Entertainment
The Worst Christmas Movie Everyone Loves, Horrible People And Awful Romances
By Jonathan Klotz
| Published
The romantic comedy used to be a mainstay of theaters, and there’s plenty of blame to go around for how it’s now a genre on life support, but I place the blame squarely at the feet of Love Actually. At one point in time, it was considered the greatest rom-com of all time and one of the best romantic movies ever made, but now it’s correctly recognized as a horrible film with horrible messages about horrible people doing horrible things to one another. But every year, with the same sort of grim inevitability as Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas,” the film is in the streaming top ten.
Love Actually Would Never Be Made Today
There are ten distinct stories throughout Love Actually, and admittedly, a few are rather cute and endearing, starting with a down-on-his-luck musician, Mack (Bill Nighy), who suddenly has a hit song again and opts to spend Christmas with his manager, Joe, instead. It’s short, simple, and comes down to friendship. If the film had more stories like this one or the story of John (Martin Freeman) and Judy (Joanna Page), which captures the awkwardness of moving into a new relationship, then it would be a classic film for all the right reasons, but instead, there are two stories that drag the whole thing down into the mud.
Juliet (an 18-year-old Keira Knightley) and Peter (Chiwetel Ejiofor) are newly married when it comes to light that Mark (Andrew Lincoln) is in love with his best friend’s new wife. Mark confesses, admittedly, it’s adorable with printed cards and a boombox, but in any other movie, he’d be the villain, or Peter would turn out to be abusive instead of here, where he’s shown to be a loving, caring spouse. Love Actually manages to go even further, though, and has Juliet give Mark a kiss after his confession, so while she doesn’t accept him or leave her husband, she still kisses her new husband’s best friend instead of telling him to get off her lawn.
Mark’s confession was considered a sweet romantic moment for dozens of Hollywood montages, but as underhanded as it seems, it’s not as problematic as the most infamous storyline in Love Actually. Hugh Grant plays David, the Prime Minister of England, hosting the American President, played by Billy Bob Thornton, when the President makes lewd comments about Natalie, one of the British staffers. It gets worse when Natalie lets David know she loves him, and they actually give in and share a kiss despite the obvious problem of a boss getting involved with one of his staff.
That’s only four out of the 10 stories, which also include a brief tryst that would fit in any rom-com, a British man realizing he’s an exotic foreigner to women in America and winds up going home from a bar with women played by January Jones and Elisa Cuthbert to their roommate, Shannon Elizabeth, and a sweet story of a father and son each discovering love. After watching Harry Potter, one Love Actually story about cheating is enjoyable on one level, and one level only, because it has Alan Rickman cheating on Emma Thompson, so try and imagine it as Professor Snape cheating on Professor Trelawney.
Love Actually Misses The Point
There’s an argument to be made that the purpose of Love Actually wasn’t to be a feel-good romantic comedy but instead a way to show the messiness inherent in all relationships. On that level, it’s a complete miss, given the epilogue shows David, again, the Prime Minister of England, kissing his younger employee, and Peter, Mark, and Juliet are all shown at the airport waiting for a friend, which means that no one told Peter what happened. Normally, I try not to spoil anything, but we are only on this planet for a finite amount of time, and to be precise, none of that should be spent watching this movie.
Love Actually murdered the romantic comedy and somehow convinced director Garry Marshall, who had nothing to do with the movie, that there was money to be made with this format, but applied to other Holidays, giving us Valentine’s Day in 2010, New Year’s Eve in 2011, and Mother’s Day in 2016. There are better options out there, though I’ll admit that New Year’s Eve is probably the best of the bunch, and as with most rom-coms, there are still parts that don’t hold up, but nothing is nearly as bad as the 2003 film.
If you want to watch Love Actually to see how bad the film really is and how horrible most of the characters are, you can find it on Amazon Prime, where it’s been in the top ten for a few days now. Instead, it would help if you streamed a better Christmas movie, like Christmas with the Cranks or Four Christmases, both of which are better than Love Actually.
Entertainment
How to watch Bayern Munich vs. PSG online for free
TL;DR: Live stream Bayern Munich vs. PSG in the Champions League for free on RTÉ Player. Access this free streaming platform from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.
Bayern Munich vs. PSG would have made an amazing Champions League final, but we should be happy that we’re getting two matchups between these electric teams. The first leg finished 5-4 to PSG. We’re not expecting the same again, because that was probably one of the best games of all time. If we get half that level of entertainment in the second leg, we’ll be delighted.
Expect more of the same from the likes of Michael Olise and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia as these teams battle it out for a spot in the showpiece event. The winner will meet Arsenal at the Puskás Aréna in Budapest.
