There’s something intriguing about revisiting older films, especially when certain scenes that once seemed normal now appear unsettling.
One such movie is “Love Actually,” released in 2003, featuring a 17-year-old Keira Knightley as Juliet. Her world takes a turn when her husband’s best friend, Mark, portrayed by Andrew Lincoln of “The Walking Dead,” confesses he has feelings for her.
This romantic comedy has cemented itself as a classic Christmas movie, with its setting in festive London and a cast full of stars.
Colin Firth plays Jamie, a writer who begins to fall in love with his Portuguese housekeeper Aurélia, played by Lúcia Moniz.
Meanwhile, Hugh Grant takes on the role of David, a newly elected Prime Minister who develops an affection for Natalie, a member of his household staff, played by Martine McCutcheon.
The film also features Liam Neeson as Daniel, a widower helping his stepson Sam, portrayed by Thomas Brodie-Sangster, navigate his first crush.
While the film is a delightful watch leading up to Christmas, there is one scene that stands out as particularly questionable involving Knightley and Lincoln, or, as in the film, Juliet and Mark.
Mark arrives at Juliet’s door with a set of cue cards and a boombox, pretending to be a carol singer while expressing his deep-seated love for her.
Keira Knightley shared her perspective on why she found this scene unsettling.
In a conversation with the LA Times, the “Pirates of the Caribbean” actress, now 39, reflected: “The slightly stalkerish aspect of it — I do remember that.
“My memory is of Richard, who is now a very dear friend, of me doing the scene, and him going, ‘No, you’re looking at [Andrew] like he’s creepy,’ and I’m like [in a dramatic whisper], ‘But it is quite creepy.’
“And then having to redo it to fix my face to make him seem not creepy.”
She continued: “I mean, there was a creep factor at the time, right? Also, I knew I was 17. It only seems like a few years ago that everybody else realised I was 17.”
Indeed, showing up at someone’s door with cue cards and a CD player does seem indicative of stalker behavior – sorry, “Love Actually!”