January 1999

Why I Still Like Romantic Comedies...

OK, I admit it. I went to see You've Got Mail**. I told everyone that I was going because I wanted to see "the impact of techniculture in mainstream media", but I don't think I fooled a soul. "Yeah sure," they all said, when I started my rant about wanting to see the film portrayal of e-mail, "You're just a sucker for that kind of movie".

And yes, they were right. It's time to confess: I am indeed a hopeless devotee to that most banal of art forms: the romantic comedy. And the worse thing is that I tend to watch all the different varieties of this genre-- from the classic (The Philadelphia Story) to the highbrow (Four Weddings and a Funeral) to the eternal fish-out-of-water subgenre (The Matchmaker) and finally to the truly schmaltzy/awful, (Picture Perfect, Practical Magic**)

I've been trying to analyze this particular quirk of mine for a while now. Why in the world would a cynical, scared-of-committment type like myself get her rocks off on light n' fluffy comedies that always end happily ever after? Hmmmmm... I've managed to come up with two ideas so far...

First, I like these silly films for the same reason that I enjoy writing mainstream women's romance-- by watching the films I can fulfill all my stupid romantic fantasies without actually having to deal with a living breathing member of the opposite sex and (argh!) a real relationship with all its ups and downs.

and secondly, I really really get off on the sense of "female communion" that comes across in romantic comedies. What I mean here is that the heroine always seems to have a female confidante (slightly less attractive than her, I might add-- that's one of the rules of the genre) who she has a great time with, yakking it up and going out on the town and complaining about men. Now I love doing this myself, and I'm always pretty disappointed when another single grrl leaves the fold and leaves this yakking behind..and it seems that the only mainstream media outlet that celebrates this exchange of single-grrl angst is, you've got it, the romantic comedy.

At any rate, I feel freer now that I've confessed my guilty little secret. And I think I'm going to go home and zap some popcorn in the microwave and shove "Desperately Seeking Susan" in the VCR yet again.

P.S. Hey, all 5 of you readers out there! If you have any suggestions for Romantic comedies that I should rent, please e-mail me!

** please note: before you think I'm insane, I must point out that I did not actually enjoy You've Got Mail, Picture Perfect or Practical Magic. I was merely compelled to see them because of the aforementioned addiction...