Love and Attachment

Here we speak not of the heady bliss of falling in love, nor of mere romance, nor of “attachment to” (as in codependency, etc.), but rather a sense of deep, abiding, even sacrificial love, respect, gratitude, and devotion toward another or principle. Though requiring a fair amount of maturity, this kind of devotion can cause it to spring from deep inside a place one doesn’t even know one has (and may otherwise seem to lack). Following are excellent examples of people reaching for, discovering, and living out this remarkable quality (sometimes with more grace than others).

Examples of Love and Attachment in Film

• 25th Hour
• 50/50
• A Better Life
• A Bronx Tale
• A History of Violence
• A Single Man
• About Last Night…
• Aliens
• American History X
• An Officer and a Gentleman
• Anna and the King
• Arthur (1981)
• Arthur (2011)
• As Good As It Gets
• Away from Her
• Away We Go
• Beaches
• Betrayal
• Blue Sky
• Blue Valentine
• Born to Be Wild
• Bound
• Breaking Away
• Bridget Jones’ Diary
• Broadcast News
• Brokeback Mountain
• Brothers (2005)
• Canvas
• Charlotte’s Web (1973)
• Coal Miner’s Daughter
• Contact
• Corrina, Corrina
• Crazy, Stupid, Love.
• Dad
• Dancer in the Dark
• Despicable Me
• Dinner with Friends
• Dirty Dancing
• Doctor Zhivago
• Dolores Claiborne
• Everything is Illuminated
• Fair Game
• Family Business
• Far and Away
• Fargo
• Finding Neverland
• Flipped
• Forrest Gump
• Gladiator
• Good Morning, Vietnam
• Gran Torino
• Hairspray (2007)
• Hannah and Her Sisters
• Harold and Maude
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
• In America
• Inception
• It’s a Wonderful Life
• Japanese Story
• Jerry Maguire
• Juno
• Just Between Friends
• Keeping the Faith
• Knowing
• Kramer vs. Kramer
• La Cage aux Folles
• La Mission
• Larger Than Life
• Little Miss Sunshine
• Mammoth
• Million Dollar Baby
• Moonstruck
• Murphy’s Romance
• My Best Friend’s Wedding
• My Sister’s Keeper
• ‘night, Mother
• Normal
• On Golden Pond
• Ordinary People
• Patriot Games
• Perfume: The Story of a Murderer
• Places in the Heart
• Pride and Glory
• Sarah’s Key
• Scrooge
• Secretary
• Signs
• Skateland
• Snow Falling on Cedars
• Snow Flower and the Secret Fan
• Something’s Gotta Give
• Sophie’s Choice
• Stage Beauty
• Star Trek: First Contact
• Tender Mercies
• Terms of Endearment
• The Beaver
• The Big Chill
• The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
• The Color Purple
• The Fighter
• The Firm
• The Help
• The Illusionist (2006)
• The Life of David Gale
• The Lord of the Rings
• The Painted Veil
• The Princess Bride
• The Road
• The Tree of Life
• Thunder Soul
• Titanic
• Turn the River
• Under the Tuscan Sun
• Unfaithful
• Warrior
• Water for Elephants
• We Don’t Live Here Anymore
• What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?
• When a Man Loves a Woman
• When Harry Met Sally…

What are some of your favorite examples, and why? Please do share ~