What Are You Watching?

68: Favorite Romantic Comedies

August 11, 2022 Alex Withrow & Nick Dostal
What Are You Watching?
68: Favorite Romantic Comedies
Show Notes Transcript

You read that right, this week Alex and Nick break down their favorite romantic comedies of all time! The guys discuss 1940s sarcasm, the difference between a comedy and a romantic comedy, toying with genre formula, 1989 as a banner romcom year, Nora Ephron, Nancy Meyers, John Cusack, and much more.
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Watch Alex's films at http://alexwithrow.com/
Watch Nick's films at https://www.nicholasdostal.com/
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All right. No, I'm ready. Good. Hey, everyone, welcome to. What are you watching? I'm Alex with Thrown. I'm joined by my best man, Nick Dell. So how are you doing there, Mr. Zero? Oh. Oh, what a great one. Oh, don't fuck with me. Don't fuck. With me. Don't fuck. That's a zero. Oh, I am. I'm. I'm tickled to be here today. Tickled today. Oh, we're tickled today is baby. That's because we're talking about our favorite romantic comedies. And fans of the podcast may be like, What the hell are these two on? They're switching to rom coms after. Oh, yeah, you know movie arguments the departed heat gasp are in the way anyone Ray Liotta passing crimes of the Future. Goodfellas Low. Let's tone it down a little bit. Let's calm it down let's bring some joy into the pod. Not that there isn't already. Let it never be said we don't have range. Yeah, we have range. We wanted to do a topic like this and a few of things kind of similar to this. In a row, they're going to be a little bit they're just going to be in a slightly different vibe than the dark, foreboding stuff we always talk about. But we love all sorts of movies, and I would say you in particular are a great fan of a really well-made romantic comedy, as am I. But you are a fan of the genre and you know, there's a lot to get into. We're talking about favorite romantic comedies because the big question here is like, what is a romantic comedy? What is a quote unquote rom com? We're not going to use the other term. I'm going to use it now just to get it out of the way. It's a term I've never liked. I never understood why these were called chick flicks. Oh, yeah, because I've always gotten a lot of joy out of, like, really well-made ones. I would watch these with my mom, with babysitters growing up. Like, I just, I don't know, I always enjoyed them. So I don't agree with that term because where does that leave me? Yeah, I love these movies. So but really how to define a romantic comedy because in researching this, okay, we locked the idea down. We're going to do favorite rom coms. You get on and you start typing and stuff. And I am seeing very, very quickly that people are essentially equating any single movie that's a comedy with any sort of romance. They are calling that a romantic comedy. And that is just to me, that is flatly false. That's not the way it works. Some things are some movies are comedies like like Bridesmaids. Okay. I'm just going to throw that one out there. I saw that a lot on a lot of best romantic comedies of all time. And I'm like, That is not a romantic comedy to me. That's about a woman trying to figure shit out in the romance that she has. Chris O'Dowd is like the sea plot of that movie. So for for me, at least, all the ones I picked here, the romance has to be the a plot of the movie. And I basically, in defining it like this, a romantic comedy is any comedy film where the core romance is the main plot point of the movie. Of course, like the woman is going to have a job and the man is going to have a job and they're going to like maybe argue and all this different stuff. But that has to come first. Like, of course, they're going to have friends, they're going to have maybe even annoying boss or like, you know, a dad who's committing income tax evasion or whatever it's going to be. But also for me, the best rom coms, the one that made my list. It is not about the destination because we almost always know where these are going. It's how they are taking me there. Are you playing with form? Are you mixing stuff up? Those are ones I like. In addition to some of the traditional ones. But yeah, let's get into it. Favorite romantic comedies. And I think there's also like there are structurally formulaic, some things that really define it. Like you're always going to find that you've got the two, you've got the romantic lead as the male and the romantic lead is the female. And more often than not, they always each have their supporting character friends that are just purely there to champion their success in love. So true. These are just things that are just there. And when movies can actually sneakily put these things in so that when you don't really feel that, you know, just the complete stereotype of, Oh, that's what it is, or if they really are in your face, but it's still done well. And I think there's overall, you know, I was trying to think of a word because when you're talking about the difference between a comedy and a romantic comedy, all romantic comedies have I'm just going to use it a bop penis to them. Okay. There is a feathery light joy that is permeated throughout the storytelling. It can get serious. It oftentimes does, especially when we feel like our romances are not going to get together somehow. Yeah, but it's light. That's a big component as to what truly makes a romantic comedy. A rom com or however you want to put it. And I agree with you, the chick flick thing, I think that's just an outdated, archaic men being afraid to admit that they you know, it's just a very, very old fashioned mentality that's just dumb freedom. So yeah. So let's get into it. Yeah. Let's do you agree with like the journey and destination thing? I said that because we kind of know where these movies are going and that like more often than not they're probably going to end up together. So that's like the end. But to me, it's like how we got there. How many obstacles did you put in the way? Yeah, it's no different than a horror movie, and this is a generalization for sure, but you go into a horror movie expecting a certain type of experience to be delivered to you, that that usually revolves around the question Are the main characters going to survive this nightmare that they're going through? So we want to put it as black and white. Is that in a romantic comedy, you go into it being like, Are our leads going to get together? Right, you know? And we are not saying that this is a romantic comedy. This is a comedy. We're just kind of putting the positioning of if you really want to think of it like this, this is probably a little bit more, in our opinion, this way. But we're also not saying that this is it and this is that. It's just this is our take. Yeah, we have to set the stage here because I wanted for us on our terms to define what we think a romantic comedy is. And I was I was just getting confused, like looking up lists people have made. And I'm going to I'm about to name ten movies. I'm going to rattle them off really quick. These are all ten movies that I love that I saw just about every single list I looked up. These are ten movies that a lot of people think of, romantic comedies, but I do not see we have like Harold and Maude, Tootsie Broadcast News, Jerry Maguire. There's something about Mary O'Malley, Punch-Drunk Love, the 40 year old Virgin, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Bridesmaids. All of those movies have very humorous elements, but to me they are not romantic comedies. They are comedies. That's kind of I don't know, Jerry Maguire is like a comedy. Comedy makes me laugh. Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Like, that's probably the classic. Oh, no, that's one of your favorites. And I love that movie too. Like, I love all those movies I just listed. Forgetting Sarah Marshall is one I could debate about the most. Like, is that about is that like a romantic comedy? Is that the point of it? Or is it just about ado trying to get over a breakup? You know, I would I'd probably allow that one. But like the 40 year old Virgin, just because he meets Kathryn Keener and they, like, start dating at the end, that's not what the movie's about to me. It's about, you know, a 40 year old virgin, like, trying to have sex, largely. That's like what it's about. And it's very funny. And there is, like, some romance, but it's not. It just doesn't. I think it is a comedy. Right. And there's a difference. Yes. And I think in and this isn't this doesn't go for all these movies. But I would say that there's something about Mary, the 40 year old Virgin, Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Bridesmaids. There's a certain amount and I love it personally because I'm kind of low brow. But there's a raunch elements to these movies that I think if we're really talking about what makes a romantic comedy, a romantic comedy doesn't have too much of that. It tows a line. That's yeah, that's a really good point. There's only one on my list that's raunchy. Yeah, it's interesting. I didn't put that together. Yeah, and that's what I kind of mean with that element of bumpiness, where there's just something that there's a musicality to a romantic comedy that I think some of these other movies don't do. But Forgetting Sarah Marshall would be the one that's in that gray area. Yeah, it's very