under the tuscan sun

so i've realized lately that i watch a lot of movies.

like a lot.

it'll probably be a big adjustment for me going to school, and not being able to watch them.

but one that i watched recently has really stuck with me. under the tuscan sun. it's a lovely chick flick. but i think it's more than that.

*possible spoiler alert to those who haven't seen it. ... but then again, it is a chick flick, so it's semi-predictable anyway, right? :P

so at the beginning, the main character is married, but her husband cheats on her, resulting in a divorce very early on in the film. shortly thereafter she makes an impulsive move to tuscany, after buying a villa she falls instantly in love with. through the process of renovating the run-down house, and making friends in her new environment, she also is dealing with the pain, hurt and betrayal of the infidelity of her ex-husband. this, as chick flick viewers know, is when the charming Italian heartthrob sweeps in, with a charming love affair to heal her past pain and make everything better.

...right?

nope. it ends, and she's heartbroken. again.

just sayin- that definitely surprised me.

right near the end of the movie, she was still single. here i am, scratching my head, wondering "kay, where's the happy ending here...? where's the love of her life?..." in the second to last scene, she's talking with one of her good friends who reminds her that she's gotten everything she wanted since coming to tuscany- a wedding, and a family in her new house... but it took a different form than what she'd originally thought. and she was happy. and she was single. it blew my mind, to actually see hollywood depict a happy single person.

i've seen a lot of chick flicks, okay? and in the typical girly movie, no person, especially no girl, is happy until she finds her man. the single gal looks happy, can act happy, but she's always depressed somewhere inside. or battling some demons that she denies to look put together. it's not until she finds love that everything is fixed, her past is healed, she becomes all that she should be, blah blah blah. but this movie proves that for a single gal, finding a man isn't all there is to it. she had a fling. sure, he made her happy, for a while. but in the end, it didn't fix everything. and i'm not harping on dating here. i'm just saying it seems like the majority of hollywood relationships seem to start out of some desperation to be whole again. some desperate desire to be better that couldn't possibly be achieved while single.

but this main character did achieve that. she achieved healing from her past to a certain extent, and it wasn't through some other romance. it was through her friendships and continuing to live her life.

it was at this point... that a man came her way. and made her just that much more happy.

really, it's still a chick flick. :P