Prime was another one of the movies I rented last week to enjoy my little mini-break. The promos looked funny and since I'm a sucker for a good chick-flick, I thought I might enjoy it. I was right. The writing wasn't on par with Elizabethtown (by far my favorite movie in the past couple of years), but it made me think, and when a movie does that, I'm happy. Over the next couple of days I'm going to talk about two such instances from the movie.Prime is about a man named Dave (who is 23) who falls for a recently divorced woman named Rafi (who is 37). The selling point of the movie is that Rafi is seeing a therapist to help her get back on track after her divorce and the therapist turns out to be Dave's mom. While it led to a few comical moments, I don't think it made the movie. I think the chemistry that developed between Dave and Rafi as they got to know each other made the movie.
They had instant chemistry, but instant chemistry isn't rooted in anything. It's just the initial spark that is necessary for two people to get together. I loved Dave's nervousness as he decided to call Rafi for the first time. He looks her number up in the book, makes the call and then hangs up. He does a few push ups, paces a little, and then calls her back. Every guy who has ever had to work up the nerve to call a woman can identify with Dave. After saying a couple of stupid things, he asks her out and she agrees.
They go to a nice restaurant, and as food often does, it brings them together. It even turns out to be their topic of conversation. They go for a walk afterward, and in a scene reminiscent of a scene in Notting Hill, Dave climbs a fence that leads to a secluded garden. He lets Rafi in and they sit on a bench and talk. When Rafi realizes that they are clicking she tells him that she's glad they met. Then Dave said this, "I got to tell you, you are making me nervous in a way that I'm not familiar with." Then he grabs her hand and put to on his heart so she can feel it racing.
As the get to know each other, she introduces him to jazz music, and some kind of fancy food that I've never heard of. He introduces her to hip hop music. They share a love of art, and at one point, he arranges a nice meal for her in an art studio. Painting is Dave's passion and this was his way of letting Rafi into his world and I think this was the moment he won her heart. While his family doesn't think his art is worthy of being pursued fulltime, Rafi thinks the exact opposite.
Here's their exchange:
"Dave, you're really good. This is what you should be doing. You've got to keep painting."
"Yeah? It's not a life."
"Says who? You're crazy."
Love flourishes when people support each other's passions. It's like receiving a ticket to the most luxurious place a person has ever imagined, but never believed he or she might actually get to go there. And in a world where most people seem indifferent about anything other than their own agendas, having somebody take an interest in the things we are passionate about almost makes us believe that "all is right with the world." But as I'll talk about tomorrow, love isn't always enough.
