by Madison James
I recently across an article about romantic comedy movies; which was interesting. Iām an avid lover of the genre; in fact I prefer romantic comedies above any other kind of movie. The article was basically saying that romantic comedies are stuck in a rut and it needs to break out of its cookie cutter formula with perfect Barbie and Kens living in shiny plastic worlds that have no relation to reality. It went onto to propose the solution of exploring modern relationships with all of its ups and down and messiness, flawed and all.
Honestly the first thing I thought was, this was written by a guy; it was. And secondly most of the romantic comedies that I have on my shelf did have very flawed characters, which struggled to relate to each other. I do agree that there is a formulaic plot, but I have no problem with that. Just like I have no problem with the contrived plots in romance books I read. I know that there will be no Oscars tossed around generally for the films and performances, but Iām okay with that. As long as I get a cute entertaining story and a happily ever after, Iām good. I do disagree with the article stating that the plots donāt have flawed characters, in fact thatās all I see these days in the ones that line my shelf.
What do you think? Do you think that thatās just a male bias or is there some validity to the argument? Is there a problem with romantic comedy movies or are they just fine the way they are? Comment and enter to win TEMPTED AGAIN by Cathie Linz and THE FIREMAN WHO LOVED ME by Jennifer Bernard.
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I love romantic comedies too. I think there is nothing wrong with them. So, what if there gear towards women. Hey males have ther action movies. Obviously, they haven’t really seen that many romantic comedies, because the characters are totally flawed and work through there flaws through the movie. Men, obviously there girlfriends or wives don’t drag them to see these movies.
Me too!! I just LOVE romantic comedies. I think they are geared toward women and I like that. Women have this fantastic way of looking at details while men seem more apt to “see the big picture”. They miss the details that make the romance what it is. But we still love them…. flaws and all.
Obviously he doesn’t grasp how important it is at times to seek out entertainment that leaves one feeling HAPPY at the end. Silly Man.
I do enjoy the occasional romantic comedy. One of my favorites is The Boyfriend School , featuring Shelly Duvall as a romance novel author who tries to fix her brother up with a newspaper writer. It was / is a very fun movie ! Then there is Romancing The Stone ! Remember Joan Wilder and her misadventures in the jungle ? Fun Movie yet again !
If anything movie-wise is stuck in a rut, I would choose the seemingly never ending stream of remakes of otherwise perfectly fine original movies or really cheesy shlock like American Pie 392 ( or what ever number they’ve reached by now ) . Now THOSE are stuck in ruts so deep it could be a second grand canyon.
I completely agree with you. I always enjoy romantic comedies (chick flicks) even though I knw the formula, boy, girl, meet-cute, conflict, strife, angst, got kiss, tears, and happily ever after. We all know it, but we still get the sappy feeling in the pit of our stomach, and leave feeling a lttle bit better and more p tositive abt life and love. guys complain that theyre not realistic, but really, after dealing with the crap we live with every day, who needs realistic? And thats the main idea behind the movies.
I just finished The Fireman Who Loved Me, so I’m not commenting to win. I haven’t been too impressed with the romantic comedies in the last couple of years. Now, if Kristan Higgins, Jill Shalvis, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Rachel Gibson, or Jennifer Bernard (I could go on…) wrote the screenplays, I’d probably enjoy them a lot more.
I love romantic comedies. I agree, I think they are geared more towards women, but men also enjoy them. I love having a good chuckle with a romantic comedy and all of the other good feelings that come with.
I love romantic comedies—as long as there is an interesting story and a hea–I am happy.
I love romantic comedies and yes it was probably a male who wrote the article. I love romance movies and if they can make me laugh than it’s better.
I like romantic comedies — books and movies. Books do a better job of exploring the characters lives and motivations so I feel like I am getting a better product. I am still entertained by movies but, for the most part, the movies in this genre are far too formulaic and, therefore, often boring.
I would love to read The Fireman Who Loved Me! Thanks for the giveaway.
