Just want to vent some of my stacked-up thoughts about one aspect of this kind of movie.
So glad there's another review on the "best" page that's got the exact same direct thoughts I did! Man, that grandma was SO friggin' annoying. This movie would have been yet another 10/10 perfect movie for Master Marla Sokoloff had it not been for that meddling and nagging grandma! Years ago, during college, there was a reading class, and the article was a story about a poor boy and a rich girl in love, then the relationship ended in tragedy after her parents intervened. When the teacher asked us what did we learn from the article I immediately jumped out, "Parents are jerks."
True, parents do want what's best for their children, but sometimes they intervene way too much, they presume to know everything, and even stepping into off-limit zones unauthorized. My temper just flares every time Laurel's grandma says that Laurel's "not gonna be happy with Steven", that he'd "undermine her plan", and she "had to protect her, and couldn't let her get hurt", or sh*t like that. Don't these parents ever get the irony? That's exactly what causes those tragedies, what hurts them, and loses those who are closest to them!
Parents want to set their children up with people THEY deemed suitable and do everything in their power to ruin their children's relationship with their own true love... what is this, inland China? Didn't Jiao Zhongqing and Liu Lanzhi tragedy, or more popular - Romeo and Juliet tragedy - manages to tell those intervening parents to f*ck off? Wonder when the hell children are gonna tell their parents, once and for all, "Basta! Enough is enough! Stay off my personal life; it's off-limits!" I personally detest parents who presume to think that forcing their children with the ones THEY deem suitable a good idea. This isn't ancient China no more, and liberty to love is what keeps the essence of Humanity going, and if all marriages are done via arrangements, then I'm guessing Humanity would extinct emotionless and cold.
Although, on the other side, Stephen's partner, Elsa, was indeed helpful. She seems always supportive of Stephen's relationship with Laurel, and the first time this confirmed was when Stephen told Elsa about Laurel, she spotted the fact Laurel's grandmother intervened and replied(paraphrased), "nothing is as important as love." That is true friendship right there. Then when she figures out the yellow tulips Laurel brought, first question she confronted Stephen with was, "Why didn't you tell her about me?" As in, "Why didn't you tell her that YOU were the one writing the books and I'm only a public face?" A friend that puts her partner's wellfare first and not being overwhelmed by public fame - that is rare greatness. Clearly fate rewarded her with her next personal book a success.
Gonna end this review on a funny note: There's a guy at the Bridezilla wedding that just suddenly went "Pffv" laughing, that was really fun. Wonder if that was in the script, or someone on the filming set actually cracked...
So glad there's another review on the "best" page that's got the exact same direct thoughts I did! Man, that grandma was SO friggin' annoying. This movie would have been yet another 10/10 perfect movie for Master Marla Sokoloff had it not been for that meddling and nagging grandma! Years ago, during college, there was a reading class, and the article was a story about a poor boy and a rich girl in love, then the relationship ended in tragedy after her parents intervened. When the teacher asked us what did we learn from the article I immediately jumped out, "Parents are jerks."
True, parents do want what's best for their children, but sometimes they intervene way too much, they presume to know everything, and even stepping into off-limit zones unauthorized. My temper just flares every time Laurel's grandma says that Laurel's "not gonna be happy with Steven", that he'd "undermine her plan", and she "had to protect her, and couldn't let her get hurt", or sh*t like that. Don't these parents ever get the irony? That's exactly what causes those tragedies, what hurts them, and loses those who are closest to them!
Parents want to set their children up with people THEY deemed suitable and do everything in their power to ruin their children's relationship with their own true love... what is this, inland China? Didn't Jiao Zhongqing and Liu Lanzhi tragedy, or more popular - Romeo and Juliet tragedy - manages to tell those intervening parents to f*ck off? Wonder when the hell children are gonna tell their parents, once and for all, "Basta! Enough is enough! Stay off my personal life; it's off-limits!" I personally detest parents who presume to think that forcing their children with the ones THEY deem suitable a good idea. This isn't ancient China no more, and liberty to love is what keeps the essence of Humanity going, and if all marriages are done via arrangements, then I'm guessing Humanity would extinct emotionless and cold.
Although, on the other side, Stephen's partner, Elsa, was indeed helpful. She seems always supportive of Stephen's relationship with Laurel, and the first time this confirmed was when Stephen told Elsa about Laurel, she spotted the fact Laurel's grandmother intervened and replied(paraphrased), "nothing is as important as love." That is true friendship right there. Then when she figures out the yellow tulips Laurel brought, first question she confronted Stephen with was, "Why didn't you tell her about me?" As in, "Why didn't you tell her that YOU were the one writing the books and I'm only a public face?" A friend that puts her partner's wellfare first and not being overwhelmed by public fame - that is rare greatness. Clearly fate rewarded her with her next personal book a success.
Gonna end this review on a funny note: There's a guy at the Bridezilla wedding that just suddenly went "Pffv" laughing, that was really fun. Wonder if that was in the script, or someone on the filming set actually cracked...