“When you know that you know, who you love, you can’t deny it.. You go back, you give up, or pretend you don’t buy it..”

When You Know by Shawn Colvin

I have watched Serendipity more than a dozen times, but it still makes my heart burst with emotions and my eyes teary. It is just simply so endearing.

Is it true that we have this particular person we are destined to be with? A soul mate per sé?

While growing up, I saw several movies about finding your destined one, and I guess my choice for films falls into that category they call ‘chick flicks’. Movies made to appeal more to women than men because of plots about forever love, meeting your soul mate and making you complete.. Hehe.. Is it so Jerry Maguire-y? It might have been a cliché but they never go out of style you know..

This rainy weekend was spent on a movie marathon, particularly romantic films like Notting Hill, Serendipity, The Notebook, etc. Though most of them I’ve already seen a couple of times, I still enjoy watching them again and feeling the love and emotions they bring. Those classic lines were spoken by the characters to whom we always find ourselves immersed and can relate.

First on the list is, again, Serendipity. Kate Beckinsale and John Cusack playing as Sara and Jonathan, who accidentally choose the same black cashmere gloves during a Christmas shopping at Bloomingdales. It might sound so utterly uncommon for fate to play that kind of game with two people but still, thinking that somewhere, in some place out there, there is someone that is destined to be with you and the whole universe conspired for you to be together (Hehe. That’s a Paulo Coelho line!).

Years passed, and they moved on with their own lives, but still, as they say, true love comes once in a lifetime. They never forgot those moments, and at the last string of hope, they used it to look for each other with the only intention of answering the ‘what ifs’ and then letting it go. But it never happened that way; instead, when they thought it was over, they found themselves in each other’s arms again. Aaawww.

“It’s amazing how you can speak right through my heart without saying a word; you can light up the dark..”

When You Say Nothing At All by Ronan Keating

Next is Notting Hill. A classic plot of a rich and famous actress named Anna Scott, played by Julia Roberts, who falls in love with an ordinary English guy William Thacker, played by Hugh Grant. Another hackneyed plot used for most romantic films and dramas but still enough to catch our attention and make us feel in love. Anna accidentally (again!) met William while checking out Notting Hill and had to face the difficulties of their relationship — a boyfriend. He suddenly visited her, being discreet to escape the eyes of the media and overcoming their differences.

We all know what’s the ending of the film. But we still waited for those heartfelt dialogues and those melting stares. We were still awed when Anna told William when she thought that it was the end for both of them, that unforgettable line — “And don’t forget, I’m also just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her..” That line made us all cry as if Anna begged William for the last time but then willing to let him go. Eventually, their love surpassed everything, and they still got together and created their own family.

“I’m very sure, this never happened to me before.. I met you, and now I’m sure this never happened before..”

This Never Happened Before by Paul McCartney

Now, we have The Lake House. A remake of a 2001 South Korean film Il Mare about a love between two people two years apart. It starred Sandra Bullock as Kate Forster living in 2006 and Keannu Reeves as Alex Wyler in 2004. I loved the Korean counterpart so much, so I checked this out for the first time.

If you are not familiar with the theme of the movie, you might get confused about how the story starts. The exchange of scenes from Kate’s time going back to Alex’s was not revealed at first. But then again, the overlap of time for those two people and their possible communication through the mailbox at the lake house made it all so romantic and dream-like. You would want to glue your eyes to the screen and wait for the following scenes if they can overcome the twist of time.

They exchanged letters through the mailbox, knowing each other more. Alex, who is now in love with Kate and has seen her a couple of times, is determined to make it work for both of them. Kate, on the other hand, who works as a doctor, quickly forgets the faces of those people she encounters and has forgotten that she has seen Alex a few times already.

Because of Alex’s impulsiveness, he met an accident where he lost his life on Valentine’s Day of 2006, and it was Kate who attended to him at the time of the accident. Because of that, Alex couldn’t meet up with Kate at Il Mare restaurant in March 2006. Kate thought it wouldn’t work out, so she ended their communication. After two years, in 2008, Kate decided to hire an Architect to renovate the house she and her fiancé bought. They hired Alex’s brother and found out that it was Alex who died two years ago on Valentine’s Day.

Kate immediately went to the lake house to send a letter preventing Alex from going to Daley Plaza that day and informed him to wait if he cared for her. And she will be at the lake house in 2008 and will be waiting for him. At last, they crossed the boundaries of their times and met each other.

“Now, I have the time of my life, though I’ve never felt like this before. Yes, I swear, it’s so true, and I owe it all to you..”

Time Of My Life by Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes

An all-time classic, the 1987 film, Dirty Dancing, starring Patrick Swayze as Johnny Castle and Jennifer Grey as Baby Houseman, is one of my favourite movies. Nobody expected that this low-budget film about a 26-year-old dance instructor who fell in love with a 17-year-old rich girl would make a classic and, eventually, a broadway musical produced.

I love this film, and I can say one of my favourites. I love how they incorporated the dancing, music and characters; I love everything. It showed how well Patrick and Jennifer could dance and act. To think that they played characters who were both ten years their junior — yes, Patrick Swayze was already 36 when he filmed this, and Jennifer was 26.

I would say this is not a movie to be seen by teeners as the content is daring for me. A 17-year-old girl who fell in love and slept with him a couple of times is somehow not my cup of tea. But the dance routines were beautiful and perfectly executed, and the daring part can easily be forgotten once you see them dance.

I was so excited when they announced last February that the broadway musical would perform here in Manila in July. And I even planned with my friends so that we would watch it together. But my heart was crushed when in May, they suddenly informed everyone that it was cancelled. They never said the reason why.

Anyway, Dirty Dancing is worth watching even a hundred times, especially the last part when Johnny Castle took Baby on stage and danced and finally, she was able to do the lift. It’s just so sad that Patrick Swayze is already gone now, but at least he had this movie and Ghost under his sleeves as classics.

Well, I am still watching some movies, so I’ll rest my fingers for now. It’s so lovely seeing these kinds of films in this rainy weather. Have a cup of coffee and some sweets. It brings back old memories from the depths of your heart. Memories of the younger days or even those past love you have already conquered yet not forgotten. As they say, “First love teaches you how to grow; true love makes you complete..” I haven’t found my true love yet, so I don’t know if the latter part is genuine. I am still walking on the face of the earth, waiting for someone I don’t know. I’ll continue my journey, and let’s see where it’ll take me. For now, these movies are great companions on days I am supposed to be with someone giving me a loving hug. 😜