I do enjoy romantic comedies and I remember reading somewhere that said they wouldn’t mind not seeing another rom-com with Kate Hudeson or Katherine Heigl. I really enjoyed Bridesmaids because it was a fresher version of the rom-coms we’ve seen.
I think they’re fine just the way they are. Just as long as there’s a happy ending.
I think some story lines are overused but I’m happy with most romantic comedies because of the HEA.
There are the romantic comedies that are cookie cutter, you know exactly what will happen and they are boring. Cute but when it is done I feel like I could have read a book in that time. Then there are the nice surprises, a twist here and there and the characters feel real. Hmm…sounds like romance books too. Though far fewer cookie cutter books, at least in my opinion.
Interesting post.
I enjoy romantic comedies in books and movies. They are definitely geared toward women. As long as they make me laugh and have an HEA, I am happy.
I differently think its male bias. I love romantic comedies. They make me laugh and see someone fall in love at the same time. I think there should be a lot of laughter in your life and your love life. My husband makes me laugh all the time. I’ve even laugh with him in bed. It is also one of the things that has kept me from killing him when he’s made me so mad, because ultimately he makes me laugh again.
lorimeehan1@aol.com
Romantic comedies are find just the way they are!
I mean “fine”! š
I have to agree with you. I thought of a few of my favorite romantic comedies and the stories pretty much focus on the characters’ flaws and how they impact the characters’ lives. If the characters were perfect, you wouldn’t have a story whether it is a comedy or a tragedy.
I like romantic comedies too. My daughter usually tells us which ones are worth seeing. Occasionally my husband and I will stumble upon one we like that we pass on to her. In today’s world with all the bad news it’s nice to get some comedic relief. The characters have to have some issues to deal with or to live with. There has to be something quirky or interesting to catch our attention. I love to laugh as they face their challenges and fall in love along the ways. The ups and downs and how we handle it is what makes us unique the characters too.
I love romantic comedies. They’re normally full of flawed characters. As long as they make me laugh and smile. it doesn’t matter.
Flawed characters are a staple of all romance genres I read. Character growth is an important part of these novels. It’s hard to imagine growing if you start out perfect!
I usually enjoy romantic comedies but there has to be some compelling characters or I lose interest. I don’t know what kinds of movies don’t seem to have formula type plots. Action adventure movies seem interchangable to me because they do not hold my interest but studios seem to pay a lot of money to make them so obviously they are enjoyed by people. I think a lot of men groan when they hear romance applied to a movie and immediately dismiss it which could account for the negative article.
Though romantic comedies are not something I want to watch all the time (hey I’m an action and comedy type of gal) on occasions I do enjoy them. they are a good change of pace. But, I have to say that flawed characters are more interesting than “perfect” characters. You can relate to them more so than these obviousy fake perfect characters.
I enjoy romantic comedies. I loved The Proposal last year with Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock.
Romantic comedies are one of my least favorite movie genres. I usually cannot identify with the characters. The movies seem unrealistic to me. I do think they should be updated.
I love romantic comedy’s. I have seen When Harry Met Sally probably a hundred times. I don’t think it is just women who enjoy them. My husband would kill me for letting everyone know, but he enjoys them as well. I think they think they are not supposed to admit that they enjoy something that is considered to be a female facination.
Rom coms used to be better. Pretty Woman is a fine example. But I still watch them when I need a “beach movie” instead of a “beach read”. Personally I can’t get enough of Killers. There’s no help for it…
I love romantic comedies too. And I agree that films made a few years back are better than those being made more recently. I think that guy is just full of sour grapes. Rom Coms, like romance novels are purely fiction and good entertainment for a short time…not real life,
I’m neither pro nor anti romantic comedies. Some of them are very cookie cutter and formulaic, and those are the ones that are usually bad. Then there are the ones that try something new, and are funny, sweet and heart warming. Off the top of my head, I can name at least 3 romantic comedies that came out over the last 5 years that were good but not cliched: 500 Days of Summer; Knocked Up; Something New; and Crazy, Stupid, Love. The 40 year Old Virgin was a romantic comedy, but that came out more than 5 years ago. My favorite of all time, I think, is His Girl Friday with Cary Grant.