I watched a couple of movies while working on a sewing project this afternoon: The 40-Year-Old Virgin (which I liked a whole lot – it was sweet and good-natured, which I really hadn’t expected) and 10 Things I Hate About You, which I saw years ago, and which holds up extremely well.
So, yeah, I’m a girl, and I like a good romantic comedy. Sweet is good – diabetic-shock-inducing is bad. Sexy male star is good (“10 Things”) but not necessary (“40-YOV”). The premise doesn’t need to be particularly realistic (“40”). Literate dialogue and funny incidental characters a plus. Anyone want to recommend one?
Love, Actually is wonderful, though I grant it’s possible that some parts could be too cute for your taste. But the cast is wonderful; Colin Firth, Liam Neeson, Emma Thompson, Kiera Knightley, Hugh Grant, and probably some others I’m forgetting. Definately worth a try.
I’m not really one for romantic comedies (give me a semi-decent action flick with a good looking lead and lots of explosions/fights any day) but I quite enjoyed How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days.
I’m not usually a big fan of romantic comedies, but I really love an unofficial trilogy of John Cusack movies: Say Anything, Grosse Pointe Blank, and High Fidelity. They are romantic comedies that men can enjoy as much, if not even more, than women. And due to a bit of creative fan-wankery, I have connected them to each other, so they’re in the same continuity and Cusack is the same character in all three at different points in his life (never mind the different character names).
Another good one is Keeping the Faith, with Ben Stiller, Edward Norton, and Jenna Elfman. Forgive Elfman for her crazy Scientology viewpoints; it’s a very entertaining movie that Norton (one of the best actors of our time) actually directed, and he and Stiller are great as a priest and a rabbi who are lifelong best buddies.
Thanks to my sister and SO I am unusually well versed romantic comedies. Nine Months and Forget Paris are two charming movies that aren’t nauseatingly sweet or cheesy.
Have you seen Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind? It’s funny, deeply moving and yet realistic in its treatment of the uncertainties of love. I absolutely love it.
That is in my Top Ten Movies of All Time! It didn’t even occur to me as a “romantic comedy” because I think of it so highly. Definitely a great choice, absolutely beautiful and touching, incredibly well-made, and ought to be required viewing for all.
On that note, Garden State is pretty great as well.
Legally Blonde surprised me by how enjoyable it was.
How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days was mostly enjoyable, but there was one joke I that I objected to that kept reappearing. (Objectionable joke in spoiler below). I loved the interactions between the leads and their best friends.
The girl named the guy’s penis something like Princess Sophia.
If you end up liking Love, Actually, you might also like Notting Hill, Four Weddings and a Funeral, The Englishman Who Went Up A Hill But Came Down A Mountain or Wimbledon (all but the last star Hugh Grant).
Down With Love, with Ewan Mcgregor and Renee Zellweger. It’s a tribute and update to the old Doris Day/Rock Hudson romantic comedies with a smart script.
I love About a Boy. My best friend is obsessed with Love, Actually. High Fidelity is good, but I do prefer the novel. Grosse Pointe Blank is one of my favorites. Bend It Like Beckham has a romance aspect to it and is really good. Keeping the Faith is cute as well. I can’t think of any of my own recs really, except for the one, but the ones mentioned in this thread are great.
A Room With a View
Roxanne
Sweet Home Alabama (Reese Witherspoon is very enjoyable in everything I’ve seen her in)
The Awful Truth
The Holiday was quite enjoyable
While You Were Sleeping
Elizabethtown (more of a dramedy)
I know some of these are ancient and you’ve probably seen all of them.
I thought it fell kind of flat, though. If you’re going to do a Doris Day/Rock Hudson-like movie, go for one of the originals. I’ve always like Pillow Talk and Send Me No Flowers.
Hey Twickster :). If you would like to see a romantic comedy from the gay amish perspective, try Big Eden. Great cast. Sweet story. Beautiful locations. It is definitely in my top ten here.