arguable that the romance is the a plot of the movie because but yes, it's also a guy who's just dealing with a breakup. There's a lot of other things going on here and. Yeah, exactly. But I think once we really start getting into these movies as as to what we're defining them as, hopefully it becomes a little apparent or maybe even eye opening like, oh yeah, I guess that is the genre that they're going for. Yeah. So we're going to get into our list. These aren't top tens. They are basically. It's like I come up with ten that I like you come up or however many, you know, ten maybe a little less lit, maybe a little more. You come up with like the same amount and then we compile them and we order them in a way that makes it good for conversation. But we don't confer on our list. So coincidentally, we had five in common, which is great because we're going to talk about a lot more than just ten, 15 movies total here. And those five are going to make for the what are you watching? Top five romantic comedies. We're going to get we'll get there at the end, folks. But I love it. But I liked it. We had some crossover. And then there's still our lists are still good. You know, they help distinguish our tastes a little bit because I'll go first here and I'm starting. I'm going way, way back. I'm going his girl Friday. Yes, 1840, directed by Howard Hawks. Hell, yeah. The Stars, Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell. This is about a fast talking, soon to be divorced newspaper couple. And the whole point of the movie is Cary Grant trying to stop her from remarrying. It's 90 minutes. It was made 80 years ago. And you can watch it any time. I popped it on Amazon Prime and I remember texting you going, I've only seen this once and I think this is going to fit for like I wanted to get like a classic rom com in there and this it's just I know you like Cary Grant and you have your favorite performances, Arsenic and Old Lace. But this is I love him in this. He's so you're talking about boppy like the boppy this kind of starts here and it's if you think like, oh, you know, a movie made 80 years ago, 1940 isn't going to have like dialogs going to be stale. It's going to be slow. Like they are talking. This is like Sorkin's stuff. They're talking like a mile a minute. It's just it was so great. And the 90 minutes just breezed by. I love this movie. His Girl Friday. I love. It. And this is a great movie to start with, coming off of the conversation of what constitutes a comedy versus a romantic comedy, because this could go either way. But in some ways I would actually pose the argument this might be the very first romantic comedy. Yes. That's why I wanted to mention it. Yep, yep. Because it does move in the pace of it. It's got a whimsy. It's got a certain type of musicality to it that does fit the standards of what we're talking about. And it is all about that. It's got hijinx, it's got it's got the supporting characters who are doing all this. And that was one of the movies I was watching was The Philadelphia Story. Oh, great one. Great movie. That's just a comedy, though. Yeah, yeah. Even though it does serve the whole entire thing of like, are they going to get back together or not? But not in the way that this one does. This one's the whole entire motivation of the movie is just to get these two together somehow. Yeah. And it's just a treat. Anyone who's kind of interested in going back and watching it. Well, Cary Grant, I mean, it's he's just he's never better in a movie like this. Well, it's also like when I was rewatching it, I kind of I'm like, when did sarcasm start? Because he's so sarcastic. Oh, sorry. And I didn't I don't know why. I always think of sarcasm as like a new sort of humor, but I mean, even when he has to meet the fiancee for the first time in a way that he plays that and he, like, purposely mistaken for the old man, like, it's just it's great. But he's so sarcastic. Yeah. His girl Friday again you know we're a fan of going back to the source on this podcast, so I would highly, highly recommend that one. And I think sarcasm itself is a very big component of romantic comedy. Yeah, because there's always one person that's sarcastic about love. Yeah. All right, the next movie, I'm going to talk about, we're just we're going to move a little fast because I know it can be difficult for a lot of people to hear about his movies, but I did rewatch for the first time in several years, Annie Hall for this podcast saying I'm only mentioning this because this genuinely was one, if not the first movie I saw that played with Tone and the form of narrative devices. So much like I didn't know you can mention a famous person in a movie and then walk off camera and pull that famous person into frame. And then he talks to characters in the movie and like dismisses them. And I never seen people, like, remembering a flashback together, but then entering the room of that flashback and observing it, they're watching their younger selves. And I mean, this movie has a sequence of animation. The whole movie is told out of order. It breaks the fourth wall constantly. I know it's hard to talk about his movies now. Believe me, I get it. But this really did play with the form of what a romantic comedy can be in a way that's just like it's still kind of startling to watch and then and also knowing how much he shot for this, how he overshot and it was like three and a half, 4 hours. And his producers were like, why don't you just focus on Annie? And I mean, he. Edited, edited, edited, edited. And now we get, you know, this thing. So just wanted to flag that it is it's a it's a well-made movie, if nothing else. It absolutely is. But now. Okay, I'm going to ask you, why is this a romantic comedy over a comedy? Because the only thing the movie's about is about them trying to get together. And you realize in the beginning we figured out that they're broken up and that's how the movie starts. And it's like, okay, and then you're going back. And the whole time you're wondering like, okay, now what? They're broken up and now we see them meet. So when is the line going to connect here? Is this a his girl Friday thing? We're like the whole intention of the movie is for them in a final scene to like be having lunch and sure, we are going to end up together. Sure we are going to get married and this movie really is funny to me. I mean, for a certain type of person, there's some people who just don't like it's humor. I get it. A rock solid comedy film where the main point of it is maybe not in the original script. The original script is all about one guy's neuroses, but the main intention of this movie is their romance. That's what he's going after, who he becomes obsessed with. And yeah, that's my case. I like it. I also I also would even think of Manhattan in a way of being. Is something similar. Yeah, that's I mean, that's a really tricky conversation, honestly, because I think that movie is one of his best looking movies. I think that movie looks gorgeous. It is never age well to me, and it certainly doesn't age well now that his love interest is like 16 in the movie. Yeah, fucking weird. It was weird then. It's weird. Yeah. Now we're two now and I that's a I haven't revisited that one since you know all this shit so. Yeah. You know, that's the only time we're going to mention it. We're going to move right along. We'll do a director breakdown next month. Oh, Christ podcast canceled. Okay, here's the first one that we both had on our list. We've already referenced it to me. If we're talking about this genre, it does not get much better than Rob Reiner's When Harry Met Sally. I've seen this one twice in the movie theater since COVID hit because the Alamo near me will play it occasionally. The first time I saw it, I was the only one in the entire theater, so it was like this personal screening and I was just dying laughing. Billy Crystal, Meg Ryan, written by Nora Ephron, Great Supporting Turns by Carrie Fisher and Bruno Kirby. I love that it's rated R. It's a great comedy for adults. Don't fucking Mr. Zero. This is the movie that I would define the genre as MeToo. Absolutely. So have you said that this is like, yeah. This is everything. And not only is it funny, it's also got a hell of a lot of substance and it asks all the questions that we have about the mysterious little thing called love. Yeah, it talks about the differences between men and women, which is always a big part of romantic comedy, because men and women just can't really get along until they fall in love with each other and. The magic. Things. But it asks them in such an intelligent way. But it doesn't give you the answers, which is what I think makes it that good, even by the end of the movie, they have not figured anything out. No, no. They have just reached a level of acceptance that. Yeah, well, shit, I guess we love. Each other, don't we? I mean. That. God, the New Year's Eve scene is just like it's one of the great, you know, most romantic comedies have that scene in the end when it's like just me, choose me or whatever it is, and his selling of it and the writing, nor Ephron's writing. Like, I just love the way that's delivered. And this is the bar to me. I remember the first time seeing this and I had no idea how confidently it was going to pass time. And we're just like going by time and oh yeah, oh, I remember him. I remember him and like, you know, the white man's underbite. Like, it's. Just. Oh, it's so funny. It it does not age. It is not dated. It still just absolutely holds up. It's so good. It's so good. And it's got the sarcasm. Billy Crystal is like truly a one of a kind, you know, someone we never really talk about. You never really think about his name too much. But whenever you watch Billy Crystal, you're really watching a certain type of personality and timing that I can't compare to anybody else. Yeah, there is something that's just very unique about him and Meg Ryan. That scene where she's crying and she's just grabbing tissues and. Throwing them. Behind her. This is kind of like comedy. 