Love

Art sometimes imitates life. And then again, life often imitates art. Just ask Oscar-winning actress Vanessa Redgrave and her husband, Franco Nero. In the new romantic comedy, "Letters to Juliet," the 73-year-old Redgrave plays a widow named Claire who had left the love of her life, Lorenzo (Nero), 50 years earlier when she was a student in Verona, Italy. Before she had left, Claire did what numerous women in love have done over the centuries, write a letter about her love affair to the Shakespearean heroine, Juliet, and tack it on the wall of the courtyard where the fictional character had lived.

It's Valentine's Day, when even reasonable people wander around, engagement rings at the ready, blathering about how "love is the answer." Snap out of it! Love, in fact, may be the problem. Passion often blinds sweethearts to the fact that matrimony is, at bottom, a contract. Figuring out how that partnership can prosper is critical for a successful union. Yet financial differences rank among the greatest sources of marital misery, in part because talking about money before you tie the knot makes many couples uncomfortable.

I've been thinking about the New Inquiry for a long time now, ever since the digital magazine launched last year. Founded by Mary Borkowski, Jennifer Bernstein and Rachel Rosenfelt, it's a great example of what new technology offers, published monthly and available by subscription, downloadable in PDF format to be read on your tablet or your phone. The New Inquiry is more than that, of course; its website describes it as “ a space for discussion that aspires to enrich cultural and public life by putting all available resources - both digital and material - toward the promotion and exploration of ideas.” But the centerpiece is the magazine, which blends the innovative with the traditional, using the digital space to produce highly curated issues, featuring long pieces on culture and an integrated design sensibility, each built around a particular theme.

It's the kind of house Hancock Park is famous for: unemphatic but impressive, with a perfect lawn, fresh coat of paint and ivy crawling up the walls. By Los Angeles standards, this is old-school cool. James Ellroy, all 6 feet 3 of him, is stomping across that manicured lawn, sporting a Hawaiian shirt and golfer's cap and pretending to walk a nonexistent dog. He mimics staring into the window, then simulates masturbating to what he sees inside. "Just like that," he offers.

Is there anything Psy's "Gangnam Style" can't do? The Korean pop star's high-energy video for the song isn't just the third-most-popular music video on YouTube and the most-liked YouTube video of all time. Apparently, it's also a magical visual and audio elixir that can soothe a screaming baby. If you love "Gangnam Style" and babies, then you will totally love our top three favorite baby "Gangnam Style" videos. 1. "Baby Gangnam Style Lunch" Ten-month-old Benjamin used to scream through mealtimes until his parents discovered the hypnotic effect "Gangnam Style" had on their son. "The first time I introduced it to him at mealtime, I literally fed him in less than half the time," Benjamin's dad writes.  My editor and I laughed so hard at this video, we practically cried.

This is body of my story. Isn't it wonderful !

Dear Amy: I have been married for 17 years and we have two great kids, ages 9 and 11. I fell out of love with my husband several years ago. I have not told him this because I don't want to hurt him, and I don't feel right about ending the marriage right now because it would hurt the kids. But every day I have an ache inside me because I know I'm not happy in this marriage. I would be willing to try counseling, but we actually get along fairly well. I'm torn between sparing my family any pain and my secret sadness that I'm not living an authentic life.

Just as we were giving Justin Timberlake a bit of credit for his sly comeback to Kanye West, the singer is already backtracking. In case you missed it during Timberlake's guest stint on NBC's “Saturday Night Live” over the weekend,  he switched the lyrics to his hit “Suit & Tie,” which appeared to be a witty retort to West's diss of Timberlake's laid-back comeback record “My hit's so sick, got rappers acting dramatic,” Timberlake coolly...

The clever and lively "Politics of Love" sets a romantic comedy against the 2008 presidential election and affords fine parts for its stars, Mallika Sherawat and Brian J. White. Inevitably, there's a twinge in watching a movie centered on an election that inspired such high hopes from today's troubled perspective, but on its own terms, "Politics of Love" emerges as an amusing entertainment. It's an encouraging accomplishment not only for its stars but also for its skillful director, William Dear, and writer Gary Goldstein, a freelance film critic for the Los Angeles Times.