Alex Aloise - A Love Song for Bobby Long

A Love Song For Bobby Long stars Scarlett Johansson as Pursy Will and John Travolta as the title character. In the film, Pursy Will is a young woman who returns to her native New Orleans after her mother has died. She goes there to inspect her mother's home and gather up any belongings that are left behind. When she gets there she learns that two men are still living in her mother's home. One of them is Bobby Long, a retired English professor. The other is his protege, Lawson Pines. At first, the three are at odds about the state of the house and who is the rightful owner(s). However, over time the three characters come to depend on each other and learn that are better off together than apart. The movie is a pretty by-the-numbers story but I think it gives a good example of the Communitas theme, once again. The three characters unite to form a family. Through this family they are able to learn from one and come to rely on one another for growth and support. All three characters go through a stark transformation from where they were at the beginning of the film. The movie also exhibits a good bit of Agape. At one point in the film, the characters learn of a secret that was held by Pursy's mother. They come to work together and put their differences aside because that his what her mother would have wanted. Their selfish rivalries are replaced with selfless acts, and as a result, their family grows. This is not an especially profound or moving film like some of the others we have seen in class, but I think it works nevertheless.