You've Got Mail

You've Got Mail

Warner Bros.

December 13, 1998

Romcom
DVD
C

I saw this at the time, a time when I saw a lot of romcoms.  It offended me as a lifelong book-person.  Still, when it came along alphabetically in this project, I wondered what I would think of it now, a quarter century later, especially since I softened on Meg Ryan after watching When Harry Met Sally... a few months ago.

And, well, there are times when it's deliciously dated, from its concept to its OMG cast.  The soundtrack is generally solid, typically for Nora Ephron (who directed, and co-wrote with sister Delia).  New York City looks pretty and ridiculously clean.  But this movie still offends me as a book-person, because nothing about the bookstores is or ever was realistic.  (Don't get me started on its misunderstanding of Pride and Prejudice!) And of course there's the whole Tom Hanks amiably gaslighting poor Meg thing.  Still, I watched it to the end (again) and can't go below a C.

(And, yes, I've seen The Shop Around the Corner, which is over-rated but less offensive, if I recall correctly.)

Woman of the Year

Woman of the Year

MGM

February 5, 1942

Romcom

DVD
C-

A couple I'm not interested in falls in love at a baseball game, while I admire Hepburn's wardrobe and try to identify character actors.  (No, I don't know their names.)  George Stevens directed after Gunga Din and Swing Time, and before Shane.

The Wolf Man

The Wolf Man

Universal

December 12, 1941

Romcom/ Horror

DVD
C-

A man returns to the family estate, spies on a young woman, and harasses her into a date.  George Waggner directed.

While You Were Sleeping

While You Were Sleeping

Hollywood Pictures etc.

April 21, 1995

Romcom
DVD
C-

I like Sandra Bullock, including in romcoms, but it's hard to get invested in a story where she "falls in love" with a man she's never actually met.  Jon Turteltaub directed, fifteen years before The Sorcerer's Apprentice.

When Harry Met Sally...

When Harry Met Sally...

Castle Rock Entertainment

July 21, 1989
Romcom
DVD
B-

So here's the thing.  I saw this movie once or twice before, not at the time, because at twenty-one I was a little young for it.  I always thought it was over-rated but not terrible, and just seeing the trailers made me mildly dislike Meg Ryan for decades.  So I didn't exactly go into this with high hopes.

But it's actually pretty good, sweet and mildly funny.  I can't relate to it, I don't think I've ever related to it*, but it's definitely interesting in an anthropological sense, very much of its time.  And it's much better than at least 90% of the romcoms out there, especially ones I've attempted for this project.  And, yeah, I'll finally start cutting Meg Ryan some slack.

Nora Ephron wrote (with a lot of input), and Rob Reiner directed.

*I relate to Going the Distance hard, even if I'm not actually like any of the people in it.

The Wedding Banquet

The Wedding Banquet

Good Machine etc.

March 5, 1993

Romcom?

DVD
C-

Kind of flat.  Ang Lee directed and co-wrote.

America's Sweethearts

America's Sweethearts

Columbia etc.

July 20, 2001

Romcom

DVD
C+

I saw this at the time and thought it was all right.  This time, I was most struck by the following:

• It's so weird to have the Internet a non-factor in publicity
• The "Hector" stuff is pretty racist
• Catherine Zeta-Jones is easily the best part of the movie
• Billy Crystal co-wrote a script where his character is in a lust-hate relationship with a dog, that parallels the title characters'.

Anyway, it's still watchable but yeah, mostly as a period piece.  Joe Roth directed, five years before Freedomland.

This is on a Julia Roberts "Triple" pack, but I've already rejected Mona Lisa Smile.

Tin Cup

Tin Cup

Regency etc.

August 16, 1996

Sports Comedy, Romcom

DVD
C-

I had to check that I hadn't seen this before, since it felt awfully familiar, but it's not terrible.  Ron Shelton directed and co-wrote.

13 Going on 30

13 Going on 30

Columbia etc.

April 23, 2004

Fantasy, Romcom

DVD
C+

This is what I call a popcorn movie, nothing fancy, not particularly filling, but in its own way somewhat satisfying, even if some of it gets stuck in your teeth.  I have to note that, like most movies that look nostalgically back at the late '80s (e.g. The Wedding Singer, Romy & Michele), the soundtrack is more early '80s, because pop music was better in the first half of that decade.  Gary Winick directed, six years before the weaker Letters to Juliet.

