Love Story (1970)

Director: Arthur Hiller
Writer: Erich Segal
Cast: Ryan O'Neal, Ali MacGraw, John Marley, Ray Milland
Genre: Romance, Drama

Love Story is probably the most straightforward movie I've ever seen. Within the very first minute its entire story is told, and then they spend the rest of the movie telling it again. It's almost intriguing how banal and simple it all is, and yet there is something to be said for the courage of telling their story by giving away its ending during the opening credits.

Some might even argue the title even have the same purpose, and yes; this is basically the love story of the rich playboy Harvard student Oliver (O'Neal), who meets and fell hopelessly in love with the poor baker's daughter Jennifer (MacGraw) who's studying music at Radcliffe College.


No secret I'm a sucker for love stories, and this one pushes many of the correct buttons. Still it should be noted there's some shortcomings when trying to balance their story's runtime. I wouldn't have minded another fifteen or twenty minutes if it meant spending a little more time on parts of the story I felt were rushed. Still they overall manage to take us through the different stages of the love story at hand, and you get exactly what's promises throughout the title, the tagline, the marketing and the first minute of the movie.

MacGraw and O'Neal have a good chemistry, helping them along in their banter-scenes as well as the more basic lovable ones, and both portrays their characters well. Supported by Marley and Milland playing a father each, the acting holds a high standard. Also the music is worth noting, almost a must having the female lead being a music student.

Love Story must have been quite the original piece of cinema back in 1970, and it still holds up quite well even today as its main themes are timeless.