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It’s All About Love (2018) movie poster

Characters & Themes

It’s All About Love (2018) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

Release, runtime and language
2018 · 113 mins · Swedish
Directed by
Staffan Lindberg
Starring
Adam Lundgren, Dilan Gwyn, Filip Berg, Kjell Bergqvist, Helena af Sandeberg, David Hellenius

The film follows the intertwined lives of five couples spanning different generations. Their relationships are shaped by unexpected coincidences and sometimes by carefully planned decisions, all driven by a universal quest for love and connection. The narrative explores the complexities of romance and the various paths people take in their search for lasting relationships.

On this page (7)
  1. 1 Characters explained (2)
  2. 2 Where & when it takes place
  3. 3 Themes & meaning (3)
  4. 4 Character & meaning questions
  5. 5 Movie threads
  6. 6 Movies like It’s All About Love
  7. 7 Every angle

2 main characters · contains spoilers

It’s All About Love Characters Explained: Who Is Who

The main characters of It’s All About Love (2018), heroes and villains: what drives them, how they change over the course of the story and what each of them reveals about the film's bigger ideas.

  • John

    A university lecturer from Poland who travels to Calgary to sign divorce papers with his wife Elena. He becomes entangled in Elena's mounting demands and a plot surrounding her clones, testing his loyalty and capacity to love under extreme pressure.

    • 🤝 Loyal
    • ❤️ Romantic
    • 🧭 Relentless
  • Elena

    A beloved figure skating champion whose entourage handles her commitments. She becomes the focal point of a strange conspiracy: three identical clones are created to replace her, while she seeks a way to reclaim her life and love with John.

    • 🌟 Icon
    • 🧊 Vulnerable
    • 🌀 Manipulated

Last updated: February 20, 2026 at 00:12

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Setting

Where and When Does It’s All About Love Take Place?

The setting of It’s All About Love (2018): the year and time period, the places and locations, and how they shape the characters, the mood and the tension of the story.

Time period

2021

Set in the year 2021, the world is crippled by extreme climate change, with sudden frosts and abnormal seasons. The near-future setting amplifies personal drama as love and loyalty collide with a collapsing society.

Location

Venice, New York, Calgary, Poland

The film unfolds across real-world cities in a climate-ravaged world. Venice experiences snow in summer as a stark sign of ecological upheaval. The journey traces from Poland to Calgary, with a stop in New York, as the couple searches for a safe life amid chaos.

  • 🌍 Post-apocalyptic
  • ❄️ Climate-impacted
  • 🗺️ Urban centers

Last updated: February 20, 2026 at 00:12

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3 major themes

It’s All About Love Meaning: Themes & Message Explained

What is It’s All About Love (2018) really about? The emotional, social and philosophical themes the film keeps returning to, its symbolism and the message beneath the surface.

  • Love

    Love becomes a fragile anchor in a world unraveling at the edges. John and Elena's bond is strained by complicated loyalties and the pressure of fame. Their decision to flee together tests whether devotion can outlive a manipulated public life. The evolving romance is set against a harsh climate-ravaged backdrop, reminding viewers that personal warmth is rare in a frozen world.

  • Identity

    Three Elena clones are created to ease her burdens, raising questions about identity and authenticity. The film explores how imitation challenges the sense of self and what it means to be 'really' Elena. John's loyalty is tested as he grapples with which Elena he loves. The tension between simulation and reality drives the plot toward a tragic conclusion.

  • Survival

    Survival is tested through escapes, dwindling resources, and brutal winters as climate disaster accelerates. The couple travels by train and on foot toward a supposed safe haven, clinging to hope amid the collapse. Betrayal and human fragility surface as infrastructure fails and trust wears thin. In the end, their bid for safety meets the harsh, frozen fate that caps their story.

