Rom Coms
How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days
Director: Donald Petrie
Date Released: January 27, 2003
Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson made this film with impeccable comic timing and enjoyable performances. Of course with Goldie Hawn for a mother, Hudson comes straight from comic stock so I would have been disappointed if she failed to meet the challenge but she didn't. Some of her facial expressions and mannerisms almost had me convinced I was watching an old episode of "Laugh In"
McConaughey also held his own and proved himself to be a gifted comic as he did in the Wedding Planner.
This plot seemed quite original and as a battle of the sexes comedy, they seldom come as good as this. Again the formula was followed and we were under no illusion on what the final outcome would be, but their journey to this ultimate destination is what we find entertaining.
This type of film has been popular for seventy plus years and their similarities are what makes them so.
To All The Boys I've Loved Before
Director: Susan Johnson
Date Released: August 17, 2018
A large portion as to why this movie works as well as it does is due to the two lead performances by Lana Condor as Lara Jean Song Covey and Noah Centineo as Peter Kavinsky. Right from the opening few scenes, Condor exudes energy and warmth. Her character is one that is kind of a social outcast. She doesn't really feel like she fits in anywhere, but she really loves to write. So much so that she wrote five love letters to the five boys that she has loved in her life.
One of these letters accidentally ends up in the hands of Peter Kavinsky - the high school sweetheart that everybody seemingly has a crush on. He is good looking, has a bubbly personality, and is extremely confident in everything he does. Whenever Lara and Peter first meet, they are instantly drawn to each other. From that moment onward, To All the Boys I've Loved Before became an immensely cute and adorable movie that was always entertaining.
The chemistry on screen between Condor and Centineo is some of the best I may have ever seen in a teen romance movie. They genuinely felt as if they had known each other for years in real life prior to filming this movie. Every time they are on screen, the way they naturally talk to one another was so endearing and it made for some highly entertaining scenes.
Someone Great
Director: Jennifer Robinson
Date Released: April 19, 2019
"Someone Great" is an impressive feature debut from writer/director Jennifer Robinson, the creator behind MTV's “Sweet/Vicious.” The New York City-centric day-long arc manages to cram in a lot of mischief between Manhattan and Brooklyn. Although some of the movie's details about the media industry are more fantasy than reality, its core story of coping with heartbreak through friends and escapism holds true. There are jokes about the setting and how everyone the women knew from their NYU days has moved to Los Angeles, and there are many jabs about the uncertainty of turning 30 and feeling like they should have married or accomplished something great. These lines never bring down the movie's lighthearted tone, which bops along to a pop music soundtrack made up of some favorite songs and new hits.
There's even a hilarious sing-a-long moment to Selena's "I'm Dreaming of You,"" which is both a great song to listen to post-breakup or during a relationship.
“Someone Great” does not refer to a person. That search for the perfect partner may not be what these women really need at this moment in their lives. For now, they have each other, and the movie wants us to enjoy their company as much as we would enjoy our time with our friends. It's a fluffy romp with a sobering truth: relationships and your twenties may end, but neither signals the end of the world.
When Harry Met Sally
Director: Rob Reiner
Date Released: July 21, 1989
This film is probably his most conventional, in terms of structure and the way it fulfills our expectations. But what makes it special, apart from the Ephron screenplay, is the chemistry between Crystal and Ryan.
She is an open-faced, bright-eyed blond; he's a gentle, skinny man with a lot of smart one-liners. What they both have (to repeat) is warmth.
Crystal demonstrated that quality in his previous film, the underrated "Memories Of Me," and it's here again this time, in scenes when he visibly softens when he sees that he has hurt her. He is one of the rare actors who can make an apology on the screen, and convince us he means it.
Ryan has a difficult assignment - she spends most of the movie convincing Harry, and herself, that there's nothing between them - and she has to let us see that there is something, after all.