101 In a lot of ways, where it's just like doing something like that gets a laugh, but she's just so goddamn captivating and charming that it's she's perfect, she's perfect. It's a perfect movie, honestly. It really is a romantic comedy. Yeah. If you want to watch a perfect romantic comedy and like, here's one that just didn't get anything wrong. Here it is. And, you know, 1989, it's I mean, it's one of my favorite movies of the eighties. Honestly, I agree. I love When Harry Met Sally. All right. So I've done a few that made my list. And then we shared we had a shared one when Harry Met Sally. But now, now you're going to have your moment to shine. And I'm going to give you your little corner, your space, because you are going to start your remarks dedicated to one specific actor. I'm not going to spoil who it is. I'm going to let you tell the audience. But why don't you stop? First of all, you got to tell the name of the category that you came up with. But IT fans remember the Horner corner from our favorite scores in which you flipped out. Now we're going to move to a very specific subsection of Nick, those those favorite romantic comedies. Take it away, Daddy-O. We are getting into the. Six pack of Cusack baby John motherfucking Cusack Hot take just me. Personally. John Cusack is the greatest of all time. Goat Romantic comedy lead. Beau. Come at me. Having this man fuck you every single. Thing that it takes to make a romantic comedy work, he's got just the right look. He's not too good looking. He's not ugly. He fits right in there. He's got a charm, he's got a sarcasm. Women can get behind it. Men who. Don't like it because it's a chick flick. Can get behind it because he's got just that perfect amount of cynicism. He's got physical comedy. He's the God dear man and now I'm going to get a list of and these aren't even all of them. And there are some ones in between that we've talked about that like maybe don't fit the romantic comedy genre necessarily, but they still work. But going back into the eighties, you got the sure thing, which is just ridiculous of a movie, just like Better Off Dead. And then you've got quite possibly one of his greatest movies ever made. Romantic comedy or not, it's a fantastic fucking movie. And say anything. Oh, my God. I mean, that movie is just. It's a perfect movie. It's a perfect fucking movie. And now you've got in what my opinion is one of the greatest romantic comedies ever made, America's Sweethearts. Yes. You can't watch that. Movie and tell me that you had a good time. I have nothing to say to you. And now we're going to move on to a movie that I do not consider romantic comedy, but I'm going to put it in because one of my favorites of all time, high Fidelity, huh? Go see it. And then I'm going to wrap up the six pack accused sack, which just it is it's everything a romantic comedy should be serendipity. Oh. It's a movie that should not work in any sort of way. But somehow they managed to make that movie really a magical type of Christmas spirit movie, and it checks all the boxes for a romantic comedy. John Cusack I fucking love you. I love all of your work. But I got to say that you are the goat romantic comedy lead of all time you have left your legacy and good sir, I think you owe. John Cusack the listener of the week here. What are you watching? Podcast. We so appreciate. It. So it's awesome. I love the enthusiasm as a fucking John Cusack. We are going to I know you breezy. I know you breezed through those, but we are going to break out one in particular. But I am glad you mentioned serendipity, because my God, my college roommate is from Ethiopia. I've mentioned him a few times on this podcast. He watch that fucking thing just on repeat like really all the time. He Oh, he loves romantic comedies. So all the time. And you're right, like it shouldn't work because that's a pretty like stereotypical garden variety rom com. But it works. It works because because of their chemistry with his chemistry with Kate Beckinsale. And if I remember correctly, his favorite movie is Cool Hand Luke, which I always appreciate if like he says that in the movie but it you did breeze by one that we also share. Yes. As in our favorite romantic comedies and that is Cameron Crowe's first film Say Anything, which is, you know, I love Jerry Maguire. I like a lot of Cameron Crowe's movies. You love Vanilla Sky, but coming in this strong, almost famous, of course, coming in this strong with your first movie, being this good is like it's just really impressive. And this is a really, really well-made movie about teenage romance. It still feels relevant, still gets it right. I love that it was made the same year is when Harry Met Sally 1989. Great rom com. Yea. One thing I always liked about this movie is that they're not like it just made sense to me that they're two people from two different tracks. You got like you have the valedictorian, smart woman who's destined for college and then you have just the kind of like aimless guy who's good at kickboxing and doesn't want to work in anything that's that you buy, sell or process. Yeah, I don't want to process anything that's bought or sold. And it's like I feel very confident about this. I'm thinking a lot about this or that because I never seen better off that. So you said, you know, let's a you were going to put it in your six pack a Cusack I put it on. I had a lot of fun with it. It was it's a lot of fun. Yeah, it is. It was really ridiculous. But it was so like 1985. Yeah. And his energy is such, you know, he's playing like a kid in that, like a high school kid in it, and then he played that well. But for years later, you have four years of more performances and say anything. Lloyd Dobler is a little bit more mature, even the way he's carrying himself. And I can't just all play so well. I mean, in your eyes, it's like in the In Your Eyes moment is as iconic as I'll have what she's having from When Harry Met Sally like we're we're an iconic status here and I just love say anything. And it does toe the line for our our romantic comedy argument it's I think it does champion it to above it in a way because even though this movie's got some dark elements. Well, I was going to say it zags like literally out of nowhere, they just get a knock on their door and you're like, What the fuck is this b-plot they're introducing? I don't want to say like what it is, but it comes out of nowhere and it genuinely should not work. It should, it should derail them. It should. But it still works. It still works great. And yeah, and I. The reason that I think I give it the romantic comedy jump is because amidst all of this, there is a lightness to it. There's so much dark in the movie, but and there's weirdness because Lloyd, there's a weird guy and she's weird there. Yeah, yeah. Really weird. And not the, the typical type of characters that we're used to seeing in this way, but yet we're fighting for them to get together in the same type of way that a romantic comedy does. And I'm sorry that to this day, it's the iconic image of John Cusack holding up the boom box with that. I mean, that is a level of romance, comedy lower. That is just like you can't I mean, it's it's iconic. It's such a fucking good movie. Yeah, it really is. And I love the end. It's honestly one of my favorite endings, too. It's a great ending. I mean, it suits you well for your certain fears you have. I hate. Flying. Fucking. Yes, flying. Oh, so does she. I wish I had John Cusack with me to to calm me down. And his way too. Though. With the bell thing, it's all good. Oh, that was great. I love six pack Cusack. I agree. It's just I wish people still knew how to use him a little more. I miss John Cusack. I love his performances. He has a very his energy like Lakeith Stanfield is tapping into something that he has in terms of an energy you can't really put your finger on. Yeah, there's no one with, like, Cusack's cadence or just the way he would do stuff, you know, and just. Like, like one thing I'll talk about America's Sweethearts that I love is just the opening 5 minutes is the opening because the movie takes place between two fictional movie stars that John Cusack and Catherine Zeta Jones play. And they're doing like a movie trailer highlighting all of the movies they've starred in together. And they're so over the top cheesy that it lets you know the world that we're entering into right away and his line deliveries that some of the things that he does are just I don't know anyone else could do it I swear that those 5 minutes of that movie, I don't see any other actor making work like how he does. He is just it's an energy that no one else has. And a it's a quality that it's just solely his. It's just fantastic. Go fucking watch America's Sweethearts. Everyone go watch a John Cusack movie