# Recommend: If I liked "Four Weddings and a Funeral ..." **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 22, 2005, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426 "2005-06-22T20:06:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/1 "2005-06-22T20:06:25Z")
I’m a big fan of English romantic comedies. I don’t know why exactly, except that I find that at the end of an American romantic comedy (typically starring Adam Sandler or Brittany Murphy or some other nightmare) at the end I feel just a wee bit number and stupider and manipulated. But at the end of an English romantic comedy, I find that I can feel a whole range of things – warm, wistful, but most of all, I feel smart – So, tell me, if I liked these movies … Four Weddings and a Funeral (even with Andie MacDowell dragging it down) Bridget Jones’s Diary (but I hated the sequel) Fever Pitch (the Colin Firth version, not the Drew Barrymore version) Love Actually About a Boy High Fidelity (What happens when Americans refuse to dumb down an English story? You get a damn good movie!) An Awfully Big Adventure … what should I see next? ---
**Author:** ![Dublin11](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Dublin11](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dublin11)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/2 "2005-06-22T20:15:57Z")
A shrink? No, only joking 😛 What about Notting Hill? Same production company, I think, same witer (and some of the same cast cast) as\* Four Weddings and a funera\*l and _Love Actually_. ---
**Author:** ![cher3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/da6949/32.png) [@cher3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cher3)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/3 "2005-06-22T20:18:27Z")
_The Tall Guy_, with Emma Thompson and Jeff Goldblum, also by the same people. Silliest sex scene on film. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/4 "2005-06-22T20:21:52Z")
I’ve avoided “Notting Hill” because of my dislike for Julia Roberts. Could I get some assurance that she doesn’t ruin the movie? I just noticed how many of the movies in my list feature Hugh Grant. It’s not that I have any particular feelings about Grant one way or the other. I hated “Nine Months” and I’ve avoided “Mickey Blue Eyes” and “Two Weeks Notice” because the previews I’ve seen make me think they suck. It just may be that I don’t have to try to hard to persuade my wife to see a Hugh Grant movie. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/5 "2005-06-22T20:23:36Z")
> [@cher3](#): > > _The Tall Guy_, with Emma Thompson and Jeff Goldblum, also by the same people. Silliest sex scene on film. You’re right – I liked that one too … Maybe I’ve seen most of the genre already … ---
**Author:** ![DeVena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dec6dc/32.png) [@DeVena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeVena)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/6 "2005-06-22T20:25:04Z")
Notting Hill is good despite the presence of Julia Roberts. In fact, because she’s basically playing herself, she is less annoying than normal. But it’s the rest of the cast that make the movie shine. ---
**Author:** ![Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac8455/32.png) [@Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bippy_the_Beardless)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/7 "2005-06-22T20:34:01Z")
Seeing the title alone made me come here to recomend Notting Hill, seems I was beaten to it… Maybe Bend it Like Beckham = Similar good solid British comedy. ---
**Author:** ![Dublin11](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Dublin11](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dublin11)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/8 "2005-06-22T20:34:51Z")
> [@acsenray](#): > > I’ve avoided “Notting Hill” because of my dislike for Julia Roberts. Could I get some assurance that she doesn’t ruin the movie? If you could get through Four weddings, even with Andie McDowell, you can cope with Roberts, I’m sure! It’s worth it for Spike alone! Rhys Ifans - he’s fantastic in it. ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/9 "2005-06-22T20:42:31Z")
A pair that may be worth a look: _Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel and Laurence_ (American title: _The Very Thought of You_) and _The Man with Rain in His Shoes_ (American title: _Twice Upon a Yesterday_). Oh, and yeah, what everyone else said…see _Notting Hill_, if only for the “year-long stroll” scene…some damn fine cinematography, that. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/10 "2005-06-22T20:46:26Z")
> [@Dublin11](#): > > It’s worth it for Spike alone! Rhys Ifans - he’s fantastic in it. If you like him and are willing to go Aussie instead of Brit, get Deckchair Danny. Great romantic comedy. ---
**Author:** ![anu-la1979](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/47e85d/32.png) [@anu-la1979](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anu-la1979)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/11 "2005-06-22T20:48:08Z")
They’re a little bit periodish in that they’re set in different eras but it’s more a backdrop and major plotline is the romantic comedy stuff but The Gentleman who went up a Hill and came down a mountain and Cold Comfort Farm (also a really freaking funny book) are good ones. ---
