10 On-Screen Couples That Are Excellent Examples of Loveless Relationships

Almost any movie or series has a love storyline that helps filmmakers charm viewers. However, sometimes we are actually shown unhealthy relationships that are hidden under the mask of romance and love. Viewers bewitched by the flick don’t even notice these details and might try to build their life according to the patterns shown in the film.

Today, Bright Side is going to show you on-screen couples that have charmed millions of viewers. However, very few of them realize that their relationships are far from being perfect.

1. Pretty Woman — Edward and Vivian

Social and cultural taboos in real life would certainly have played a role, and Edward would not have been able to get into a formal relationship with a woman like this because the risks are too high. The basis of these relationships raises many questions as well. For example, Edward is actually buying Vivian’s love by giving her clothes, jewelry, and other stuff, while viewers perceive this gesture as a sign of love.

The original ending of the movie is actually not that happy. Vivian’s friend, Kit, dies, while Edward throws Vivian out of his car together with all the money he paid to her. But viewers are ready to pay for the fairytale that they lack in their real life, that’s why the script was re-written and Vivian was turned into Cinderella.

2. The X-Men franchise — Bobby and Rogue

Rogue is actually an incredibly tragic character. It’s literally difficult for her to start any relationship because it’s impossible for her to touch a person without harming them.

3. The Hunger Games franchise — Peeta and Katniss

The relationship between these characters is very complicated and doesn’t look like a happy story. In the first part of the franchise, Peeta openly declares that he is in love with Katniss. It’s a manipulative trick. Later, when they are alone, he admits to her that it was an attempt to compliment her. And this is another manipulative trick: turning a situation where Peeta was guilty into a situation where he is innocent.

All in all, Peeta’s problem is his complicated personality. Katniss, in her turn, is an open book for everyone except for herself, while Peeta is a simple and kind guy who doesn’t miss a chance to do something for his own benefit. He literally binds Katniss in invisible chains and makes her play by his rules. For example, when he declares in public that Katniss is pregnant and she has to pretend she is.

Also, the absence of any chemistry between these 2 characters, both in the flick and in the movie, makes this couple far from being perfect.

4. Passengers — Jim and Aurora

The relationship between these characters is nothing more than cruelty, disguised as romance. The 2 are locked in a spaceship and need to find a way to survive without going crazy with loneliness.

Aurora’s feelings for Jim are an example of Stockholm syndrome, while his behavior in the movie is cruel and can be justified only with the despair that he is feeling. The flick manipulates viewers making them empathize with the character despite the fact he condemned an innocent girl to death in the middle of deep space.

5. Silver Linings Playbook — Tiffany and Pat

There are almost insurmountable obstacles between these 2 characters — an injunction, the death of a spouse, unrequited and harmful love, problems with relatives and psyche, etc. All this cannot be fixed in a short period. And though Pat and Tiffany make a very nice couple, they both need to stay alone to figure out their own issues — only after having done this should they consider building new relationships.

6. Fifty Shades of Grey and subsequent films — Anastasia and Christian

This trilogy is the romanticizing of abusive relationships — both physical and emotional. Christian is a manipulator and a selfish man who does his best to control the life of his sweetheart. This couple lacks normal trust. Just try to recall every time Anastasia tries to learn something about her boyfriend’s past life, he is evasive and doesn’t answer.

The idea that Christian is changing and is influenced by Anastasia is one of the main themes in the plotline of the book and the movie. It looks very much like the syndrome of a “broken bird” — the state when a person is attracted to people who have an unthinkable number of issues but it seems to them that those issues can be fixed. Starting a relationship with the desire to change someone is definitely an unhealthy decision.

7. Notting Hill — Anna and William

Try to recall the flick’s plot: a famous woman meets a modest owner of a bookstore and starts a relationship with him even though she already has a partner. Once the media learns about this affair, Anna blames William for this situation and dumps him. After several months, the poor man begs her for forgiveness, as if he is the only one who is guilty of all the things that happened.

Moreover, the relationships of these 2 are built on lies: Anna conceals from William that she has a man and then conceals from everyone that she has William. That’s definitely not the best foundation for love.

8. Forrest Gump — Forrest and Jenny

During the entire movie, the focus is on the fact that Jenny is the only true love of the main character, however throughout the flick she clearly makes viewers understand that she is annoyed by Forrest’s signs of attention. Moreover, she hurts him and does it more than once. The whole movie is nothing more than a depiction of unrequited love.

Viewers call Jenny the most toxic woman in cinema history. Just try to recall — she kept avoiding the only man who tried to take care of her and only returned to him with her baby once he got rich.

9. The Great Gatsby — Daisy and Jay

The main thing in the flick is Gatsby’s obsessive love for Daisy and his desperate wish to get her back into his life. The ways he uses are quite doubtful: Jay commits crimes to earn more money. Moreover, he stubbornly ignores the fact that Daisy is married and tries to destroy her life. The woman, in her turn, loves both her husband and her lover. We could keep romanticizing this couple endlessly but their relationship definitely can’t be called healthy.

10. Game of Thrones — Jaime and Cersei

Let’s drop and forget the fact that these 2 are siblings, which itself should be a no-no when starting a relationship. Theoretically, viewers should hate this couple, but many actually treat them with sympathy and empathy.

Jaime is the weak part of this couple. When Myrcella died, Cersei blames Jaime for her death but when Tommen dies, Jaime doesn’t blame Cersei for it, even though he could. In addition, she can’t be called faithful — once her beloved departs, his place is occupied by another man.

What other romanticized on-screen couple’s relationship is actually toxic?