“Grief is never finished,” a character muses toward the end of “Love of Your Life,” handily encapsulating this tender meditation on love and loss. Margaret Qualley plays Maya, a bright but withdrawn ED nurse at Boston General (what the film calls Mass General). Maya has little interest in family until she meets-cute with Charlie (Gabriel Basso, “Super 8”) buying his old end table off Craigslist. Charlie is, by all reasonable metrics, perfect: kind, handsome, artistic and endlessly patient with Maya’s quirks. The two embark on a whirlwind romance, touring the Boston area’s finest date sites (including Washington Tower at Mt. Auburn Cemetery and Wally’s Cafe) and getting married in an impromptu ceremony in their triple-decker apartment.
Unfortunately, their marriage comes shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic, and Charlie’s asthma places him at high risk. When the worst-case scenario comes to pass, Maya cuts off her old life entirely. In a desperate attempt to redefine herself, she travels to all the places she and Charlie had planned to visit.
In case it isn’t obvious, “Love of Your Life” is a capital-T tearjerker, but as tearjerkers go it’s pretty first-rate. Its principal virtues are the honesty and earnestness with which it tells its story. The film spends its first act winningly establishing the love between its photogenic leads, then sticks with Maya as she struggles to pull herself back together. Qualley, best known for her eccentric performances in “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” (2019) and “The Substance” (2024), proves herself equally adept with more down-to-earth material; if “Love of Your Life” was made in the ’90s, one can easily imagine Maya played by Qualley’s mother, Andie MacDowell. Director Rachel Morrison cut her teeth as a cinematographer for Ryan Coogler (“Fruitvale Station,” “Black Panther”) and Dee Rees (“Mudbound,” for which she was nominated for an Oscar, a first for a woman), and she brings her painterly eye to both the first act’s Boston location footage and the gorgeous European vistas of the back half.
As far as emotional odysseys go, “Love of Your Life” doesn’t break new ground. The screenplay has the annoying habit of telling rather than showing, particularly when it comes to the contours of Maya’s relationships with her mother-in-law (Catherine Keener, “Get Out”) and best friend (Patrick Schwarzenegger, Arnold’s son). The montages are too slick and cheesy by half. Still, as these sorts of stories go, it’s one of the most refreshingly well-told in ages. Those looking for a good cry won’t find much better.
Streaming 10/14 on Amazon Prime
A stronger
Please consider making a financial contribution to maintain, expand and improve Cambridge Day.
We are now a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and all donations are tax deductible.
Please consider a recurring contribution.