Love Is All You Need
Director: Susanne Bier.
Starring: Pierce Brosnan, Trine Dyrholm.
Reviewed by Ben Carey.

[rating: 3/5]

Chick flicks. You either love them or you hate them. Personally, I love them when they are done well. Mean Girls, Love Actually, The Notebook, She’s the Man. All great movies and all chick flicks. But you know the weirdest thing? None of those films were directed by a female. Look back at every chick flick you have ever watched. Nine out of ten were directed by males. I mean, they seem to do a pretty good job, but I have always felt that there should be more female directors, especially when it comes to chick flicks! Well, I’m pleased to report that female-directed chick flicks are on the rise; One for the Money, Paris-Manhattan, and Friends with Kids to name a few of the more recent ones. And now, Susanne Bier’s latest foray, Love Is All You Need.

Love Is All You Need is about, you guessed it, love. A young, soon to be married, couple – Astrid and Patrick – move into a beautiful house in Italy, passed down to Patrick by his father. The wedding invitations go out and the guests start arriving. Astrid’s mother, Ida (Dyrholm) is acquainted with Patrick’s father, Philip (Brosnan) when she crashes into the side of his expensive work car while reversing out of a car park. To his annoyance they become more frequently involved as they travel to Italy together and share the same residence as one another. Problems arise for Astrid and Patrick, while Ida’s and Philip’s relationship begins to blossom.

Love Is All You Need is somewhat reminiscent of Mamma Mia! which was also directed by a woman, starred Pierce Brosnan, and featured an exotic backdrop. The strength of this film is definitely the relationship between Ida and her daughter Astrid, and later with her son, Kenneth. It is done in a delicate way, with a slight foreign feel to it. Philip’s relationship with his son Patrick is a little more familiar and stagnant.

The local Italian boys are a welcome addition to a fairly plain mix. Brosnan’s heart doesn’t seem to be in it (excuse the pun) and he has to stretch hard in those emotional scenes, but the melodramatic piano chords do help him out. Dyrholm is charming for a while but her performance becomes a little lacklustre as the movie drags on. The true standout in terms of acting and on-screen presence is the young and beautiful, energetic bride Astrid, played by Molly Blixt Egelind.

Yet again I find myself saying ‘this film has no business being two hours long’. And it doesn’t. It could have all been done and dusted by the 1.5 hour mark, but for some reason there are two endings: the oh-no-it-didn’t-work-out ending and then the oh-wait-yes-it-did ending. I didn’t hate this film by any means; for the most part I found it enjoyable. However, there is absolutely no reason to keep us in the cinema for an extra half an hour if the script does not demand it. Fans of pretty scenery, piano chords, and Pierce Brosnan dancing will likes this one, for everyone else it will be touch and go. Because it turns out love isn’t all you need. You need a good script as well.