11 Behind-The-Scenes Facts About "The Last Letter From Your Lover," Netflix's Lush Romantic Drama
If you haven't checked out The Last Letter From Your Lover — an epic, time-hopping romantic drama released on Netflix last month — you're missing a warm, fuzzy treat!
Netflix / Via giphy.com
The story revolves around modern-day London journalist Ellie Hathorne (Felicity Jones), who discovers a stack of intense love letters at her newspaper's HQ.
She and cutie pie archivist Rory (played by Nabhaan Rizwan) get drawn into the letters' drama and are determined to find out who the mysteriously nicknamed authors are (while also starting to fall for each other).
Their digging kicks off a leap into the past, where the story of socialite Jennifer Stirling (Shailene Woodley) and foreign correspondent Anthony O'Hare (Callum Turner) begins to unfold.
These two are forging a powerful, and often thwarted, bond while Jennifer's distant husband, Laurence (played by Tay-tay Swift's BF Joe Alwyn), is away.
There's a little bit of background; now let's jump behind the scenes!
1.The modern-day portion of the film is set in London, while the luscious '60s scenes take place on the gorgeous French Riviera and in swingin' London, too.
However, the French Riviera portion was actually shot in Mallorca, Spain. Many beach scenes were filmed at the Playa de Formentor, considered one of the most beautiful beaches of Mallorca, and at the luxurious Hotel Formentor.
2.The cast was asked what people would be surprised to learn about the making of the movie.
Callum answered, "Maybe not a surprise, but...everyone fell in love with Joe Alwyn," whom he describes as a "true English gent." Shailene concurred, stating that he "[stole] the hearts of everyone around" and is a truly "genuine, kind, present human."
3.Also, Callum cried when he first read the script.
He told Collider, "I read the script and it really broke my heart. I just thought, I've got to do this. I cried at the ending."
4.For Rabhaan and Felicity, they thought the biggest surprise would be the dance lessons they took.
Both mentioned "hours of training."
5.In the book, Jennifer is British, but director Augustine Frizzell decided to change her nationality to American to add to her feeling of isolation.
6.The restrictions of the 1960s wardrobe helped Shailene get into character.
She had to wear "a corset-like contraption on [her] stomach to restrict breathing and tighten [her] waist," along with "a bra that’s extremely constructed." The confining nature of the clothes and even her hairstyle made her "feel more controlled and more trapped." She even altered the way she breathed to bring Jennifer to life!
7.In one scene, Ellie scarfs down a croissant — Felicity shares that this took several takes, and she had gotten so full of croissants, she started spitting her bites into a bin under the camera.
8.The vintage London train scenes were shot in the county of Leicestershire, England, at the Quorn & Woodhouse station of the Great Central Railway.
9.The original opening scene of the film was cut because Frizzell felt it wasn't necessary to set up Ellie's character.
This means that an entire part played by actor Vilhelm Blomgren (Pelle from Midsommar) was lost to the cutting room floor!
10.Costume designer Anna Robbins wanted to be sure the intertwining stories visually connected with each other, despite taking place 50 years apart.
Jennifer and Ellie's characters connected "through their clothing...through palette and little textiles like a houndstooth weave on a fabric that went from one scene into the next on both women. Little things like that.” The 1960s wardrobe also consisted of vintage pieces from Balenciaga, Dior, Lanvin, and Courreges.
11.Director Frizzell felt personally connected to the script because it mirrors the long-paused relationship with her now-husband.
She and her filmmaker husband, David Lowery, briefly dated, then spent eight years not communicating before rekindling their romance — with letters!
This film rolls humor, heartbreak, and the rapture of love into a totally pleasant package.
It's not the deepest mind twister of a movie, but if you're in the mood for some sweet romance, check it out on Netflix!