Romantic film trio can be enjoyable for both genders

Valentine’s Day is a day for flowers, candy, a romantic movie and, sadly, the utter boredom of boyfriends around the world. Yet, that can be remedied.

There are movies made for both men and women to enjoy on that special day. And no, we’re not talking “Top Gun” here. These are actual, bona fide “chick flicks” that a man can appreciate and, believe it or not, sometimes even delight in.

First off, there’s the modern classic “When Harry Meet Sally.” The film begins when Harry (Billy Crystal) and Sally (Meg Ryan) originally meet while sharing a car from college to New York. The two are opposites and the uptight Sally is disgusted by Harry’s bleak views on the world, including is his take on friendships between men and women. “Men and women can’t be friends because the sex part always gets in the way,” says Harry. Once in New York they go their separate ways, only to become friends 10 years later. The rest of the movie is spent testing Harry’s theory.

The film has great insights into the male and female psyche. This includes the differing amounts of time a woman likes to be held after sex compared to the time a man wants to hold her. Also, both sexes will identify the seemingly unwarranted jealousy that accompanies watching a close friend with a new mate. Men will especially enjoy Harry’s observations on life, such as the dancing “white man’s overbite” and high versus low maintenance women. A special treat, and the funniest moment of the movie, occurs when Sally demonstrates how easily a woman can “fake it.”

Next up is the sports flick “Wimbledon.” The focus of the film is former tennis great Peter Colt (Paul Bettany). After accepting a job as the tennis pro at a swank country club, Peter gears up for his last go round at Wimbledon before retiring. Upon arriving at the tournament, he meets the bad girl of tennis Lizzie Bradbury (Kirsten Dunst), who is the odds on favorite to win. The two soon begin a torrid affair and, as a side affect, Peter’s game improves while Lizzie’s falls apart.

Girls will enjoy the great chemistry between Bettany and Dunst and a shot of Bettany’s bare bum will not turn too many off. As for guys, it is a bloody good sports movie and features some of the most realistic tennis matches ever brought to film. Also, most will appreciate Bettany’s very dry, very British sense of humor.

Last is the movie billed as the ultimate love story, “Love Actually.” Yet, this is not a love story; it is instead a story about love. Set in London over the five weeks proceeding Christmas, the story follows no less than 20 main characters as they fall in and out of love. The cast includes Hugh Grant as the new Prime Minister who falls for his “chubby” assistant while Liam Neeson, a grieving stepfather, helps his young stepson with “the total agony of being in love,” and Alan Rickman is an unhappy husband on the verge of cheating. There are plenty of small twists during the course of the film and an abundance of big laughs to go along with the occasional tear.

The movie is geared mainly toward couples and has plenty of hilarious moments for both parties. Girls’ likely favorite story line revolves around Kris (Collin Firth) and his Portuguese housemaid Aurelia (Lucia Moniz). Guys will love Bill Nighy as aging rock star Billy Mack, who is trying for one last hit with his record.

All these films have enough wit and humor to keep most guys into them for the requisite two hours and, if they are really smart, they might learn a few things. Most females know these are not movies men would normally go out of their way to see, so some sort of reward may be in order.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Feb 11 2005. Filed under Other. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry