Love is in the air… and on the screen!
This February, why not kick back with your significant other and watch a romcom, or subject them to a terrible movie instead and laugh about it, together. Just in time for Valentine’s Day, we present to you, the Hult Center team’s favorite and not-so-favorite romantic comedies.
Dan Olbrych – Content and Design Coordinator
The Favorite: Long before the “Stranger Things” phenomenon and nostalgia driven “After Laughter” by Paramore, Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore starred in “The Wedding Singer “, the pinnacle of 80’s throwbacks. Not only is the movie full of heart, but it’s genuinely funny and perfectly acceptable to enjoy any time of year. “The Wedding Singer” also features a scene stealing Allen Covert (Sammy, the limo drive), a Billy Idol cameo, and a reference to the infamous Flock of Seagulls hairstyle.
The Terrible: Drew Barrymore strikes again in the nightmare “Never Been Kissed.” A movie that came out the same year as the similar and far superior Amy Sedaris show, “Strangers with Candy.” “Kissed” tells the story of an adult journalist who dresses up (changes her hair style) and pretends to be a high school student. She then falls in love with a teacher… and the teacher falls in love with her? I guess they fall in love with each other, either way, not appropriate. So, it kind of feels like they wouldn’t make this movie in 2022.
The Honorable Mention: Since no one else had this on their list I felt compelled to add it to mine as a bonus. “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” has romance, comedy, loads of people that are now super famous, insane fight scenes and rock and roll. Don’t do it a disservice by calling it a romcom.
Hannah Bulkley – Programing and Booking Coordinator
The Favorite: I really love “Meet the Parents.” It’s cheesy but it doesn’t make me roll my eyes. It also has some good “shock” moments that cross a line that most rom coms don’t dare to push. It’s over the top, but it doesn’t take itself seriously and that’s why it works. Plus, it’s one of the few movies (across ANY genre) that I feel has a sequel (“Meet the Fockers”) that stands up to the original.
The Terrible: There’s just too many to choose from. I kind of detest the genre in general, but “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” really embodies everything I hate: superficial characters that lead seemingly untroubled lives yet can’t find it within themselves to be satisfied. Throw in an incredibly weak plot and an unrealistic happily ever after ending. Ugh.
Vicki Infinito – Director of Programing and Booking
The Favorite: It’s hard to pick just one romantic comedy as a favorite, but I’m going to go with a newer one with “Palm Springs.” I know time-loop movies can be a bit, well repetitive, but this takes a slightly different take on the classic time-loop film. Runner up is “When Harry Met Sally.”
The Terrible: It honestly was harder to pick just one bad romantic comedy as there are just so many. “Never Been Kissed” is just a pretty awful concept since the teacher falls in love with someone pretending to be a student and while Drew Barrymore can be great in some movies (like “50 First Dates”) the character she plays in this movie is just awful and over the top.
Jennifer Cumberworth – Senior Administrative Specialist
The Favorite: “They Came Together” is one of the funniest movies I’ve seen in ages. It hits every rom-com trope perfectly. It is essentially “You’ve Got Mail,” but good. Written by Michael Showalter and David Wain (“Wet Hot American Summer!”) you really can’t go wrong.
The Terrible: It’s a tie between “Sleepless in Seattle” and “You’ve Got Mail.” I just truly hate them both. Sure, Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan may have some good chemistry, but they don’t even have an in-person relationship until the very end of both movies. They’re over-hyped and just sort of boring…
Abbey Aronica – Marketing Coordinator
The Favorite: Aside from having my favorite movie soundtrack of all time (I’m a BIG fan of The Shins and apparently, so is Zach Braff), “Garden State” is technically a comedy, but with some extremely emotional scenes that had me going from laughing to crying within minutes. It’s the perfect depiction of how people help you grow as a person and help you to navigate life.
The Terrible: It’s VERY hard to narrow down one of my least favorite movies, but I think “ Something Borrowed” pretty much sums up my least favorite things in a movie. It’s a movie filled with couples with NO chemistry that end up all cheating on each other, and I’m not really sure who to be rooting for because they’re all equally pretty horrible. It just never really gets going and the characters don’t have a whole lot of substance.
The Guilty Pleasure: I do have to throw in that my guilty pleasure/runner- up is “She’s All That”. It’s SO much fun, a little cliché and speaks to the angsty/artsy teen in me. It definitely gave me a warped perception of what the high school experience would be like, but I think that can be said for most movies.