and feel better about life. Damn right. Well done. Well done. You know, there's also something I picked up on in researching this. A lot of these all of these movies are really white. And that's just the way it is saying. Yeah. I'm glad that is changing and it's been changing throughout the past few years. But for this reason in particular, to me it is very signifying. And to mention 1990 two's Boomerang, starring Eddie Murphy, directed by Reginald Hudlin. I loved this movie for so many reasons. First off, this thing is a complete inversion of the quote unquote rom com formula in which now the woman is the, you know, kind of sexual aggressor, the one in control, and the man is fawning after her. And this is my favorite Eddie Murphy performance because of its humility, like Marcus Graham, his character, he thinks he's such hot shit, he's such a boss. And then a few strong independent women come into his life and he cannot deal. And again, already mentioned, but another thing I love about Boomerang is that the entire cast is black. Yeah, and that's not something we saw a lot in 1992. You have Eddie Robin Givens, who's great. Halle Berry, David Alan Grier, Martin Lawrence Young. Martin Lawrence Young. Chris Rock, John Witherspoon. From Friday. I, I just really, really encourage people to go check this movie out. This is one that I found out about, you know, when we started up top, like some of the movies we're talking about, they do follow this formula and Boomerang follows a formula. But hey, let's not have everyone be white and let's make the men more of the better subjects. And I really appreciate that about it. And it has a very specific brand of humor. And God, I just think it's really, really enjoyable. And I was I was thrilled to see that it was on HBO and I could catch up with it because I hadn't seen it in a few years. So that is definitely one worth mentioning. I'm not only mentioning it because of the race thing, I'm mentioning it because it is genuinely one of my like top ten favorite romantic comedies. True. Every single movie that we're talking about is white. Yeah. And like. So what is it necessarily about romantic comedies that like that white people really like or it's at least sold to or marketed for, but boomerang checks, all of those boxes. What makes a romantic comedy and to your point, it does it in a unique way. And we've got all the supporting characters that are doing the exact same thing. India really likes the romantic comedy genre. Yeah, like a lot of their movies follow the exact same formula. Interesting of what America has done with that genre, and they do it all the time over there and it's huge. That's another thing to consider is that like maybe is it is it a representation of the fact that these lists are populated by so many white movies because the people creating the lists like were two white guys because there's other movies like The Best Man, which is a really good romantic. See, that's when I don't know if it's a romantic comedy or just kind of a comedy about friends, but that source has a mostly black cast. I love that movie. I actually I love that movie. Yeah, that's a really funny like. Yeah, it is. It is funny. So there's another one. I have a few, like, honorable mentions that are kind of on the edge. That was one I was going to mention. But yeah, it's like Boomerang is a very big movie in the black community. You know, once you start to talk about this movie, it's like, okay, yeah, like you're real. Like, you get it, you get it. So it's such a tricky can were opening here. I don't even know if I'm the best one. I'm probably not the best person. You're qualified to talk about this, but like the reviews, which I assume are written by mostly white people, were not very favorable at the time because the general tone of them is like, what is this like? And it's like, yo, it's just black people being in a romantic comedy, like, it's okay, you don't have to be scared. Like it's all. Yeah, it's. It's good and it's a good movie, so just relax, everyone. But I love Boomerang. It's again, my favorite Eddie Murphy performance. Straight up. I think he's great. I think it's hilarious. Did you ever see a movie called Someone Great? It's it's Lakeith Stanfield and it came out like a few years ago. I saw it on Netflix. Oh, I've seen previews for it. It's a romantic. Comedy. Oh, shit. And he's like, like light hearted it, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, fuck. I got to watch that. I actually wanted to get that movie in before we recorded today because I wanted to see. Yeah. If it, if it was what we thought it was good. But the thing is, is like it's got all the things that I mean I'll watch Lakeith Stanfield watch paint, dry. Shirt. And to see him in a leading role in a romantic comedy, that to me is as intriguing as anything. So I'm wonder if it's still in that. We'll have to check that out. I bet it. Yeah I bet it will be that. That's a great call. Great call. So one that made my honorable mention list was Four Weddings and a Funeral. The main reason I wanted to put that one on here is because, like I just put that off when I like that came out when I was a kid, same year, Pulp Fiction and like I was going that way and not the Four Weddings and a Funeral Away and I just put it off for like my whole life. I very I'll just be straight up. I assume the movie is going to suck and it was going to be a generic rom com that would not appeal to me at all. I put it on because I don't really like when everyone's saying this movie's good, like, shut up, just give it a chance. I go, You're right. Like, I shouldn't judge a movie before I see it. And then I watch it. It's fucking delightful, like the whole thing. It's just. Absolutely fucking. Delightful. Like Hugh Grant, you know, Hugh Grant, when he listens to this podcast, he might have something to say about you named John Cusack. The number one. Yeah, but sorry, Hugh, I will. I was going to say, if there's a second in contention, the Hugh Grant is not far behind all. And we're going to mention him. Yeah, we're going to mention him a few times on this part. Four Weddings and a Funeral. Yes. And then I'm going to kick it over to you for another primary one on your list, which is love, actually, which is kind of like. Fallen. Into a I think I know I know a lot of people who watch this every Christmas with their family, which is kind of weird because some of the scenes but yeah, it's made its way into like maybe a genuine kind of Christmas romantic comedy classic. But I think there's a lot to like about this as well. But including this, I fell in love for one of the first times to Keira Knightley in this movie. I think she's exceptional. Well, Alex, you know, when I get gloomy about the state of the world, I just go to LAX and I just watch these people just, you know, mothers, friends, lovers. And I just realized that love actually is all around. Yeah, this is the only movie on our list today where 911 is referenced in the first 10 seconds. Like, needlessly. Yeah, exactly. Like the first. Time I saw this. Like I do remember seeing people. Like. Argue Ed played sort of like, what? That's a weird way to bring this. In to like, what is this movie? But still. No, I was going to ask, what's your favorite segment story? Oh, I love asking that. What's your favorite, favorite segment? It's tough. I honestly, it's. I find a lot of charm in the Colin Firth one. I like the way that ends. And no, it's going in the family and, you know, getting the pronunciation wrong. And I like the cure and Knightley reveal when she's watching the wedding tape. But yeah, I do wish. You know they ended up together but but it's kind of cool that they don't because not everyone can, you know? And and I think that's the beauty of it. I think that's what you want, though. Like you like the need we have as people is like, oh, I wish they could be together. But, you know, in this, if, if that whole entire movie was just that story, I think they would have to end up together. True. Correct. But that's because you're giving us so much more here. We can let that reality because that is like unrequited love or like, you know, that's my best friend. And it's sort of like and I love what he says, like after he does, like the whole romantic postcard thing, you know? And then he's like, All right, enough, enough. As if it's actually going to be enough. I mean, let's be real. Like she's not going to be able to just to be like, Oh, that was just a nice Christmas little moment right there. Every time. They see each other, it's going. To be like, That's what I'm saying. Like that. Like to be your perfect. Okay, seeing that. Yeah. For trivia night, like, yes. I do like from idea gets. Yours under the table or I. Mean what is that. Yeah, well I. Love the sequel to that. Where are they? I don't know. Yeah, exactly. It's either the Hugh Grant story or it's the the Liam Neeson and the little kid. The little kid one is I. Yeah, that right after I did my take, I was like, I don't know, that might be my favorite the way when he's in the airport and he turns around and sees the cops and he's like, Oh, Jesus, I love that. Yeah. And Billy Bob Thornton coming in, like, knocking it out of the park for one scene is kind of like clearly not so clearly based on w there is just oh, it's a great, great. The way he does it is great. It's great. And I guess the best way you can put it is that Hugh Grant is Britain's