When I first read Love In The Time Of Cholera, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, I was skeptical that a man could carry a torch for his soulmate for 53 years until their love was fulfilled.
When I saw Javier Bardem carry that torch in the film inspired by the Marquez novel, he seduced me to believe in his devotion to the power of true love.
Much like Romeo and Juliet, Bardem's teenage character falls deeply in love with his beloved, but her father sends her away because they are too young and he is not suitable marriage material.
When Javier Bardem makes a personal vow to love her forever, he infuses his commitment with tender,tangible soul that made me understand his yearning and to root for his reunion with his beloved decades later.
Throughout her long marriage to the town doctor, Bardem's character has meaningless affairs, never holding any woman dear in his heart except for his beloved.
This is why he says he is a virgin who waited for her 53 years.
No other woman penetrated his defenses.
Bardem's soul power makes us believe in romantic dialogue that you rarely hear in a Hollywood film: "There is no greater glory than to die for love.
" "Think of love as a state of grace.
Not a means to an end, but the alpha and omega.
An end in itself.
" Javier goes to the home of his beloved, now a grieving widow, on the day of her husband's funeral.
He confesses his undying love for her.
She throws him out, but his unwavering devotion eventually wins her heart.
As their love is consummated, you see her traces of age dissolve into the timeless, radiant spirit of love as she is beheld in the eyes of the man who loves her.
Javier leaves us with his parting poetry about their enduring love: "After 53 years, 7 months, 11 days, my heart is at last fulfilled.
I discovered to my joy, that it is life, not death, that has no limits.
" In my Santa Fe hot performance rating, Javier Bardem deserves 4 chili peppers for his sizzling, soulful portrayal of a man devoted to love and to his beloved.