The greatest love story ever told (main video) is a documentary film designed to accompany This is me… now, a sort of extended film/music video that itself is a companion piece to J-Lo’s album of the same name, her ninth. “I didn’t have to do this,” Lopez tells her husband Ben Affleck in The greatest love story. His professional life did not demand this three-pronged confessional beast. He didn’t even have to make the original album that all the visual media is based on. “It’s not like anyone is clamoring for J-Lo’s next album.” But Lopez says she felt worthy of sharing her journey toward self-love over 20 years and four marriages, worthy enough to face millions of dollars. cash to finance the effort. Affleck appears in The Greatest Love Story Ever Toldas well as members of López’s inner circle, This is me… now director Dave Meyers and famous friends like Jane Fonda, Fat Joe and Post Malone. And it takes a full 40 minutes before anyone makes a gigli reference.TO
THE GREATEST LOVE STORY EVER TOLD: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?TO
The essence: The title of The greatest love story ever told refers to Jennifer Lopez’s romance with Ben Affleck, which began in 2001, fizzled, and perhaps even more famously rekindled in 2021, leading to their marriage in Las Vegas in 2022. But Affleck, who manages some of the -The camera interviews parts of the documentary, in addition to occasionally appearing in it, he admits his surprise that their relationship was the core of the project. The images show López sharing with the writing and production partners of her new album a book, prepared by Affleck, that compiles her correspondence over the years. Love letters, devotionals, personal emails… “They said, ‘Yes, we’ll call you Pen Affleck.'” Isn’t making all of that public basically the opposite of an untold love story? ? But Affleck says he adapted because this is the art Lopez wanted to make.
The greatest love story It is truly a more accompanying documentary. This is me… now, the miniature movie that isn’t a music video but still is. The music on the album that generated all this is something that happened before and will happen after: each sequence in This is me it revolves thematically around the album’s track listing. The middle ground is where we find ourselves for the duration of this documentary, with the most revealing moments of it capturing Lopez out of the spotlight, without hair or makeup, and more than once even breaking down in tears.
Because well, as J-Lo’s former manager, Benny Medina, says, there was a huge rejection of all the visual material. With casting and rehearsals done and a deal closed, the money people pulled the plug. Musical films don’t sell, they said. Attendees rattle off A-list names who refused to participate in Lopez’s passion project. And the central idea of the documentary becomes the star’s decision to self-finance and manage it personally, so that The greatest story ever told They actually tell you so.
The album and the miniature film are all based on her life, much of it related to her upbringing as a middle child in the Bronx. (You can get lost, López says of the medium, as you search for courage and self-esteem.) She is writing lyrics. Choreography design. Exploring musical themes. But necessity demands that she also become a coordinator and arbiter of every small production problem. Budget, budget, budget: always the budget. But there are also dilemmas about the choice of umbrella, the thickness of the floor, the mechanics of the conveyor belt and even the quality of the mud. Crispier mud? Wetter mud? WHAT DOES JEN WANT? Turns out she wants more splashing. You know, the foam from the mud.
What movies will it remind you of? Jennifer Lopez references Prince twice in The greatest love story ever toldas inspiration in his creative spirit and the format of This is me… nowthat López compares Purple Rain in the way an album song can come to life in a different way. And although Affleck describes his initial reluctance to embrace the social media component of Lopez’s life as a megastar, almost every time the couple appears on The greatest love storyfeels like the fundamental elements of the kardashian-Like a reality show that they still have to do. Or did they just make it?
Performance worth seeing: Jenifer Lewis is a quote machine on filming day for her role as a member of the Zodiac Council in This is me… now. But the campiness with which he approaches it also reaches into the feeling of the resulting sequence. Lewis has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, he reminds the assembled production assistants. Oh, is this a J-Lo documentary? Well you can call this Jennifer “J-Lew.” And especially the concept of zodiac signs? “I’m playing Gemini,” Lewis says. The twins Castor and Pollux and all that. “You know, that pided bitch. “I don’t like zodiac signs, so I don’t know what the hell they do.”
Memorable dialogue: Jennifer Lopez was born back then, she says of her first albums, the 6th, J.Loand especially the one from 2002 This is me… Sofor which This me… now acts like a mirror. On those albums, López says he became a gigantic character. But the new material? “It is about the truth. About facing the truth of who you really are and accepting it.”
Sex and skin: Nothing that’s really out there. In a way, what The greatest love story reveals that most of them are everyday Jennifer Lopez, in sweats and no makeup, making phone calls at her kitchen island or in lighter moments with Affleck where they embody the meme energy of Victoria and David Beckham that go viral for their Conversation about Rolls Royce.
Our opinion: “What he saw in me, what he made me believe about myself, only comes with love. Because no one else has made me see that.” This tearful confession from Jennifer Lopez in The greatest love story ever told it certainly drives what prompted her to make this document. And that admission is unlike anything in This is me… now, which accompanies, and that the star and his people are at pains to say that he does not apply proper names in any of his past relationships. (Lopez even stresses this to Affleck as they work on the script at home. “This isn’t about you and me! Take that away! It’s not part of the script!”) So is it weird to make a music video? extended multisequence with cinematographic elements that, however, does not directly recognize its inspiration? In the end, maybe that’s why he had to do both. It is interesting to see the production of This is me meet at The greatest love story. Things like the heart petal factory storyboards, or the effort that went into designing choreography based on the drastic push and pull of two people in a relationship. But ultimately, although it features a giant metal heart as its central metaphor, This is me… now There’s a lot of lavish spectacle and not a lot of genuine heart. For that, you should consult this document, which is much more effective in communicating the López-Affleck love story.
Our call: For anyone who is crazy about J-Lo, Bennifer or Just Jen and Ben, The greatest love story ever told It is a TRANSMISSION. But this document is actually more effective as a complement to This is me… nowJennifer Lopez’s brilliant meta-film/video experiment that sets her new music in motion.
Johnny Loftus (@glennganges) is a freelance writer and editor living in Chicago. His work has appeared in The Village Voice, All Music Guide, Pitchfork Media, and Nicki Swift.