John Cusack. Oh, okay. That's fair. He saved it. All right. Yeah, that's how I save it, because he he's got everything. He's got all of the characteristics for a romantic lead and they all come together. And this I mean, if you can if you've seen this movie and that dance sequence isn't like one of the best things you've ever seen put on celluloid. I mean, if that does not make you laugh. Then get the hell out of the kit. Yeah, it's just fun. And I love just the Bill Nye. He, I, I really like where the movie ends up, like the resolution of it and just him going to his house and he's like, you know, you're my, you're my only friend. Like, you're the best friend I've got. And it's like, you treat this dude like shit. But yeah, I, yeah, I like that, like, oh, god, they're all popping back into my head. The Laura Linney one has like that goes somewhere where you don't think it's going to and you're like, Oh shit. Like it does. It has some realism in. That they're all. Good. Yeah. The Alan Rickman, the. Oh yeah. That Thompson that packs a punch. Yeah, it really does. Oh, what a delight talking about love, actually, today on the podcast. All right. Next, we're going we're going to go back in time a little bit to another shared favorite. I never would have thought like 68 episodes in here, which is really cool, by the way, that we would be talking about Clueless this much of the podcast, but we gave it Love Episode 58 our favorite films of 1995 that made both of our lists, either as honorable mentions or otherwise, and I mean, I remember seeing this movie, The Theater, and even though it was PG 13, I remember thinking like, this is daring and new. I mean, I was also nine years old, but, you know, well. This is it's just easily one. Of the most nineties movies ever made following Alicia Silverstone through Teenage Romance in 1990s Beverly Hills. It's like it's just nostalgic bliss. I mean, this movie is almost 30 years old and. Oh, that's gross. I know. But while it is dated, it's dated in all the best ways it doesn't. You're not watching it like, oh, god, that hasn't aged. Well, it's like, no, they wanted it to be just like a time capsule movie. And we talked about this in our mailbag episode a little bit like what is like a movie that best defines the nineties? You said Empire Records, which is cool, but this lives like in this specific like, you know, yeah, yeah, yeah. This is so like, you know, even like Dan Hadia, like. Get out of my chair like it's love a bit this so but I get in here shake it in. Oh gut. Yeah this is a great movie. I mean, what's the best, do you think? The death of Sammy Davis Jr left an opening in the Rat Pack? Yeah, yeah. Just great. And then Paul Rudd, it's like I mean, you know. Well he's I was going to. Say you said this movie's not dated. I'll tell you one thing that's not dated is Paul Rudd. That's exactly the same. The fuck is that guy. God, give me whatever the hell he takes or I don't know. Oh my God. He looks great. He looks great. It's the exact same. Yeah. You know, it's funny because like, it is a movie where we are champion winning the love and it's a love between causes. Well. Well, Noel. No, they're not. Brothers, sisters, step brothers. Okay. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, it's it's a little there like her. So her dad and his mom were married and now they're divorced. Yeah. So now it's like a few years later, it doesn't really make any sense. It's like he's in the city where he's like a divorced parents. You don't divorce children like that. No, that's not really true. Like, I don't think. This do would just be like eating salami out of the fridge. And granola bread. But it's a romantic comedy. That's what we're here for. That's that's the conceit. And I remember seeing this at a young age and in the theater and being like, I didn't have the formula down yet, so I didn't really know that, like where this was going to go. And then the reveal of, Oh, my God. I love, I love just Fountains of Ed. It just gets me every time I love it. I love this movie. You know, you said it right before we started talking about it. I this has to be one of our most referenced movies throughout the history of our pod. Definitely one of like the top five most referenced comedies like for sure we talk about over it's just popped up. Yeah, it's popped up. We talk about it a lot. It's because we love it. That's because it's. Well, 95 was like a good year. A lot of fun to do that part. That was it's one of our most listened to episodes two nights, our favorite films in 95. There are just so many good movies that year. Our next year one people are going to love. It's a real like inarguable banger of a year. Stay tuned. Banger. You know, another guy, surprisingly, who has a lot of romantic comedies under his belt, maybe to varying degrees of quality, whatever is Adam Sandler like? He makes a lot of romantic comedies he does with a lot of really famous leading ladies. You picked one here, 51st dates. Why is this your favorite Adam Sandler romantic comedy? Because I think this movie because like I think the argument to be made is the wedding singer. Okay? Because the wedding singer, if you're just talking like Adam Sandler, Drew Barrymore, like obviously they've got great chemistry. Both of those making giant arguments to be one of the great romantic comedies. Sure. But I'm picking 51st dates because this this movie shouldn't work. I don't think you're you're talking about a very, very real well, potentially real like brain damage situation. It's true. I mean I mean, it's yeah. This is what the plot of the movie is, is that this woman, Drew Barrymore, has been in a car accident and she only has like a 24 hour memory. Right. And it just resets every day. Like when she wakes up in the morning. It's like you don't set. It's just resets. And Adam Sandler has fallen in love with her. And then because he can't do anything else with himself, just in hopes of trying to get some type of change to happen, just devotes his life to meeting her every single day for the first time. I'm sorry. That is about the most romantic thing I've ever fucking heard. It's especially when, like, he's introduced as a, like, a womanizer, kind of, you know, he's got these excuses to try and then, like, he falls for her and how much work you'd have to put into convincing somebody, like, every day that. No, we're together. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It or, like, just convincing me, like, hey, like, I want to be your person, right? I think this movie just has something very unique in that way that it's so a it's such a strange plot and such a weird way to go about it. But everything that you're watching about the movie works and also a giant credit to Sean Astin. Who plays one of the. Most ridiculous supporting characters ever that I just can't get enough of. I don't think you could play that character today. Well, sure, sure. Yeah, that's a good one. That's a good one. All right. Our next two here, we are going to talk about the. Two. Premiere writer directors of this genre, or at least two of the premiere. First up, you've got to talk about Nora Ephron on a podcast like She's the Queen. Which one she is? She absolutely is. I go with You've Got Mail in 1998. I think this is another because of the technology. It's another extremely dated movie. But but in purely nostalgic ways. And I've always preferred this to Sleepless in Seattle and I just think you've got mail. So Rewatchable I think Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan are perfect in that they have amazing chemistry. And after, you know, I've referenced my interview with the BBC talking about Paul Sorvino in our last episode, so go check that out if you want to hear my remarks on it. But after I'm like sitting there, my adrenaline is just like plummeting. So I was just like hanging out, ordered a large pizza and put on You've got mail. And it was a great way to spend the evening just alone. Like after doing this really wild interview that happened fast that I was like, Oh, that was fun. That's a good way to do that. And I really, really love the end of this movie. The Reveal Walking the Dog. I just I love it. You know what, Alex? You're not going to believe this. Never seen. But in the in the comparison of of Sleepless in Seattle and you've got mail. I agree with you. Nice setup like. I think for us given when we were born, I think it makes a little more sense because we were a little more of age like I saw you got mail in the theater with my mom, Sleepless in Seattle. I watch like probably by myself on like TNT one night or something, and I get it. Like, I love the An Affair remember connections it's Sleepless in Seattle has but you've got mail is just I don't know a lot of fun I was cracking up all the Godfather stuff that Hanks does at one point. I don't know. He's just I love Hanks. He was just so sly like the nineties were his I mean. Oh, still, I've always loved and I'm always getting old. But he really, really had a run there, including back to back Oscar wins, which has only happened once by Spencer Tracy. It's just crazy. I like it. I love the Hanks run in the nineties. I love it so much. There's just nothing. That man can't do this. Just be real. Like that dude's had one of the greatest movie careers in movie history. There's not one bad thing you could ever say about it. Right? Right. Which is not. Is not easy. And then we're going