If you want to watch Bayern Munich vs. PSG in the Champions League from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.
When is Bayern Munich vs. PSG?
Bayern Munich vs. PSG in the Champions League kicks off at 3 p.m. ET on May 6. This fixture takes place at the Allianz Arena.
How to watch Bayern Munich vs. PSG for free
Bayern Munich vs. PSG is available to live stream for free on RTÉ Player.
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RTÉ Player is geo-restricted to Ireland, but anyone can access this free streaming platform with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in Ireland, meaning you can unblock RTÉ Player to stream the Champions League for free from anywhere in the world.
Live stream Bayern Munich vs. PSG for free by following these simple steps:
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Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)
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Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
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Open up the app and connect to a server in Ireland
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Visit RTÉ Player
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Watch Bayern Munich vs. PSG for free from anywhere in the world
$12.95 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee)
The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but most do offer free-trials or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can access free live streams of the Champions League without actually spending anything. This obviously isn’t a long-term solution, but it does give you enough time to stream Bayern Munich vs. PSG (plus more Champions League fixtures) before recovering your investment.
If you want to retain permanent access to the best free streaming services from around the world, you’ll need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPn for streaming live sport is on sale for a limited time.
What is the best VPN for RTÉ Player?
ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on RTÉ Player, for a number of reasons:
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Servers in 105 countries including Ireland
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Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more
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Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure
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Fast connection speeds free from throttling
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Up to 10 simultaneous connections
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30-day money-back guarantee
A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with money-back guarantee).
Live stream Bayern Munich vs. PSG in the Champions League for free with ExpressVPN.
Entertainment
AI stocks are cooling — this ChatGPT trading tool keeps delivering
TL;DR: A ChatGPT-powered investing platform that helps you find and manage stocks with clearer signals—lifetime access for a one-time $54.97.
Credit: Sterling Stock Picker
The AI trade has seemingly had its moment — big runs, big headlines, big expectations. The AI fun is not over by any means. But now that things are settling, the real question is what comes next?
Instead of chasing whatever’s trending, Sterling Stock Picker leans into a more grounded approach: using a ChatGPT-powered assistant (Finley) to help you understand what’s actually happening inside a stock. You can ask questions about companies, sectors, or your own portfolio and get explanations that are tied to real data — not just surface-level summaries.
Mashable Deals
It also handles the heavy lifting most people avoid. The platform analyzes financials, growth metrics, and risk, then surfaces signals like whether a stock is worth buying, holding, or avoiding. There’s even a “North Star” system that simplifies that call into something actionable.
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If you’re building from scratch, there’s a done-for-you portfolio builder that aligns with your risk tolerance. If you already have positions, it can suggest adjustments based on your portfolio’s performance.
One thing that stands out is how it balances guidance with transparency. You’re not just handed picks — you can see the reasoning behind them, which matters if you’re trying to build a repeatable process.
Have a lifetime way to pressure-test your judgment — especially in a market that’s moving past hype and into something more selective.
Get lifetime access to the ChatGPT-driven Sterling Stock Picker while it’s on sale for a one-time $54.97 payment (reg. $486) through May 10.
StackSocial prices subject to change.
Entertainment
Get 2TB encrypted cloud storage and collaboration tools for just $112.49
TL;DR: Lifetime access to 2TB of secure Drime cloud storage is on sale for a one-time $112.49 (reg. $299.99) through May 10.
$112.49
$299
Save $186.51
Cloud storage is one of those things that quickly turns into a monthly bill you forget about. That’s what makes a lifetime option like Drime worth a closer look.
You can currently get 2TB of storage for a one-time $112.49 (reg. $299.99), which means no ongoing fees just to keep your files accessible.
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But this isn’t just a place to dump files and forget about them. Drime leans more toward being a full workspace. You can upload, sync, and access files across devices, but also edit documents, leave comments, and collaborate with others without switching tools. It’s useful if you’re juggling projects, clients, or even just shared folders with family.
Security is a big part of the pitch. Files stored in the encrypted Vault are protected by end-to-end encryption, and everything is hosted in Europe in compliance with GDPR standards. This means your data isn’t floating around unsecured, and you have more control over who sees what.
There are also a lot of small quality-of-life features that make a difference over time — like version history for restoring older files, advanced link sharing with passwords and expiration dates, and even built-in e-signature tools.
It’s a simple way to get more control over your files without adding another monthly expense.
Mashable Deals
Get lifetime access to 2TB of Drime Cloud Storage for a one-time $112.49 (reg. $299.99) through May 10.
StackSocial prices subject to change.
How to watch Bayern Munich vs. PSG online for free
Manchester City look to extend win streak, take on Everton
