We’ve all been there — a broken romantic relationship. For many, those emotions are still there, lingering. Writer-director Elijah Gittens’s short film, Loving Emma, follows Emma (Elliot Goulder), a college student drifting between classes and long nights alone. She’s lost in her emotions after her breakup with Lucas (Ian Muldoon). Moments in time between the two flash through her memories, moments of warmth, hurt, and confusion. She replays moment after moment, almost to the point of paralysis or lethargy. Everything — from her mornings to her everyday routines to simply walking into a coffee shop — becomes a reminder of what was, what might have been, and of an uncertain future.
I definitely had to pull out the psychology textbooks for this one. Emma is clearly experiencing Erik Erikson’s psychosocial conflict of intimacy versus isolation. It’s the stage when young people ask, “Can I connect deeply with others?” Often, the breakup of a long-term romantic relationship can be the catalyst for resolving this conflict one way or the other.
“Emma…is lost in her emotions after her breakup with Lucas.”
I’m pretty sure this is not what Gittens was going for with Loving Emma, but what is presented is a short film full of intense emotion. Through Emma, we can read every thought, emotion, and feeling from Elliot Goulder’s fantastic performance. Erikson studies this conflict because we’ve all gone through it at some point—that crossroad in life where we either embrace others around us or withdraw for the sake of emotional safety.
Loving Emma does what it’s supposed to do. It makes us feel through its portrayal of raw emotion, connects with us in a shared experience, and makes us wonder how life might have been different had we made a different choice.
For more information, visit the official Loving Emma Instagram page.
"…full of intense emotion."