The Switch (2010)

The Switch (2010)

Miramax etc.

August 20, 2010

Romcom
DVD
D

Aniston and Bateman are plausible as best friends but this script (based on Jeffrey Eugenides's short story "Baster"), oy!  Josh Gordon and Will Speck co-directed.

Sweet Home Alabama

Sweet Home Alabama

Touchstone etc.

September 27, 2002

Romcom?

DVD
D+

Cliched and a little bland.  Andy Tennant directed, between Ever After and The Bounty Hunter.

Sliding Doors

Sliding Doors

Mirage Enterprises etc.

1 May 1998

Romcom, Dramedy

DVD
C+

I really liked this at the time, but now I can see the many weaknesses in the script. Still, the premise remains intriguing and the soundtrack has aged well.  Peter Howitt wrote and directed.

Sleepless in Seattle

Sleepless in Seattle

TriStar

June 25, 1993

Romcom

DVD
D+

This is at least the third time I've attempted to watch this movie over the years.  Oh well, at least it was nice to see David Hyde Pierce in a supporting role.  (This time I tuned out before most of the recognizable faces showed up.)  Nora Ephron directed and co-wrote.

She's the Man

She's the Man

DreamWorks etc.

March 17, 2006

Romcom, Sports Comedy

DVD
B-

I enjoyed this at the time and it remains entertaining, plausibility aside.  The Aughts soundtrack is good and the cast is game, pun intended.  Yes, I didn't even mind the soccer.  And it has one of the best cat-fights of its genre.  There's a lot less of Shakespeare left here than there was of Jane Austen in Clueless, and I do wish that Viola's two female friends had been given more to do, but it works, enough.  Andy Fickman directed.

Runaway Bride

Runaway Bride

Paramount etc.

July 30, 1999

Romcom

DVD
D

Gere plays such a misogynist that he even sneers at a set of adorable baby girl triplets.  Garry Marshall directed, because of course he did.

Roman Holiday

Roman Holiday

Paramount

September 2, 1953

Romcom

DVD
C+

The only other time I saw this was almost 40 years ago in a Latin class, where most of the students were bored but I was already a vintage-film fan.  This time, well, it's a bit creepy, and 37-year-old Gregory Peck seems much too old for 24-year-old Audrey Hepburn, because of their different images.  (There's a similar problem in Sabrina from the following year, although Bogie at 54, and a couple years from death, really was too old for her.)  I watched the whole thing but would've give a C if the "happy ending" was the main couple getting together.  Still, Hepburn remains luminous and Rome is Rome, so yeah, it's watchable.  Plus, Eddie Green Acres Albert as a bearded proto-beatnik photographer named Irving is worth something.

Blacklisted Dalton Trumbo wrote under a pseudonym, while William Wyler directed.

The Proposal

The Proposal

Touchstone AKA Disney

June 19, 2009

Romcom

DVD
D+

I watched this all the way through in the theater at the time, because I was going to a lot of romcoms and because I like Sandra Bullock.  But this time I didn't care about her character or Ryan Reynolds's, and I certainly wasn't invested in them as a couple.  Anne Fletcher directed.

The Prince and Me

The Prince and Me

Lionsgate etc.

April 2, 2004

Romcom

DVD
C-

I enjoyed this in the theater, and I generally do, or did, like Julia Stiles, but I didn't care about either of the leads this time, especially him.  Martha Coolidge directed.

Prime

Prime 

Relativity Media etc.

October 28, 2005

Romcom

DVD
C

I gave this twenty minutes rather than fifteen, because I thought it had potential.  Unfortunately, the lead characters, especially him, are kind of bland.  Ben Younger wrote and directed.

Hors de prix AKA Priceless

Hors de prix AKA Priceless

TFM Distribution

13 December 2006

Romcom?

DVD
B

With its frothy tone and look, "jet-set lifestyle," and poppy soundtrack, this feels like a '60s sex farce (yet with references to the Euro and the Internet), although there's a dark undercurrent bubbling beneath.  It feels both familiar and unsettling.  The "romcom" tag isn't quite right, and yet it is a romantic comedy, just between two "kept" people.  I found it witty and charming and sexy, but I could also see people absolutely abhorring it for various reasons.  Then again, I almost always like Audrey Tautou, so there's that.  Pierre Salvadori directed and co-wrote.