Underplayed Gems

Love Is All (2014)

Love Is All poster
Original title
Love Is All: 100 Years of Love & Courtship
Directed by
Kim Longinotto
Genre
documentary film
Country
United Kingdom
Runtime
1h 14m
Rating
6.5 of 10 from 6 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

This documentary uses archive film clips to show how love and courtship were portrayed in the 20th century. It covers changes from early cinema kisses to gay liberation and interracial relationships.

nostalgicaffectionateupbeatbittersweetromanticwistfulpoignantlively

What happens

Love Is All is a 2014 documentary film exploring the depiction of love and courtship on film throughout the 20th century. It is composed of archive material from the BFI National Archive, Yorkshire Film Archive and other sources. The film is directed by Kim Longinotto with an original soundtrack composed by Sheffield singer/songwriter Richard Hawley, formerly of Pulp. Hawley wrote new material for the film and contributed existing tracks. From cinema’s very first kisses, through the disruption of war to the birth of youth culture, gay liberation and free love, the film follows courting couples flirting at tea dances, kissing in the back of the movies, couples living together and fighting for the right to love. The archive footage covers same-sex relationships, sexism, interracial relationships and sexual liberation. "Graham Relton at the Yorkshire Film Archive was amazing," said Kim Longinotto. "I had a long conversation with him about the film and then a couple of weeks later he sent us an absolute feast of archive that was exactly what we needed. The clips he sent us were often very personal and affectionate and had been filmed by the families themselves. They were like early home movies but they were beautifully made. Jan Faull found so many unexpected gems in the BFI Archive for us too. One of my favorite moments is a little girl in a village school being crowned May Queen. Also Piccadilly is an amazing film. It stars Anna May Wong who I’d never even heard of. She is spectacular and the acting is mostly very understated and truthful." "It was extraordinary to watch archive film coming to life with Richard Hawley’s intimate and emotional songs and often see a new meaning emerge. Richard’s music creates a new kind of reality and suddenly the people looking out at you from the past seem so contemporary and vivid." The film was commissioned by BBC North, BBC Storyville and the BFI, and produced by Crossover and Lone Star. It was edited by Ollie Huddleston. The premiere was at Chatsworth House in Derbyshire on Wednesday 11 June 2014 as part of Sheffield Doc/Fest. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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