The new 20th anniversary edition of the beloved romantic comedy Love Actually (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment, $27.98, Nov. 21) features two new elements that make it worth a revisit: the first presentation in 4K Ultra HD, and a new retrospective featurette.
The half-hour Making Love Actually (not included on the bonus features of the Blu-ray disc that comes with this set) is a fun piece featuring writer/director Richard Curtis reflecting on production of the film, initially the extensive casting process, with comments from cast members Bill Nighy (Billy Mack), Abdul Sallis (Tony), Thomas Brodie-Sangster (young boy Sam), Lúcia Moniz (Aurelia), Rodrigo Santoro (Karl), as well as crew and casting directors.
Nighy offers some amusing anecdotes about having to perform a song naked (review continues below the following video clip)…
The captivating score is also discussed with composer Craig Armstrong (broadening on an included previous bonus feature specifically on the music) – he notes there are basically four pieces of original music each used in multiple points with different arrangements during the film.
Editor Nick Moore describes the difficulty of having so many disconnected storylines and characters; the initial running time was nearly four hours before it eventually got trimmed to 2-hours 15-minutes (there are 38-min of deleted scenes included again here from previous releases).
Then there were challenges of shooting locations and sets — the scene near the end with Sam racing through the terminal to reach his pre-teen infatuation before she boards the plane, as well as the opening shots in an airport with real people warmly embracing family members as they disembark (Curtis’ favorite scenes based on what inspired him to write the movie, according to his bonus feature audio commentary during the film with several actors including Hugh Grant), were all filmed at London’s Heathrow Airport. (review continues below the following video clip)…
Learning about the unique challenges in making this film makes one even more impressed with this hilarious and heartwarming instant modern holiday R-rated romance classic that stars seemingly half of Hollywood, including Hugh Grant, Liam Neeson, Colin Firth, Laura Linney, Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Keira Knightley, Rowan Atkinson and many others.
In addition to the bonus features noted above, other notable legacy bonus features include:
- The Music of LOVE ACTUALLY with Introductions by Richard Curtis
- The Storytellers: a featurette exploring the film’s main storylines, featuring interviews with the cast discussing their characters and the major elements within each on-screen relationship.
- Kelly Clarkson “The Trouble with Love is” Music Video
- Billy Mack “Christmas is All Around” Music Video
— By Scott Hettrick