**Author:** ![Izzybella](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e56c9b/32.png) [@Izzybella](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Izzybella)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/12 "2005-06-22T21:00:32Z")
Well, it’s Australian actually, but _Muriel’s Wedding_ was really good. ---
**Author:** ![SkeptiJess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@SkeptiJess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkeptiJess)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/13 "2005-06-22T21:09:33Z")
See, I think Julia Roberts not only ruined _Notting Hill_, she stomped the shit out of it and then pissed on the remains. But then, I really dislike Julia Roberts. And I second _Cold Comfort Farm_. If you like that, try _I Capture the Castle_ – which was also a really good book. ---
**Author:** ![Indygrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@Indygrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indygrrl)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/14 "2005-06-22T21:12:07Z")
I thought Mickey Blue Eyes was just ok, but had one great scene that made it worth watching. (The restaurant scene where they order the steaks. 😃 I’m laughing just thinking of it.) ---
**Author:** ![cormac262](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f14d63/32.png) [@cormac262](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cormac262)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/15 "2005-06-22T21:16:03Z")
> [@anu-la1979](#): > > They’re a little bit periodish in that they’re set in different eras but it’s more a backdrop and major plotline is the romantic comedy stuff but > > The Gentleman who went up a Hill and came down a mountain > > and > > Cold Comfort Farm (also a really freaking funny book) > > are good ones. Interesting - in America, it was released as “The Englishman who went up a Hill and Came Down a Mountain” - like they needed to specify it was an englishman. You would probably like “Notting Hill”. Julia isn’t too annoying. I found some of the rest of the cast “trying too hard” to be counterparts to characters in “Four Weddings”. But it is a decent effort. Not really a romantic comedy, you might also like “Waking Ned Devine”. And, as mentioned, “Bend it Like Beckham”. But stay away from “Two Weeks Notice” ! Horrible. And I found “Muriel’s Wedding” more sad than funny. ---
**Author:** ![Martha\_Medea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/43a26b/32.png) [@Martha\_Medea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martha_Medea)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/16 "2005-06-22T21:23:03Z")
Not so much romantic comedies, but romantic drama with a sense of humour: Jack and Sarah Truly Madly Deeply (if you can stomach the skipping scene, that is). YMMV ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/17 "2005-06-22T21:55:52Z")
Brassed Off (Ewan McGregor yum, Pete Postlethwaite, Tara Fitzgerald) Local Hero (Mark Knopfler soundtrack) ---
**Author:** ![The\_Scrivener](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@The\_Scrivener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Scrivener)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/18 "2005-06-22T22:09:05Z")
[Saving Grace](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0195234/) – a middle-aged woman (Brenda Blethyn) whose husband kills himself, leaving her with big debts, strikes a deal with her younger gardener (Craig Ferguson, before his TV hosting success) to grow pot to pay the bills. Bittersweet, genial English comedy set in a picturesque rural village. But if it’s a gut-busting comedy you really want, I’d go with [Flirting With Disaster](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116324/), even though it’s neither a traditional rom-com\* nor British – since it’s an American screwball written & dir. by David O. Russell. It’s far more edgy, zany, and anarchic than “Four Weddings” and their ilk and it has a terrific cast. I think this is the funniest movie made in the last, oh, decade or so. Don’t miss it! - Standard romantic comedies are all about the main girl and guy pairing off, overcoming various obstacles (mostly ridiculous) to do so. “Flirting,” OTOH, begins with a married couple with a newborn, and procedes to set various temptations and distractions across their path, to great comic effect. ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/19 "2005-06-22T23:40:26Z")
Emma Thompson’s Sense and Sensibility. ---
**Author:** ![anu-la1979](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/47e85d/32.png) [@anu-la1979](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anu-la1979)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2005, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426/20 "2005-06-22T23:40:44Z")
Brassed Off actually seemed a little sad to me…I remember it being billed as a romantic comedy but then the subject matter seemed all sad. Oh, an absolutely adorable Ewan McGregor (I am such a sad fangirl) movie is Little Voice…also a quirky little British romantic comedy. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-if-i-liked-four-weddings-and-a-funeral/309426.md?page=2)