''Love and Other Disasters'' is a 2006
romantic comedy
Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typica ...
film written and directed by
Alek Keshishian
Alek Keshishian ( hy, Ալեք Գևորգի Քեշիշեան, born 30 July 1964) is an Armenian-born American film and commercial director, writer, producer and music video director. His 1991 documentary, '' Madonna: Truth or Dare'' was the high ...
. It had its world premiere at the
2006 Toronto International Film Festival. In 2008, the film had its UK premiere in London as the gala screening for the
BFI
The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery (United Kingdom), National Lot ...
22nd
London Gay and Lesbian Film Festival.
Brittany Murphy
Brittany Anne Murphy-Monjack (; November 10, 1977 – December 20, 2009) was an American actress and singer. Born in Atlanta, Murphy moved to Los Angeles as a teenager and pursued a career in acting. Her breakthrough role was as Tai Fras ...
portrays an assistant at
British ''Vogue'' who is the catalyst for a group of young friends as they try to find love.
Outfest
Outfest is an LGBTQ-oriented nonprofit that produces two film festivals, operates a movie streaming platform, and runs educational services for filmmakers in Los Angeles. Outfest is one of the key partners, alongside the Frameline Film Festival ...
2007 presented the film as one of their features.
Keshishian originally wanted
Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwyneth Kate Paltrow (; born ) is an American actress and businesswoman. She is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime Emmy Award.
Paltrow gained notice for her early work in films ...
to play Jacks, but she was pregnant at the time. Paltrow was later given a
cameo role
A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...
.
Plot
Emily "Jacks" Jackson is an American transplant living in London and working as an intern at
British ''Vogue''. She shares an apartment with her gay friend Peter Simon, a screenwriter. Afraid to be disappointed by a serious relationship, Jacks prefers to spend her free time with her friends and sleep with her ex-boyfriend, James, whom she does not love.
Peter, who has never been in a relationship, spends too much time in his dreams and as a result cannot fall in love with a real person. It gets more complicated with the entrance of Paolo, a photography assistant for one of the photographers at Vogue. As the film develops, they come to realize their mistakes and eventually reach their happy endings.
Cast
Reception
David Rooney of ''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' wrote, "wanly conceived effort looks an unlikely bet for significant bigscreen dates" and "Keshishian’s script is sloppy in both setting up and sustaining the sexual identity confusion that fuels the comic engine".
Greg Hernandez of Out in Hollywood called it "a damned entertaining film", "well-written and well-directed by Alek Keshishian and wonderfully acted" and "includes a hilarious scene featuring cameos by Gwyneth Paltrow and Orlando Bloom."
References
External links
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2006 films
2006 LGBT-related films
2006 romantic comedy films
2000s English-language films
British LGBT-related films
British romantic comedy films
English-language French films
EuropaCorp films
Films directed by Alek Keshishian
Films produced by Luc Besson
Films set in London
Films shot in London
Films shot in Paris
French LGBT-related films
French romantic comedy films
LGBT-related romantic comedy films
2000s British films
2000s French films
Films with screenplays by Alek Keshishian
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