Last updated: February 20, 2026 at 00:12

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Character & theme questions

It’s All About Love Characters & Meaning: Your Questions Answered

The questions people ask about It’s All About Love (2018): who the characters really are, their relationships, what the symbols mean, where it takes place and what the movie is really about. Each answer contains spoilers.

Q1

Where is the movie set?

The film takes place in a climate-ravaged near-future world, primarily spanning multiple locations including Venice, New York, Poland, and Calgary. Venice is depicted as experiencing snow in summer, symbolizing the severe ecological upheaval. The story follows John traveling from Poland to Calgary, with a stop in New York, as he and Elena search for safety amid societal collapse.

  • setting
  • locations
  • venice
  • polish
  • calgary
  • climate
  • dystopia
Q2

What time period does the story take place in?

The movie is set in the year 2021, depicting a near-future world crippled by extreme climate change. Sudden frosts, abnormal seasons, and environmental chaos serve as the backdrop for the characters' personal dramas, amplifying the tension between love and survival as society collapses around them.

  • time period
  • 2021
  • near future
  • climate change
  • setting
Q3

What is the world like in the movie?

The world is depicted as a post-apocalyptic setting where extreme climate change has caused widespread disruption. Infrastructure is failing, resources are dwindling, and brutal winters are accelerating. The environment is hostile and frozen, with cities like Venice showing bizarre weather patterns like summer snow. The climate disaster creates a desperate atmosphere where survival becomes increasingly difficult.

  • post-apocalyptic
  • climate
  • world
  • survival
  • dystopia
  • winter
Q4

What are the main themes explored in the film?

The film explores three core themes: Love as a fragile anchor in a world unraveling, with John and Elena's relationship tested by fame and loyalty; Identity through the creation of three Elena clones, raising questions about authenticity and which version John truly loves; and Survival through escapes, dwindling resources, and the harsh frozen fate that awaits the characters as they search for a safe haven.

  • themes
  • love
  • identity
  • clones
  • survival
  • climate
Q5

What does the Love theme represent in the movie?

The Love theme portrays relationships as fragile anchors in a collapsing world. John and Elena's bond is strained by the pressures of Elena's fame as a figure skating champion and the demands of her entourage. Their decision to flee together tests whether devotion can survive a manipulated public life. The romance is set against a harsh climate-ravaged backdrop, emphasizing that personal warmth is rare in a frozen world.

  • love
  • relationship
  • john
  • elena
  • romance
  • loyalty
Q6

What does the Identity theme involve?

The Identity theme centers on the creation of three Elena clones designed to ease her burdens, raising profound questions about authenticity and what it truly means to be 'really' Elena. John's loyalty is tested as he must confront which version of Elena he loves, testing whether love is tied to the original person or can transfer to an identical copy. This tension between simulation and reality drives the plot toward its tragic conclusion.

  • identity
  • clones
  • elena
  • authenticity
  • simulation
  • who is real
Q7

Who is John in the movie?

John is a university lecturer from Poland who travels to Calgary to sign divorce papers with his wife Elena. He becomes entangled in Elena's mounting demands and a mysterious plot surrounding her clones. His journey tests his loyalty and capacity to love under extreme pressure, as he navigates both a conspiracy and a collapsing world to be with the woman he loves.

  • john
  • character
  • poland
  • lecturer
  • divorce
  • calgary
Q8

Who is Elena in the movie?

Elena is a beloved figure skating champion whose entourage manages her professional commitments. She becomes the center of a strange conspiracy when three identical clones are created to replace her. While her team handles her public life, Elena seeks a way to reclaim her authentic life and rekindle her love with John, ultimately driving the film's central emotional conflict.

  • elena
  • character
  • figure skater
  • champion
  • clones
  • conspiracy
Q9

What is the clone conspiracy about?

Three identical clones of Elena are created, apparently to ease her burdens and handle her commitments. This raises questions about identity, authenticity, and whether a clone can truly replace the original person. The conspiracy becomes central to the story, testing John's loyalty and forcing him to determine which Elena he loves, the original or one of the copies.

