'Tis the season to analyze our favorite Christmas movies! If you've tired the annual debate about whether Die Hardis a film for the holiday season, here's another to ponder in the 2003 modern classic Love Actually, which has been the subject of numerous conversations over the last 15 years.
Remember that heartbreaking moment between Emma Thompson and Alan Rickman's characters when her husband, Harry, gives her, Karen, the Joni Mitchell CD instead of the necklace she thought was going to unwrap? One Twitter user has pointed out another reason to cry about the scene besides it revealing he was cheating on her. Take a look:
When @heyspacebones, (who was likely doing their yearly rounds of Christmas classics along with the rest of us) tweeted this out, it went viral and started quite the controversial conversation on Twitter about the little detail.
If you can't recall the scene, Harry and Karen are sitting with their children near the Christmas tree opening presents when Karen grabs ahold of one she thinks she know the contents of. Earlier in Love Actually Karen finds a beautiful necklace in his coat pocket, assuming it was her Christmas gift.
It's not though, it's Joni Mitchell's 2000 album "Both Sides, Now," which Harry says is to further her emotional education. Karen then politely excuses herself to her bedroom where she take a moment to cry it out before calmly returning to her children.
While on the surface the scene just exposes Harry for the filthy cheater he is, it could also indicate that he doesn't know her at all and is even more thoughtless than he clearly seems. Some users spoke out about how the album Karen receives is a special orchestral release of "Both Sides, Now," making it somewhat thoughtful to the fan while others agree it shows the character's further carelessness.
Interested in weighing in yourself? Check out the scene in question from Love Actually:
Whatever your conclusion may be, it's quite the raw and emotional scene in an otherwise feel-good film. Emma Thompson has previously said that the performance is so believable because it was relatable to her. Thompson was once married to actor/director Kenneth Branaugh, but he cheated on her with actress Helena Bonham Carter. Yikes. At least the immensely-talented actress could turn her heartbreak into an iconic scene.
I don't know about you, but I'm definitely leaning toward Harry's thoughtlessness as to why she unwraps "Both Sides, Now." It adds an additional painful sting to the weight of the scene, and offers a bit of heartbreak that does sometimes come around during the holiday season amidst the joy and gifts. And as we saw in Love Actually's ending, it doesn't look like their marriage was going to be fixed.