to pivot to the other kind of all star writer, director of these movies, the great Nancy Meyers. So many choose from here what women want. Something's got to give. It's complicated. But you've referenced this movie before. I think this was your what are you watching pick in episode 14, our favorite film scores were going with the holiday from 2006. Oh, my God. It's just got everything you want. That Bob penis that I'm talking about. Yeah, yeah. The score of this movie is just delightful. And I got to give a lot of credit to Cameron Diaz for her performance in this, because until Jude Law comes into the into the story for her, she's doing so many scenes by herself. Yeah. Just being on a computer, being in this little charming English home that's too small for her. She doesn't know what to do with herself. She's by herself for, like, almost first, like 45 minutes of the movie. She just carries her story. That's a hard fucking thing to do when you're bouncing between all these different stories. I think she's great in it. Jude Law is just, God dammit, Jude Law. I mean, that man can just do no wrong in my eyes in any movie he's in an all star performance by Jack Black. I think he actually steals the movie. Yeah, this. Is this. Is a good one. You mentioned I don't think we ever told the high fidelity story. You mentioned that in your six pack of Cusack. But when you become friends with someone like we're such good friends that your enthusiasm, you have a few movies that you're like, This is mine. Like, I tout this up, I love this one. And that will make me more interested in going back and rewatching it. And the holiday I had only seen once. And I guess this kind of like put out of my head. But when you recommended that for what are you watching? I went and watched it that evening and was like, Oh shit, this is way better than I remember. Like, I really like this. It was the same thing with High Fidelity, which I saw in the theater and clearly did not understand everything he was putting down. And then one of my visits to LA that was like, you know, and a couple of years ago I was like, Let's put this one on. I want to watch it with you. And that made me appreciate it so much more. So yeah, the holiday really is like just a really well-made movie and a good movie. I like a lot. And I and my point was, I agree Jack Black was the biggest surprise to me. And it yeah. And a personal story of like, you know, because we always like to talk about our movies in ways that relate to us personally because it makes, you know, you guys as listeners think back to the movies that, you know, I remember I was with my college girlfriend and we took our first vacation anywhere we went to fricking Niagara Falls is my first vacation with a girlfriend or just even on my own, like going anywhere without family. And we stayed at a hotel first time staying at a hotel like in this kind of way. And we stayed in one afternoon and. It was this story going. We're watching the holiday. It could go away. It could go any number was Ways. Falls Hotel. But heart-shaped bed but I. Think dumb and dumber what's matter here is some little filly break your heart. No, it was a girl. Ah. Oh. No. And we watched the holiday and it was just the sweetest thing that we could have done with our vacation was in watch this movie. And so I always have that relationship to it because that's just how that movie came to me in my life. And I always have that fondness to it. And it's just and what's great is that like over time, like it's holds up as the movie. So I get to enjoy. I watched it on Christmas. Yeah, for God's sake. This past year you. Go and. I loved it. So I this is a true, true delight. Holiday all the way. Holiday all the way. I love it. Here's another one. I'm noticing that a few on my list are ones we've talked about in great detail already on this podcast. Sorry about that. It's just kind of, you know, we've covered some great actors like Heath Ledger in episode 28. And in that episode I asked you, is his performance in ten Things I Hate About You? Has there been a more charming leading man performance in a romantic comedy since we both like kind of struggled to think of an answer? I still don't think I can. I mean, maybe that's that's a hot take. But he's so charming as Patrick Verona that I think he kind of reinvented this character, like the bad boy persona in the romantic comedy. And I just miss him. I mean, there's can't take my eyes off you. It's like, oh, my gosh, it's just such a wonderful moment. Julia Stiles is sitting there over there in. The corner, and she's just loving it. It's it's just it's a perfect movie moment. I love when he slaps the security guard on the ass as he's running by. I love that you got to bloody. It's so good. Oh, boy. We're we're coming we're coming up to the end here. Let me do I'm going to do my last official one before we move to your last ones, because this is we've made it this far without mentioning like one of. The. Romantic comedy Goats. We haven't said Julia Roberts yet. And that's like, you know, she's. Not. We haven't she's one of the biggest. And I knew I will I we were going to represent her. But I think if I have to make one and there are a lot to choose from, I got to go with Notting Hill. There's something about Notting Hill that I just like a little bit more than the other stuff, and I really enjoy my best friend's wedding. I don't know. There's just something about it's like the long, unbroken shot of the seasons changing. Hugh Grant Julia Roberts Chemistry is a really fun Alec Baldwin cameo. Another really good ending at a press conference that I just think I really think they nailed. I've always liked it. I've always like Notting Hill. So, you know, we can't go this far without mentioning Julia. No, we can't. Because she she is she she might very well may be the queen. Well, she's in America's sweetheart, so we kind of damn right. Tangentially got met. But we did mention her by name. Damn right she is. I loved it. In America's Sweetheart Make America's Sweethearts, making Julia Roberts ugly. It's like because they make amusing ugly not they like, give her like a few extra layers of clothing. They put her hair down and she has glasses. And I'm like, the woman still. Beautiful folks like. Yeah, like you did you. Did try hard. And then it cuts to her like in present day and she opens it like no glasses, like a normal amount of clothes, auditor hair back. Okay. Yeah, that's all it took. That's all. That's all it took. That's all it's like. Do you consider Pretty Woman a romantic comedy? Another one that popped up on a lot of lists? No, because I don't think a romantic comedy should have, like Jason Alexander almost raping your lead character. So I'm going to have to just say no, you know, that's that scene is really, really intense and really, really dark. And he smacks Ernie's tossing around and that some of the movies were mentioning here. They're not always funny throughout but some of and some of them are when Harry Met Sally is ah but you're venturing into that's a little more nefarious territory than I think is suitable for the romantic comedy label. I might even just call that movie a romance. I honestly might call it like a kind of like a poppy romance, because I don't think it's drama and I don't think it's 100% comedy. I don't know. It's it I would I could hear the argument either way. But I'm I remember seeing that movement. I was a kid and being so disturbed by that scene and in like, I don't know, it's kind of like haunts me in a way. It's what I think of when I think of that movie that how it goes. It all of a sudden you're like, Oh my God, this is going to what the hell's about to happen here? And thankfully it doesn't happen. But yeah, that's my long answer of I don't know, it doesn't seem like rom com to me. I like that movie a lot though. Don't get me wrong, I do. I like Pretty Woman. You know, when you're right, you're right and you're not wrong. I agree. I agree. It's a tough it's too dark. It's too much. It's too it. Yet you can't have that in a romance. Yeah, but I mean, their chemistry. Richard Gere, Julia Roberts is. Yes, it's great. I like Runaway Bride as well. That's a romantic comedy. That's what that one a comedy that has like the boss penis to it. And I like that movie. Yeah, I like I like all the dude she's tried to marry. And the difference in the way she takes her egg orders, like, I get it. I dig it. All right, let's talk about ones we've mentioned on the podcast before already. Jesus, I mean, Ryan Gosling, Steve Carell, Kevin Bacon. Oh, Marissa. So, Bay. Right. In 2011, one of your favorite films ever, I would say Crazy, Stupid, Love. David Lynch hogging. Yeah. I V. Yeah. When you think about romantic comedies, obviously if, if we've never been able to tell listeners of this podcast, this is my favorite romantic comedy of all time. I could literally watch this movie every day and never get sick of it. It is just fucking romantic comedy gold half Nelson is my favorite Ryan Gosling performance. I don't think that will change, but this is a very close second, really. That's how good I think he is in this. I think this is some of the best work he's ever done. What I love about it is that one of the stark bullet points of a romantic comedy is that, you know, the guy, the womanizing guy is sleeping around a lot. He's got to meet the woman and change you. That's typically what happens here. The