of fact. One that says everything you need to know about what's wrong with it. As well as everything that's not quite wrong.

In fact, it's the not-quite-wrongness that makes the film so frustrating to watch. The film vacillates between moments when I smile wryly, to moments when i want to pull my hair out. With plenty of dull "meh" periods in between.

It's confused. It tries to be both a romance and a smartass comedy. Equally and at the same time. It's a combination that just doesn't work. It is, however, very Modern.