  • clones
  • conspiracy
  • which elena
  • identity
  • replacement
Q10

How does the Survival theme play out?

The Survival theme follows John and Elena as they escape dwindling resources and brutal winters while searching for a supposed safe haven. They travel by train and on foot, clinging to hope amid accelerating climate collapse. Betrayal and human fragility surface as infrastructure fails and trust wears thin. Their bid for safety ultimately meets the harsh, frozen fate that caps their tragic story.

  • survival
  • escape
  • travel
  • safe haven
  • frozen fate
  • climate collapse
Q11

What is the tone and atmosphere of the film?

The film has a dominantly bleak tone, driven by the harsh dystopian setting and the tragic fate of the protagonists. The intensity is high due to the constant threat of both the clone conspiracy and environmental collapse, creating a desperate atmosphere. While the pacing is steady, moving from one urgent event to the next without lingering, it's not action-packed but rather emotionally heavy, with love shadowed by sadness and an ultimately hopeless ending.

  • tone
  • atmosphere
  • bleak
  • dystopian
  • tragic
  • mood

Movie threads

More Movies Like It’s All About Love, by Mood & Story

Curated lists built around what makes It’s All About Love tick: the same mood, the same kind of story or the same emotional payoff. Each list explains why these movies belong together.

Dystopian romance movies like It’s All About Love

Love stories set against the backdrop of societal or environmental collapse. For viewers who liked the desperate love story in It’s All About Love, this list features similar movies where romance is tested by catastrophic events, dystopian regimes, or environmental disasters. Discover films that blend high-stakes sci-fi with emotionally heavy romantic journeys.

  • dystopian
  • tense
  • tragic
  • desperate
  • melancholic
  • isolated
  • Tone: bleak, tense, tragic
  • Pacing: steady, urgent
Why these movies?

The story pattern: Narratives in this thread typically follow a couple or small group as they navigate a hostile, decaying world. Their romantic relationship becomes a central pillar of hope or a last remnant of humanity, even as external forces conspire to tear them apart, often leading to tragic or bittersweet conclusions.

Why they belong together: These movies are grouped together because they share a core dynamic: placing a deeply personal love story within an impersonal, collapsing world. The high intensity, bleak tone, and heavy emotional weight create a specific viewing experience where romance is not an escape from the dystopia, but a central part of the struggle within it.

Bleak conspiracy thrillers similar to It’s All About Love

Isolated protagonists hunted by shadowy forces in a crumbling world. If you appreciated the tense, paranoid atmosphere and corporate conspiracy plot in It’s All About Love, explore these other films. They share a focus on desperate survival, psychological tension, and a bleak outlook, often set within dystopian or collapsing societies.

  • tense
  • paranoid
  • conspiracy
  • dystopian
  • tragic
  • psychological
  • Tone: tense, paranoid, bleak
  • Pacing: steady, relentless
Why these movies?

The story pattern: The narrative pattern is one of flight and pursuit. Protagonists are often on the run, uncovering layers of a conspiracy that challenge their understanding of reality and identity. The pacing is steady but relentless, building tension towards an ending that is often tragic or morally ambiguous.

Why they belong together: These films are united by their bleak atmosphere, high-tension pacing, and focus on themes of conspiracy, betrayal, and identity. They create a specific feeling of desperation and isolation, where characters must navigate a hostile world that is actively working against them, resulting in a heavy emotional experience.

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Movies Like It’s All About Love

Similar movies to It’s All About Love: the same genre, themes or kind of story. Each one comes with its own plot summary, timeline and ending explained.

Browse all movie summaries

Every angle

It’s All About Love (2018) Explained: Plot, Timeline & Characters

Everything about It’s All About Love in one place: what happens in the plot summary, the timeline in chronological order, the characters and meaning and a spoiler-free summary. What's After the Movie adds the cast, box office and post-credit scenes.

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