bad boy, the the player, whatever it is. I find myself having to leap a lot in these movies. Not the movies were mentioning today, but in a lot of romantic comedies have like I don't believe that change. Like, I just don't believe that flip. Maybe even like John Travolta changing that quickly and Greece and then she also changes that quickly. It's like, okay, I get it. That's done for humor. But a lot of movies do that, like kind of serious thing. I go, I don't know. I don't really buy that change. I totally buy the change here. I totally buy that he falls in love with Emma Stone and it's like, Okay, this is what I'm doing now. I didn't expect this. And my favorite scene of that movie is the montage of them sitting in bed and talking after they've left for the first time. He's like talking about his mom, and you're like, It can take that new person to open someone up. I'm not even putting gender on it like it just it can't. And I really, really feel that. And that's, you know, why he's such a good actor in so many different genres. I think what this movie does really well is like it's got that bumpiness, it's got that tone, it's got that style that we all know about romantic comedies. But yet when it gets to some of those really, really human moments, the one that you're talking about, you know, and there's a couple with Steve Carell when he really gets to that that broken hearted. Yeah. This. Yeah. It never crosses the line of being. Of changing the tone. Yeah, but it gets right there to where you feel the heart of it. And I think that's what a good romantic comedy does. Like, you kind of got to get to that real, real heart. There's anything I actually don't really like about this movie. It's actually the ending. Oh, no, it does. I take that back. I do like the ending. I like I like the I like the way their relationship changes in that he starts smacking him. That makes a lot of sense. Well, it makes it takes a few it does take a few leaps at the end, some of which are extremely effective. Others, you're like, okay. But I mean, a lot of movies in this genre do that is kind of about taking its big leaps at the end. And it's you're either along for it or, you know, we're not. And that's yeah, I don't think for a romantic comedy to be successful, it has to hit every single thing perfectly. I don't anything for an action movie to be enjoyable, it has to be perfect throughout. Like, give me, you know, some stuff that is good, but it doesn't you don't have to nail every mark. I think that's fine. Our last shared movie together here. So I said I had one raunchy one on my list. This is like still not even like full raunch. But David Wayne's, they came together from 2014 starring Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler is priceless satire, priceless romantic comedy. It completely messes with the form of the genre easily. My favorite David Wayne film. David Wayne Phil and I love him. Christopher Meloni steals this. For me, I think. I mean, his scenes, the Hollow, the Halloween party stuff, the costume parties, just one of the funniest scenes I've ever seen in a movie. I'm so glad this made your list as well. But yeah, they came together. If you're looking for like a hard ah, send up of this genre, here it is. And this thing is hysterical. And they follow it. Beat baby. Yeah. They, they take the formula of a romantic comedy and follow it to a T in every sort of way. They even come out and say it like even when they introduce Paul Rudd's friends they're all, there's four of them I think, and they all represent just one equal of what could go up into a guy's decision making process. One guy is like, I'm, I'm your friend. That only speaks from the intelligence side of things. I'm the guy who only speaks about sex. But if you put all of us together, we're the perfect version of what you should do. Yeah, it's like the walk hard of it. It's a comedy. Yeah, that's what it is. It. It's really, really funny and it's not. It's another one. Rubbish. Like, I don't know if I'm, if this will be for me and I just put it on and oh my god it was hysterical. And shortly after we met we were talking about it a lot. Just this is one of those movies that because no one knows what this movie is like, this movie came out and no one knew it. This is one of my favorite movies to show. Like people like, just like, you know what you've never seen. They came together. We're going to watch this. Ten out of ten. Yep, ten out of ten. There is not a single person that I've showed this to that does not love it. And I'm so glad you said that, because this it slipped my mind. This is just like a few months ago I showed this to Allie in her favorite genre of movies are comedies and mine aren't, so I have trouble finding ones that I haven't seen or something. So I mention it and she goes, What's that like? She had never heard of it, so I didn't tell her a thing about it. And like 10 minutes in, she just kept looking at me going, Why have you not showed me this before it? I don't know. I guess I kind of forgot about she loved it. So, yeah, to your point, if you're just in for a subversive romantic comedy, this will not let you down. It is not clean. Not by any means. No, no, no. A lot of the fun of it and a lot of the charm. All right. Let's get to another the final one on our list that we're going to talk about today. I'm so glad you added this one. I guess it kind of lives in the gray zone of what we would consider a normal romantic comedy. That's partly what makes it so great, but just teared up just. Tell us what your last one is. Oh, I'm so glad. Destination Wedding starred Keanu Reeves and Winona Ryder in roles you have never seen them in before. Never end this movie. It fucks with the complete structure of a romantic comedy because it doesn't follow any of the rules. The movie is just these long scenes between Keanu Reeves and Winona Ryder, and that's it. That's it. Like there's there's a couple of shots, extras running around, but the camera essentially stays on them for these scenes, doesn't move. And we get this very, very specifically character driven story, but it hits all of the tone of a romantic comedy, the feeling that you get watching it is what makes a romantic comedy. A romantic comedy and another hot take. You may agree with me, I 100% think this is Keanu Reeves, his best acting he's ever done. I love that. It's not. Even joking. I know you're not. It's definitely up there for me because he's never done anything like it. And we should say, like, this is a movie about two people who meet on a train. They're going to a wedding they don't know each other in. These two people are fucking miserable, just miserable life. They get date, they're cynical, they don't get enjoyment out of anything. You partly wonder like, why are you even still around? It's like you're not even enjoying yourself. But then what if two completely miserable people who are perfect for no one happened to maybe be perfect for each other? It's such an odd conceit to a movie and yeah, like you said, like the way it's shot, the way it's told, there's not a lot of flair going on. You're just seeing two actors completely carry it. And the first time I saw this, I mean, I, it was one of the ones where I kept having to rewind it. Two scenes in particular, one that takes place in the hotel when she opens the wrong door. And I was just sitting. There. Laughing so hard that I kept having to rewind it because I was missing stuff. And it's a very, very different sort of movie in terms of its tone because yeah, so miserable, but god it is hysterical and his the way that he is and just his facial expressions. He has that like dumbfounded stare or just that blank stare where he's like looking off and just looks totally miserable. Like, Oh, it's definitely right out there for like his genuine, a genuine good acting performance. He's fantastic in it. He's so classic. I love that scene where she person and like there's a moment where they're just looking at you. He's in his underwear, brushing his teeth. That's the scene I'm talking about. Yeah. And he's like, Were you looking for a response? Yeah, waiting for me. Oh, my God. It was just. Died, though. And like, how long they hold it for? Like, hold that tension for. So long. Oh, man. Oh, it's so great. And this movie's writing is just fucking great. It's got some of the best dialog I've heard in quite a long time. It's one of my favorite lines from the whole entire movie is like, they're both at the wedding rehearsal and they both go up and talk to the one person there that they don't want to talk to. You don't even see the conversation. They just remove themselves, go and then come back to the table. And she just. Goes, Are you okay? He goes, Oh, I'm just all fucked up. And I always will be. Yeah, exactly. And they're saying it. So straight like they. Don't. Yeah. There's no like. Flare on any of the line deliveries is really monotone and like flat. Oh, it's so great. It's fucking great. Oh, we went from 1940 to 2018. That's a hell of a list right there. It's a hell of a span of the genre. Any other honorable mentions that you missed or that we missed and that you wanted to tout along the way? I had a few, like L.A. Story with Steve Martin, which is like an impossible movie to find because you can't you can't even rent this movie for a fee. You have to straight up buy it. It's one that lives in the gray zone, a great satire of L.A. I wasn't sure