Love/Hate is a 2009 British Short Film directed by Blake and Dylan Ritson. It stars Ben Whishaw and Hayley Atwell, and the aforementioned Blake Ritson in a small role.
Tom (Whishaw) is a sweet-natured and super positive charity worker, whose life seems under complete control. Until the day Hate (Atwell), a mysterious, intrusive and twisted woman, enters his life and completely turns it upside down. She's about to present a side of Tom he never knew he had inside of himself, as well as new perspectives that comes with strange consequences on the way.
Has nothing to do with the Irish TV series Love/Hate.
This short provides examples of:
- Adolf Hitlarious: At the party Tom is invited to, Tom's friend Rob had no better idea than to disguise himself as Adolf Hitler.
- Anthropomorphic Personification: Hate is, well, Tom's suppressed hate and anger personified.
- Brutal Honesty: Hate doesn't sugarcoat her opinions nor does she restrains herself about them, unlike Tom.
- Candlelit Bath: Hate and Tom take a bath with candles at one point.
- The Corrupter: Hate progressively convinces Tom to do very nasty things.
- Downer Ending: Tom has "broken up" with Hate, and seemingly rekindled things with his ex, Joy... then he turns around and sees Hate sitting in his apartment. And she's pregnant, somehow.
- Good Angel, Bad Angel: Hate is very much a bad angel, and there's no good angel around to help Tom.
- Kick Them While They Are Down: After Tom's failed attack on Rob resulting in Tom laying on the ground, Hate comes up and kicks him several times, claiming it's "self-hate".
- Nice Guy: Tom is a good-hearted charity worker initially. Until he becomes a jerkass under Hate's influence.
- Non-Action Guy: After Hate claims she's been sexually assaulted by Tom's friend Rob in the toilets at the party, Tom goes to Rob to punch him, only to end up overpowered.
- "Not So Different" Remark:Tom: As it turned out, we had a lot in common.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: Hate reads Hitler's Mein Kampf, of all things, and Tom calls her "bigoted" later on.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech:
- Under Hate's influence, Tom sends several insulting e-mails full of this to the people he once considered friends, and he also lets one out about them as monologue during the party scene.
- At some point, Tom tells one to Hate hoping to break up, calling her "not a good influence, bigoted, shallow, selfish, cowardly, untrustworthy".
- Sir Swears-a-Lot: Hate employs foul language on a regular basis.
- Smoking Is Cool: While Tom is in bed, Hate sits on the other side, smokes and tells him how "hate can be extremely attractive".
- The Vamp: Hate fits the "completely evil and exploitative seductress" type to a T.Tom: But why do you look so...
Hate: You know, to certain people hate can be extremely attractive.
