Valentine's Day

“Valentine’s Day” seeks to discover the meaning of true love as it tells the story of several interconnected relationships during a Valentine’s Day in Los Angeles. This tale opens when Reed (Ashton Kutcher), the young owner of a flower shop proposes to his girlfriend, Morley (Jessica Alba) on Valentine’s morning. Subsequently, we are introduced to the other players in this romantic comedy including, Reed’s good friend, Julia (Jennifer Garner), a kind-hearted elementary school teacher, who believes she has found something special in her relationship with Harrison (Patrick Dempsey), a successful doctor. We are also introduced to Julia’s friend, Kara (Jessica Biel), a lonely young publicist, who finds herself alone on Valentine’s Day every year. We are also introduced to two young high school couples, who find themselves caught up in their naïve and superficial ideas about what true love should be. We also meet two couples whose relationships have stood the test of time and a ten-year-old boy who discovers love for the first time. All of these characters’ stories of joy and heartache are brought to life by an all-star ensemble cast in Gary Marshall’s latest film.

Objectionable Content

“Valentine’s Day’s” moral stance on sex is one of the most offensive aspects of this film. This film serves to reinforce the secular world’s ideologies on this matter, as all of the characters in this film operate under the assumption that sex outside of marriage is an inevitable and normal part of every romantic relationship. The opening scenes set the tone for this film’s perspective on sex, as we are introduced to the different unwed characters, as they wake up in bed together on Valentine’s morning. Several female characters are seen wearing very short, skimpy nightgowns and several male characters are shown shirtless (one of the men is wrapped in a towel).

There is also a lot of frank sexual talk throughout this movie. Liz (Anne Hathaway), a struggling assistant at a talent agency, moonlights as a phone sex entertainer. Much of Liz’s dialogue is very inappropriate and awkward, as she is featured in many scenes describing immoral sexual acts, such as threesomes and the like, with her customers. Liz also tries to hide her embarrassing profession from her new boyfriend, Jason (Topher Grace), a mail assistant at the talent agency.

One of the teenage couples, Grace (Emma Roberts) and Alex (Carter Jenkins) plan to sleep with each other on Valentine’s Day during lunch to demonstrate their love for one another. Grace even tells one of her teachers about her plans and her teacher responds by saying “this must be a special time for you.” Alex sneaks into Grace’s bedroom during lunch to set things up for them. He takes off his clothes, before Grace gets there (a guitar covers the front of his body). Grace’s mom walks into her daughter’s room to find her naked boyfriend only covered by his guitar. Her mother tells him he must leave and he runs through the streets with only the guitar in front of him.

During the film, viewers discover that Harrison, Julia’s doctor boyfriend, is married with a family and has been lying about his life. Themes of homosexuality also made their way into this film, as we see Sean (Eric Dane), a football star, proudly announce on national television that he is gay. The normalization and exaltation of this kind of lifestyle is reinforced, when several of the characters offer Sean their approval and support.

“Valentine’s Day” is peppered with the following profanities: about 2 uses of the s-word, approximately 4-6 uses of a**, d**n, and h***, 2 crude terms are used to describe the male anatomy, and 9 misuses of G*d.

Positive Elements

Despite this film’s heavy sexual content, there are several important lessons about committed relationships and love to be found in these characters’ stories. Most of these moral lessons are embodied in the character of Reed. His strength of moral character, which is displayed throughout the film, is refreshing. Reed is genuinely excited about his engagement to Morley and he has a true desire to take on the commitment that comes with marriage and family. Morley, on the other hand, does not share in his excitement about their future as a married couple, and she breaks off their engagement.

After his breakup, Reed seeks to better understand what the foundation is for committed relationships and true love. He asks his long-time married coworker, Alphonso (George Lopez), why his relationship with his wife and kids is so strong. Alphonso tells Reed that it is simple, he “married his best friend.” Reed takes this to heart, as he learns that love grows out of friendship over time.

Reed’s good character and genuine concern for his friend, Julia, is further exemplified when he discovers that her boyfriend is married. He makes the right decision to tell her about it, even if it means going to great lengths to do so. Later, Reed comes to the realization that he is meant to be with Julia. His love for her has grown out of their close friendship. He genuinely and unselfishly loves Julia as a total person and only wants the best for her.

Julia emphasizes the importance of marriage, when she tells her fifth grade students about the history of Valentine’s Day. She explains to them that an emperor banned couples from marrying, but a priest named Valentine secretly married couple’s in order preserve the institution of marriage.

Summary and Recommendations

Even though “Valentine’s Day” and its cast of characters are not without their likable and redeeming qualities, these moral highpoints are obscured by this film’s mature thematic content and promiscuous position on sex, so I advise viewers to leave this Valentine unopened.

Violence: Mild / Profanity: Moderate / Sex/Nudity: Heavy

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