Romantic dramas like Love of Your Life are designed to be specific yet speak to a universal condition. We all want to feel love, like we’re part of a family, and that we’ve found our soulmate. For director Rachel Morrison, that means making sure her film feels believable in its details, even if—especially if—parts of its narrative are unrealistic.
Working as a nurse in Boston, Maya (Margaret Qualley) is a bit of a loner, though not entirely by choice. With one best friend, Jason (Patrick Schwarzenegger), her life seems resistant to love—that is, of course, until she meets Charlie (Gabriel Basso, a warm presence). Via a script by Julia Cox, Morrison’s film follows Maya from there over the years, through her life with Charlie, the onset of the pandemic, and the tragedy that sends her out spilling into the world. That last phrase is part of the appeal of Love of Your Life, which follows Qualley’s Maya to Portugal, England, and other locales. Owing to her cinematographer’s eye, Morrison brings a satisfying sparkle to these proceedings; at the very least, being in real places with these characters feels nice. For her part, Qualley fits in well as a beautiful person in these wonderful places, though she’s less suited to the dramatic heavy-lifting the script requires. Coupled with other strong supporting turns from Aaron Pierre and Catherine Keener, though, Qualley’s (and Morrison’s) work is eminently watchable.
There’s no way around this: Love of Your Life is earnest to a degree that skews towards corniness. Still, there’s real pain there too, hinging on a few symbolic conceits—like the degrading piece of audio tape Maya clings to—that tug at the heartstrings in just the right way. This is not the best romantic film you’ve ever seen, and it doesn’t really reflect the average person’s life, but it will likely speak to you anyway.
