Lovely Blog Party || My Top Ten Romantic Comedies {2.0}

I have, in fact, done this post before.  (And you can read it here, if you absolutely must.)  But it's extremely outdated, so for the past little while I've been compiling a more accurate list.

And then, lo and behold, Cordy's annual Lovely Blog Party rolled around, providing the perfect opportunity for actually publishing said list.  (Everyone, thank Cordy for making this possible. *polite clapping ensues*  And be sure to head over to her blog to join the party!)

For this post, I'm refining my options with the following filters:

1.  Movies must be entirely contemporary:  which, for my purposes, I am defining as being set anywhere from the 1990s to the present day.

2.  Movies must be entirely "real-world" — which, in this instance, means that there can be no magical or fantastical elements.  (Hence why Penelope isn't on this list.)

3.  Movies must be entirely or primarily comedic in style.  For example, I debated putting The Mirror Has Two Faces on this list, but that one is really more of a drama/melodrama which explores one very specific theme than a comedy which explores a relationship or a set of relationships more broadly/lightly.  

Clear as mud?  Dandy.

Now for the caveats:

1.  I know I say this almost every time, but ranking this one was a beast and I'm still not confident in all of the final slots.  Also, the rankings do not always reflect my opinion of the "objective" quality of each movie (for example, several times I've ranked a particular movie higher than another which I think is technically "better" but which I don't enjoy quite as much).  

2.  These movies range in MPAA rating from PG to R.  Use your own discretion should you choose to watch any of them. 

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#10. 

Knight and Day

• Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz running around trying to evade corrupt government officials and international technology thieves

• absolutely hysterical (and cute in its way)

• seriously the dialogue is everything 

• "That's not a warning, Roy! . . . Next time, try, 'June, if you get on this airplane, you will ******* die!'"

#9.

This Is Not What I Expected 

• opposites attract over a shared love of fine cuisine

• adorable

• has some really, super, extraordinarily cringey moments . . . but I still love it

• the marketplace scene

• "aM i SeXy?!"  "What?!"

• the sunset scene

#8.

While You Were Sleeping

• a lonely subway worker saves her unspoken crush and finds a family in his while he's comatose

• the most wholesome ever

• Lucy Eleanor Moderatz is the best

• again, the script is fantastic

• every single character is sweet and kindhearted

• except maybe Ashley Bartlett-Bacon

• "I'm just saying she was pretty high and mighty for someone named after breakfast meat."

#7.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding

• a woman decides to turn her life around while trying to coexist with her zany Greek family

• hilarious and heartwarming

• highlights the need to break free of toxic family expectations while still celebrating the joy of having a family, kooky and flawed though it may be

• the most quotable everrrrrrr

• and also perfect for watching with family

#6.

Sabrina (1995)

• a shy woman goes to Paris and comes back "all grown up," which earns her the attention of her long-term crush and the concern of his brother

• okay but the aesthetic

• the '90s feel, the twinkly evening parties, the soft music, the business-casual clothing

• Julia Ormond and Harrison Ford being cute

• fairly solid Life Lessons and a heroine to root for

#5.

Return to Me

• a man loses his wife at the same time that a dying woman finally gets a heart donor

• if you're thinking that this sounds more like a romantic drama than a romantic comedy, you're not wrong — it does have some very serious, heavy parts, but it's also quietly joyful and filled with humor

• I love Bob and Grace so much

• I love all the characters, really

• I also love the way the film handles its plot:  it's very respectful and it doesn't rush anything

• plus, I like that even though the plot could very easily be called soap operatic, it actually is at least somewhat plausible due to everyone living in the same city, etc. 

#4.

French Kiss

• a woman travelling to France to win back her ex-fiance falls in with a con man

• Meg Ryan and Kevin Kline in this, though

• I love them so much

• they have me in stitches

• completely and totally implausible, and stinking adorable nonetheless

• plus we get to see what Nate Ford was like before he became an insurance investigator (Leverage AU, anyone?)

#3.  

Destination Wedding

• two equally miserable people attend a destination wedding and talk to each other the whole time about topics like love and nihilism 

• I would say that Winona Ryder and Keanu Reeves shine in this, but the characters are expressly written to not shine, so

• the entire film is shot in impersonal, detached angles so that you really feel as though you are just a passerby observing two random strangers argue about complimentary pretzel packets and the meaning of the universe

• Frank and Lindsay are bitter and self-absorbed, and their attitudes towards other people are cynical and dismissive, but that's sort of the point and I like the examination of flawed characters who don't necessarily improve

• it's shy and just a little pretentious, and I could eat it up with a spoon

#2.  

Letters to Juliet 

• while vacationing in Italy, a woman discovers a decades-old letter and responds to it, bringing the letter's elderly author to Italy with her grandson in an attempt to find a lost love

• lots of vineyards and sunlight

• an adorable trio of unlikely friends

• Vanessa Redgrave embodying elegance

• BriTisH sNarK

• I just adore it, man

#1.  

You've Got Mail

• an independent bookstore owner goes head-to-head with a corporate magnate while carrying on a lilting friendship/loveship with an anonymous online correspondent

• this movie makes me so freaking happy?!

• the technical construction is just . . . *chef's kiss*

• the soundtrack, the sets, the transitions, pacing, the actors . . . gah 💛

• I don't even know what else to say about it without launching into a full analysis of said elements, so I'll just leave

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There you have it!

Do you like rom-coms?

What are some of your favorites?