if it's just like full on satire or romantic comedy, but God, does it work. It just works so well. Along came Polly is a fun one. Yeah. Like in terms of having that buffoon of a best friend who really elevates everything because Philip Seymour Hoffman's like, perfect in it and it's just hilarious. So those are the two that came to mind for me. You know, I might actually slide that one into a romantic comedy. Yeah, yeah. I would fit. I would throw. That one in there. Yeah. Yeah, I think that's fair. I do. Because they're both looking for love. Yeah. Yeah, I would. I think that's a that's a no doubt. Along came Polly. And then another one final one because we mentioned like how white a lot of these movies were. They're also very, you know, hetero. And we're living in a time now. Yeah, that's starting to change and that's cool. And I think a really good example of that, a recent one was happiest season from 2020, which is. Oh, what a recall. Yeah, yeah. I thought, you know, Kristen Stewart, Clea Duvall directed it like I've we've talked about that movie on the podcast. I really, really enjoyed that one and thought they played into the genre very, very well in a way that wasn't like stale. And that's kind of not the genre that's been around for a long time. And Kristen Stewart helped a lot with that. She was just tone perfect in that movie. Well, and I think this is a great point. I think this is actually, you know, we know what this genre is and it doesn't have to remain stale because of all the different diversities and and all of this and that. Like we can now tell these stories using this formula. And because the formula will work. Yeah, but we need to see it in a fresh way now we like, we know we just spent an entire podcast talking about all the great movies that are in the genre that are up to date. And yeah, they're all white. We need some more representation using this genre and I think it would spring to life in so many new and interesting and creative ways. Yeah, exactly. That's a really good point. And that just because the genre has been around for a long time, there are so many more stories to tell because there are so many different perspectives to bring into it. Yeah, we don't have to just stay locked in like this, you know, young white thug like we could branch out and then we're on some gradients. Yeah, exactly. Of course. So. All right, the. What are you watching? Top five romantic comedies here are the five that we had in common. I'm going chronologically here so that and then we're going to order them. We have say anything. When Harry Met Sally clueless ten Things I Hate About You and they came Together. Those are our five. Those are up five. Those are our five. Does the five. So here's what I am suggesting because you have things like the holiday. I have things like his girl Friday that you know some that I add but you've got mail might make my top five but I think we should put they came together at five because it's the most recent and it's the most kind of out there of these five. Let me just give you my order. Here's what I would do. You tell me how you think five I would do. They came together 410. Things I Hate About You three Clueless to say anything. One When Harry Met Sally. I'm going to talk this through because I think we may have the exact same one. All right, I'm going to put they they came together at five. It is the perfect movie to put at number five. Your number four was ten. Things I Hate About You. Yeah, you know what? I'm going switch it up a little bit. I'm going to put Clueless at number four. Okay. And ten things I Hate about you at number three. Because I think ten things I hate about you. This is a silly reason. I think it's more of a romance. No, it's right. It's a good point. It's like it focuses more on the core romance than in Clueless is more about Cher. So that's fair. I get that. All right. So we'll move Clueless to four and ten things I hate about you. Two, three. All right. All right. And then to say anything. And one, when Harry Met Sally. It has to be. Yeah, it has to be. When Harry Met Sally, I didn't even know that was going to be your number one. I didn't like I said, we probably both have different like number twos or something like yours would be the holiday. But yeah, when Harry Met Sally, she just got there's never a bad time to put that one on. It still totally holds up. That's it. We've arrived at the end. Always a source of contention here. Who's going to go first on? What are you watching? Why don't you pick? You tell me. I don't care. I'll go first or you know what? You know what? No, I'm not going to take this martyr thing that you got going on. I'm going to go first. All right? I'm going to do it. I'll do it. Be the one sacrificing myself, laying on the train tracks, Inception style. All right, here we go. Oh, Jesus Christ. What are you going to mention here? Yes. Easy rider. Of. Oh. There's a romantic comedy. I'm going to recommend a movie that I took out of my six pack of Cusack because it does toe the line. And but it is one of my all time favorite Cusack performances. We did reference it, but I'm doubling down and I'm making it my what are you watching recommendation and that is the incredible gross point blank. Oh my God. I just love this movie because I. Think the reason why it doesn't fit into the genre fully is because it is a romantic comedy, but it's also a regular comedy. It's also a little bit of action. It's kind of got a little bit of everything, which is what makes it such a unique movie to see. It still makes me laugh in original ways that movies don't today, and it is just led by the reason why Cusack is the fucking man. It's an amazing movie. If you haven't seen it, you must. If you have, go and watch it again because it won't be a bad. No, it definitely won't. There's just there's no false note in this, like the way he and his sister are playing off each other. That's him and Alan Arkin. Great. I mean, Dan Aykroyd. Dan Aykroyd. It is not uncommon for me to just be walking around and going. Oh, I do that all the time. I do it all the time because what it choice that is like leaving the room. Ooh like I got. Yeah. I mean movies this really make me wish they still made movies like this. They just don't. Yeah, this is loss. Like the 10 to $20 million R-rated comedy for adults. We just don't have that anymore. Where there's the stakes, like, aren't that crazy? I mean, it does have that great fight in the hallway, but good Jeremy Piven performance there. It's just I love this movie. I always have. If we're rounding out all of the actors in that, I got to give credit to Minnie Driver because she plays the romantic lead and the females of things in such a unique way, like their chemistry and their relationship dynamic in the way she treats him just shouldn't work. Right. Kind of like a performance that again, like, I think only she could give like, yeah, it really works in a very specific way. Very quirky, very quirky. Yeah. That's a great, great call. I'm going to go with something that is a comedy that has romance. I don't know how many people have seen it, but it's called Happy Go Lucky from 2008, directed by Mike Lee, great British director who I Love It, stars Sally Hawkins. And this is a movie about a woman who's a teacher who's just very effortlessly carefree. And the movie has no plot. Like she's learning how to drive. She's trying to find love with a fellow colleague. She has a roommate she's friends with. She has relatives she doesn't get along with. And it's just a movie about following someone who is inherently good around. It we just follow her around. And it's not like Emily, where she's trying to do good stuff for people selflessly. It's not that. It's just you're just following this happy go lucky woman around and how infectious that can be. Just to watch is a lot of fun and it has moments not like dark, dark stuff but she has a great scene with a homeless man that you really won't forget. And the way that she plays that and you're watching this and I love Sally Hawkins and I'm watching this going like, what is this? Like, this woman doesn't take anything seriously, like what's going on here? And then it all wraps up and has a nice like bow in it and you get to understand her a little better. And her eccentricities, it's a very very broad performance. But I've always really, really loved Mike Leigh. He makes makes movies in a very interesting way. So I don't know if you've ever seen this but yeah. Happy go lucky. I would really recommend people go check that out. I've never seen it, but I love Sally Hawkins. Yeah, I think I like it a lot. It's my favorite performance from her. It was the first time I saw her and she's just. It's just kind of a silly, carefree, happy go lucky movie. And Mike Leigh does not make a lot of movies that way. Like. No, he did another year. Yeah. Secrets and Lies. These a lot of intense movies and this I would say this is the lightest movie of his and that just makes it, you know, fun to go check out so well we did it favorite romantic comedies and we talked about a lot of good movies. Still wasn't happy. Yeah you know this is we don't just like dead serious stuff. People like Pretty Woman description was a bit intense, though. I mean come. On seeds of. Jesus Christ, we would love to know your favorite romantic comedies. W AIW underscore podcast, but as always, thank you everyone for listening and happy watching.